A handful of California cities are still enforcing laws protecting tenants from eviction or rent increases, extending pandemic-era policies that most of the country wound down more than a year ago. The San Francisco board of supervisors voted in March to maintain a local eviction ban for unpaid rent until at least the summer, while Oakland and Berkeley have similar laws running into the summer months. Los Angeles has extended its prohibition on evicting tenants for unauthorized pets or occupants and renewed its freeze on rent-controlled apartments.
Eviction moratoria were initially enacted nationwide in 2020 to limit COVID-19 spread and prevent those who lost income during the pandemic from losing their homes. Although these concerns have receded, proponents argue lifting all protections would exacerbate homelessness in cities with some of America’s highest housing costs.
