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San Diego leaders adopted a countywide temporary rent cap Tuesday and new rules to make evictions more difficult for landlords during the pandemic.
The new ordinance takes effect in early June and lasts until sometime in August. Landlords under the new law can no longer evict tenants for “just cause” reasons, such as lease violations, and can only be removed if they are an “imminent health or safety threat.” This makes it one of the strictest anti-eviction laws in the state.
It also blocks a homeowner from moving back into their property and kicking a renter out, which is allowed now by law.
The program will start as a $5 million one-year pilot project, and eventually grow to be a permanent program as part of the San Diego County Office of the Public Defender and work in partnership with regional immigrant defense agencies and nonprofit organizations.
County staff will report back to the board in 90 days with a plan to permanently fund and operate the program.
Lawson-Remer said the program will help address the current backlog in immigration courts.
Lawson-Remer said this issue was personal to her, because three of her grandparents fled Europe because they feared for their lives. Establishing a legal defense program will strengthen our values as Americans, she said.