Less than One Week to Referenda in California

On June 3rd, voters in California will go to the ballot box to decide upon two initiatives on eminent domain.  One, Proposition 98, would also establish provisions to gradually phase out rent control in California.

There are many counties and municipalities in California that have utilized some kind of rent control in the mobile home communities.  One list, from 2005,  attempts to catalog those communities here. (pdf)

This list is interesting for a number of reasons:

• In most places, rents are not fixed, but instead controlled in the speed of increases.   Many tie rent increases to changes in the consumer price index.
• Rent control is an idea that has lost some of its ability to draw new converts.  While Alameda County led the way with its 1965 ordinance, the last community to adopt a rent control ordinance on mobile homes was Pleasanton in 1993.
• Most were adopted as a city ordinance.
• Some allow rent increases upon a vacancy already.  This is one of the issues in Proposition 98.

Proposition 98 and 99 might appear very similar to the casual voter.  Since this is not a general election, turn out may be light.

One question that is worth asking is what would happen if both initiatives passed?  Since they both govern some of the same situations, it would not be possible to use both.  The answer is that only one can become law.  If both pass, the one with the most votes will be enacted.