On February 14, 2023, The Apartment Association of Orange County (AAOC) filed a lawsuit in the Superior Court of California, County of Orange against the city of Santa Ana asking for declaratory and injunctive relief from the city’s rent stabilization and just cause eviction ordinances.
The City of Santa Ana adopted two ordinances in October 2021, one for rent stabilization (RSO), which regulated rent increases, and another regarding just cause eviction (JCEO) which limited eviction remedies. The RSO and JCEO apply to more than 90% of housing in the city. An October 2022 amendment made significant changes to these ordinances, including the creation of a rental housing board and capital improvement and tenant petitions, limiting rental increases to 3%, or 80% of the Consumer Price Index, and required paid enrollment in a Rental Registry.
AAOC seeks a declaration that Santa Ana’s RSO and JCEO are unconstitutional and asks the court for injunctive relief to prevent implementation and enforcement. The lawsuit claims these ordinances violate due process rights under the fourteenth amendment by creating an imbalanced Rental Housing Board whose policies will shape future lawmaking despite it being composed in violation of the California Constitution with membership requiring certain property qualifications. The suit also alleges the amendment violates due process in that it regulates rent more than required to serve its purpose of maintaining affordable housing. The fourth amendment violation claim states the Rental Registry constitutes an unreasonable search and seizure.
Chip Ahlswede, the Vice President of External Affairs for the Apartment Association of Orange County described the importance of this litigation, saying, “Despite numerous attempts to work cooperatively with the city to resolve the many legal deficiencies in the city’s law – the help offered by apartment owners was repeatedly rejected. As such we decided to stop helping and start litigating – and we are not going to stop hitting them with legal challenges until they return to the table and work in partnership the way we always had.”
Lawmakers across the country are attempting to use rent control as a quick fix to the decades-long housing supply shortage. In their haste, it is not surprising that these counterproductive policies are written in a way that raises legal concerns. The National Apartment Association (NAA) is working with its state and local affiliate partners to advocate for the rental housing industry when state and local governments overreach. We will continue to monitor the progression of this case and provide updates as they become available.