Skip to Content
Politics

Proposition 21 Meets the Same Fate as Past Rent Control Initiatives

Horitzonal slat fencing has become an unofficial symbol of gentrification. (Photo by Lexis-Olivier Ray)

By Robin Urevich

This article was produced by Capital & Main, which is an award-winning publication that reports from California on economic, political, and social issues. L.A. Taco is co-publishing this article.

[dropcap size=big]P[/dropcap]roposition 21, which would have allowed cities to widen and toughen local laws, was trounced by a 60%-40% margin.

“Given the headwinds we faced against — some very deep-pocketed and deceitful opponents — we are disappointed, although not completely surprised, that Prop. 21 fell short at the ballot box tonight,” said René Christian Moya, Yes on 21 campaign director, in a statement.

According to a 2018 Public Policy Institute of California poll, rent control remains popular among a majority of Californians. But it has been no match for an avalanche of cash from the real estate industry aimed at quashing its expansion in the state.

Prop. 21 would have reformed the 1995 Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, a real estate industry-backed law that bars vacancy control – or capping rent increases that landlords can charge new tenants. The law also exempts single-family homes and condos from rent control, as well as units constructed after 1995, or after local rent control ordinances were passed, whichever is earlier. (In Los Angeles, for example, all units built after October 1978 are excluded from rent control)

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation bankrolled both Prop. 21 and a 2018 Costa-Hawkins repeal measure, Proposition 10, which was crushed at the ballot box by a nearly identical margin. The group poured $40 million into the yes campaign this year, but the real estate industry invested more than $85 million, placing Prop. 21 among the most expensive initiative campaigns in California history, according to Ballotpedia.

Tenant rights attorney Elena Popp, executive director of the L.A.-based Eviction Defense Network, said the two defeats shouldn’t dissuade advocates from proposing future statewide measures because the ability of landlords to raise rents to market rates between tenants is a powerful incentive to harass and evict tenants in rent-controlled units.

“At some point, voters will get smart,” she said. “Rub those brain cells together and follow the money,” Popp said.

But Amy Schur, campaign director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, which had co-sponsored Prop. 10, said the only way to win statewide “is going city by city and having that bottom up pressure.” This year, however, local rent control measures met the same fate as Prop. 21.

Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles executive director Dan Yukelson also bemoaned the massive cash outlay: “$100 million could have been better spent providing housing,” he said.

But he also noted that had Prop. 21 passed, the industry would have showered millions more into reversing it – with court challenges and another ballot measure.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from L.A. TACO

Unmatched Hustle: Immigrant from Michoacán’s Tierra Caliente Creates Innovative Tortillería on Wheels…In Bakersfield

Many come and buy pounds and pounds to share with their family members as soon as they taste a warm “taco de sal,” a tortilla sprinkled simply with salt and rolled up like a thin flauta. It’s common to eat tacos de sal while waiting in line at a tortillería in Mexico, but not so much in the U.S. 

February 12, 2025

No AI. No Algorithms. No Billionaires: JOIN OUR MISSION AT L.A. TACO TODAY!!

Just L.A. people supporting real street-level journalism. Become an L.A. TACO Member today.

February 12, 2025

Halal Beef Chorizo, Pastor-Spiced Chicken Shawarma, and Tahini Salsa at Lincoln Heights’ Brand New Mediterranean-Mexican Spot

The restaurant is barely a month old. The owner is the daughter of an Egyptian father and mother from Mexico City, so having guacamole and salsa with her kebabs was a natural thing for her. “I grew up with the privilege of having both of them in the same household,” she says.

February 11, 2025

L.A.’s New Legal Taco Cart Is The First Of Its Kind

While the look may be different from what most are used to seeing, this retro cart still allows a vendor to cook some of your favorite street food, from pupusas to tacos and smash burgers. “I'm very proud of what we came up with, and I’m looking forward to seeing it in the streets and hopefully changing people's lives,” said Richard Gómez, the engineer behind it.

February 10, 2025

A Brief Timeline of L.A. Times Owner Patrick Soon-Shiong’s Transformation Into An Apparent MAGA Influencer

Exhibit A: Soon-Shiong retweets RFK Jr., thanking Donald Trump for “his leadership and courage” while reaffirming his commitment to “Make America Healthy Again.” We look at a year of tweets and controversy that have us scratching our heads.

February 10, 2025
See all posts