After Karen Bass became mayor in 2022, she declared a state of emergency on homelessness and directed city agencies to speed up approvals for affordable and temporary housing. Her administration expanded the Adaptive Reuse Ordinance, which now makes it easier to turn empty office buildings into residential units. City officials say this expansion could add more than 43,000 new homes, but that number reflects projected capacity, not finished conversions. Bass has also focused on building 10,000 affordable homes on public land by working with Metro and the Los Angeles Unified and Community College Districts. In October 2026, the Mayor's Office reported that over 10,000 affordable housing units had been built in Los Angeles during Bass's first four years, with annual affordable-housing production reaching four times the rate of the previous five years. The city also said nearly 50,000 more affordable units were in the pipeline, a result linked to Executive Directive 1, which Bass signed in her first week to streamline approvals for 100% affordable projects. The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously in December 2025 to make this directive a permanent city ordinance. The city further reported the launch of the Citywide Housing Incentive Program (CHIP), described as the largest local rezoning effort in recent history, creating capacity for about 500,000 new homes along major corridors, near transit, and in employment and residential areas. These numbers come from official administration statements and show potential development capacity, not completed units. Mayor's Office announcement.
City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who has represented District 4 since 2020, has worked to strengthen rent control and tenant protections. Raman has pushed for stricter enforcement of current rules and proposed creating an Office of Tenant Protections within the Housing Department, with leadership focused on renters' needs. She has also called for changes in how the department investigates complaints about unsafe housing conditions.
Eviction protections and legal challenges
Tenant groups in Koreatown, Pico Union, and Westlake have voiced concerns about the displacement of long-term renters, especially older adults and vulnerable residents. The Ellis Act, a California law that lets landlords evict tenants to leave the rental business, remains a point of contention. Bass wants to expand rental and financial help for seniors, people with disabilities, and others at risk, using funds from United to House LA and LA County’s Measure A sales tax. Her campaign also plans to grow Stay Housed LA, which connects tenants facing eviction with legal support and rental aid. Bass has said she would work with state lawmakers to review laws like the Ellis Act to prevent unnecessary evictions.
Raman has criticized the city's response to so-called bad-faith evictions under the Ellis Act, citing the Barrington Plaza case where a judge blocked mass evictions after a legal fight. She has introduced legislation to give the Housing Department more power to challenge such actions and has expressed frustration at the department’s slow progress. "We need to move forward legislation that ensures that the Housing Department can actually push back against bad-faith Ellis evictions. And I’ve put that legislation forward. The housing department has not moved with urgency to address it. As mayor, I will ensure that they move with urgency to address it," Raman said.
Enforcement, repairs, and utility billing
Bass has expanded renter protections, including capping rent increases and removing outdated utility surcharges. Her office put in place the Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance, which bars landlords from using threats, disclosing immigration status, or failing to make timely repairs as harassment. For a possible second term, Bass’s campaign says she would strengthen code enforcement and expand partnerships with community organizations and legal service providers to improve tenant services.
Raman’s proposals include setting up a dedicated Office of Tenant Protections and making sure the Rent Escrow Account Program (REAP) effectively addresses housing code violations. She has also stressed the need to support small landlords who may struggle to pay for repairs, especially those who live in and rent out duplexes or triplexes. "I want to make sure that we’re not inadvertently pushing out smaller landlords out of the business. And I think the city can do much better on both," Raman said.
Utility billing practices have also come under scrutiny. Some landlords use the Ratio Utility Billing System (RUBS) to split utility costs among tenants, often without clear disclosure. Raman co-introduced a motion in 2022 directing the Housing Department to recommend more transparency in RUBS billing, including requirements for landlords to disclose calculation methods and set up dispute resolution processes. Bass supports City Council efforts to keep rents affordable and close loopholes that raise tenant costs, though her campaign has not stated a position on RUBS billing.
Broader context and ongoing debates
Bass and Raman have both used their offices to support organizations that help tenants avoid eviction and connect them with legal and financial resources. The debate over how to protect renters and ensure affordable housing continues to shape city policy. In October 2026, the Bass administration announced a tentative agreement with Los Angeles County to give the city a stronger role in policies for the Los Angeles Continuum of Care and in managing the process for housing people in city-funded permanent supportive and affordable units. The city said this arrangement would, for the first time, let Los Angeles control who is housed in permanent supportive housing and other affordable units paid for by city taxpayers. Mayor's Office announcement.
Los Angeles County has also reported progress through its Pathway Home program, which moved more than 2,300 people from streets into housing since its launch in August 2023, with nearly 900 later placed in permanent housing. The program, partly funded by Measure A—a half-cent sales tax approved by voters in November 2024—combines interim accommodation with supportive services and has received a $51 million Encampment Resolution Fund grant. LA County announcement.
For comparison, San Diego officials have considered shifting rental enforcement responsibilities to tenants, as reported earlier.
The LA Local, a nonprofit newsroom, contributed reporting on tenant union priorities and candidate records in Los Angeles.
