Santa Barbara city leaders took a major step toward creating a rent stabilization program Tuesday night.
In a 4-3 vote, the City Council directed staff to draft an ordinance aimed at regulating rental units and protecting tenants from sharp rent increases. The proposal comes amid a severe shortage of affordable housing for middle and low income residents.
The draft ordinance is expected to include a cap on annual rent increases set at 60% of inflation, with a maximum increase of 3%, whichever is lower. It would also create a citywide rental registry to track rent data and ban “rent banking,” a practice that allows landlords to defer increases and apply them later.
A majority of council members—including Oscar Gutierrez, Kristen Sneddon, Meagan Harmon and Wendy Santamaria—supported drafting the ordinance.
Oscar Gutierrez, who represents more than 14,000 residents west of Highway 101, said the policy reflects years of advocacy from constituents.
“I just got re-elected in 2024 and spoke to thousands of people in my district and this was something that they've been asking me to push for,” Gutierrez said. “For the last eight years that I've been on council, I've been carrying this issue on my back. So, I'm going to continue carrying it because I gave the people my word.”
The council also approved several structural components of the program, including a petition process for landlords and tenants, and a system that would use an independent hearing officer to resolve disputes, with appeals going to a board or commission. Mediation would also be offered as a resource but not required.
Meanwhile, Harmon voiced support for the policy but repeatedly called for clearer implementation details and safeguards against unintended consequences.
Still, the decisions faced pushback from Mayor Randy Rowse and council members Mike Jordan and Eric Friedman, who either voted against the measures or abstained.
Rowse argued the issue should go before voters.
“I think everybody has to have the chance to weigh in,” Rowse said. “I think people are going to feel pretty unrepresented and rightly so.”
Jordan and Friedman raised concerns about the cost and complexity of the proposed system, as well as the amount of information available to guide their decisions.
A draft ordinance will be released for a 30 to 45-day public review period before returning to the council for further consideration.
