RESOURCES: LA Mayor Karen Bass Taps Into Mayor’s Fund for Back Rent Assistance

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Mayor Karen Bass and Councilmember Nithya Raman released resources for Angelenos to stay indoors ahead of the August 1st deadline for payment of back rent for the first 18 months of the COVID emergency period. These efforts follow investment and action by the City and nonprofits to protect Angelenos from eviction.

Mayor Bass and Councilmember Raman Announce Tenant Rights Resources

Under previous tenant protections during the COVID-19 pandemic, tenants have until August 1, 2023 to pay any missing rent due between March 1, 2020 and September 30, 2021. For rent due between October 1, 2021 and January 31, 2023, tenants have until February 1, 2024 to pay the missing rent.

INFORMATION FOR RENTERS

Even though back rent is due on August 1, 2023, tenants who followed certain protections under state law cannot be evicted for the past due rent. If one of the below applies, the landlord can collect the rental arrears in Court as consumer debt, but cannot evict the tenant for this debt:

The tenant provided their landlord a Declaration of COVID-19 hardship form within 15 days of rent due for rent owed from March 1, 2020 through August 2020.
The tenant provided their landlord a Declaration of COVID-19 hardship AND paid 25% of their rent for rent owed from September 1, 2020 through September 20, 2021

Annual rent increases are prohibited through January 31, 2024 for rental units subject to the City’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance (RSO). If you receive an illegal rent increase, please report it to the Los Angeles Housing Department. If you believe you have received a rent increase in violation of the rules, please file a complaint by calling (866) 557-7368. A rent increase calculator for the current year is available here.
The City Council and Mayor approved a minimum threshold for evictable rent debt, which means tenants who owe less than one month of back rent (as set by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department Fair Market Rent for L.A.) cannot be evicted on the basis of late rent.
ALL residential rental units in Los Angeles now officially have “just cause” protections, meaning a landlord cannot evict a tenant without declaring a legal reason for eviction. For more information about “just cause” protections, click here. In non-RSO units, these protections kick in after six months or at the end of the first lease term, whichever comes first. If you’ve already been in your apartment for six months today, you’re protected.
Tenants who receive a rent increase of more than 10% within a 12 month period and are unable to afford the rent increase have the option to receive relocation assistance to move out of their rental unit.
For all at-fault evictions, landlords must file notice with the Los Angeles Housing Department within three business days, including stating legal reasons for eviction. For all no-fault evictions, landlords must file notice with the Los Angeles Housing Department, submit required fees, and pay the tenant relocation assistance. For more information about relocation assistance, click here.
All landlords of residential properties must provide a Notice of Renters’ Protections to tenants who begin or renew their tenancy. This notice must also be posted in an accessible common area of the property. For more information, click here.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION & RESOURCES FOR RENTERS

The Los Angeles Housing Department has prepared this video training about tenant protections in Los Angeles.
If you are threatened with eviction after an unlawful detainer has been filed, visit the StayHousedLA website to receive support and resources. Stay Housed LA is a partnership between the City of Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, and local community and legal service providers. The Stay Housed LA website explains current renter protections, hosts renter workshops, and refers renters facing eviction to legal service providers.

Los Angeles Housing Department Legal Resources: List of agencies providing a variety of assistance on landlord/tenant issues, rent stabilization, code enforcement, housing matters, and evictions.
Tenant Power Toolkit: Information for tenants facing eviction.

WHO CAN YOU CONTACT FOR HELP?

The Los Angeles Housing Department has opened public counters for direct assistance (by appointment only). To see a full list of locations and make an appointment, click HERE, or call (866) 557-7368.
Contact your local representative in City Council. Find more information here.
StayHoused LA regularly hosts Tenants Rights workshops reviewing your rights and protections — sign up to attend an upcoming workshop here.

If you receive an eviction notice:

Tenants should:

Read their paperwork carefully and file an answer within 5 days.
Reach out to the LA Housing Department.
Reach out to StayHoused LA.
Reach out to your local Council Office. Find more information here.

If you are experiencing harassment from your landlord*:

Tenants should reach out to:

The LA Housing Department.
A legal assistance group like Coalition for Economic Survival. Find a list at bit.ly/LAlegalservices.
Their local Council Office. Find more information here.

*Renter harassment can take many forms, including refusal to complete required repairs, threatening physical harm, asking about immigration status, and more. To see a full list of what qualifies as renter harassment in the City of Los Angeles, click HERE.

EMERGENCY ULA RENTER ASSISTANCE

The Mayor’s Office has proposed to utilize Measure ULA dollars to fund rental assistance programs. The ULA funding plan will come before the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee on August 2nd, and to the full City Council soon after. These proposed expenditures include:

$18,400,000 for a Short Term Emergency Assistance Program that will allow eligible low-income tenant households to apply for up to six months owed back rent due to a one time economic hardship. Priority eligibility shall be established for lower-income households.

$23,000,000 for the Eviction Defense/Prevention program, to continue and expand the Stay Housed LA (SHLA) program, a partnership with the County, legal service providers and community organizations, that provides tenant households at risk of eviction, with legal support, “know your rights” education, and in limited cases, rental assistance through settlements with their landlords.
$5,520,000 for a Tenant Outreach and Education program and campaign to provide broad and targeted tenant education outreach services, including workshops, legal clinics, paid and earned media, and targeted social media.

$11,219,694 for a Protections from Tenant Harassment program. Funds will be allocated for infrastructure, technology, and community outreach, to educate tenants, as well as landlords, about their rights and obligations, and to enforce protections against tenant harassment. The City adopted the Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance (TAHO) (effective August 6, 2021) to protect tenants from harassment by landlords.

The $150 million approved in the City’s FY23/24 budget will only be available to spend on programs as it comes to the City as revenue. To date, $38 million in ULA revenue has been raised. On August 1, 2023 and February 1, 2024, restrictions on landlords’ ability to evict tenants for back rent due during COVID will be lifted. The Los Angeles Housing Department has recommended that ULA spending focus initially on the Short-Term Emergency Assistance program to prevent as many potential evictions as possible, as well as Tenant Outreach and Education in order to best ensure that tenants are aware of these deadlines and their rights, and the Eviction Defense/Prevention program to provide eligible at-risk households with legal support.

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Lady Lila Brown

Lila Brown is an exceptional Public Relations professional, Olympic Sports Agent and freelance Multimedia Journalist located in Los Angeles, California.