We decided to set the record straight as to the origins of the passage of extra rent control in Fairfax. In 2019, Gov. Newsom passed AB 1482, California Statewide Rent Control (Tenant Protection Act). This will exist until 2030 and govern Housing Provider – Tenant Interactions.

Origins of Extra Rent Control Ordinances – You have to check out the emails!

We wanted to start to clarify two important points regarding the origins of extra rent control in Fairfax.  The origins didn’t start with a DSA presentation in May of 2022. They started early Jan of 2022 with outreach from the DSA of Marin.

1. Whereas the public presentation on the process starts with the May 2022 presentation on extra rent control by the DSA, collaboration with the DSA and the Town Council started at least back in January 2022 with Curt Ries, DSA Marin Chair reaching out to Stephanie and Chance thanking them for the extra rent control meeting and introducing them to Leah Simon-Weisburg’s model Rent Control ordinance that they will eventually adopt for Fairfax.   This is one of the many emails documenting the collaboration between the DSA, Chance, Stephanie and Renee of the Fairfax Town Council and Leah Simon-Weisburg. 

2. Leah Simon-Weisburg is the legal council for ACCE and sits on the Berkeley Rent Control board.  (It’s similar to Smith & Wesson writing gun control legislation.)  It was not until 5 months later that there was any involvement with the Fairfax public, any trivial outreach and even later, a few public hearings.  The ACCE-Fairfax Model Ordinance (the actual title) was adopted almost as a whole document.

3. Other emails like this, from April 2022, show the further collaboration and extra time (money) spent by overworked Fairfax staff, Heather Abrams (town manager) to try to work the implementation of extra rent control with Legal Aid of Marin (a free Tenant’s Legal Resource and beneficiary of extra rent control).  This is a waste of unauthorized Town money that needed to be spend on the Housing Element. 

4. In Oct 2022 when the TC was thinking that some of the provisions were too strong, there was prodding from the DSA chair to make sure the provisions were as onerous as possible, including the triple damages provisions.

5. And other emails like this from after the first reading of the ordinances showing the continued collaboration of Chance, Stephanie, Curt Reis, Legal Aid of Marin and Leah Simon-Weisburg wanting to now reach out to housing providers, authoring ‘FAQs’, organizing a ‘workshop ASAP and finalizing contracts.  Curt also warns of a ‘group of small Fairfax landlords who are up in arms’. 

This should outrage all Fairfax residents.  The extra rent control measures were not created out of necessity, not created organically, not created by any elected official of Fairfax and the residents were not allowed to vote on the ordinance.