Editorial News Alert: L.A. County Supervisors Move Ahead With Paying Lawyers Instead of the Rent
At the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting on July 11th, the Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to support a motion by Supervisors Holly Mitchell and Hilda Solis to establish a “Universal Right to Counsel” for all renters throughout L.A. County. This means that the County would pay for private lawyers on an hourly basis to fight against lawful evictions rather than helping to pay the rent that is duly owed by renters for the housing being provided to them. Clearly, common sense has left the building at the Board of Supervisors.
Misguided Action
This action is so misguided, it is difficult to even comprehend. So, let’s start at the beginning. The Los Angeles Right to Counsel Coalition was created to push the County and City to create this new “right” to a lawyer for every renter for civil cases involving evictions and tenancy terminations (and is intended by Supervisor Mitchell to grow to ALL civil cases over time). Who is this group? Not surprisingly, it is made up of private attorney legal organizations that will directly benefit financially from the adoption of this policy and radical fringe activist groups, including BASTA, Eviction Defense Network (edn), Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, Inner City Law Center, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) Action, Coalition for Economic Survival (CES), and Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE).
Astoundingly, at the meeting the Board admitted to having no funds to pay for the estimated 400 private lawyers that would be needed and that the County is already underfunding the County’s own Public Defender and Alternate Public Defender, which is constitutionally required for indigent defendants facing criminal charge and possible imprisonment. This is in addition to the County’s new Community Assistance Recovery and Empowerment (CARE) Court legal representation obligations for individuals being held involuntarily for untreated schizophrenia and other severe mental illness. The Board, however, rushed through this Motion to pursue taking on these additional legal obligations on behalf of renters with no funds in hand and only the hope of identifying some unidentified, new funding sources. However, it is highly unlikely such new funding will be identified given that the state’s projected budget deficit is $31.5 Billion to $34.5 Billion. One possible source of funding mentioned was to somehow tap into the newly formed County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (CAHSA), which means higher taxes for all County residents due to new bond measures that will be proposed.
A Web of Lies
So why would the Board of Supervisors listen to such an obviously self-interested groups to craft a policy that will cost $22 million in County taxpayer funds in the first year alone? Unfortunately, the Board seems to be caught up in the same web of lies and conjecture being spun by the radical, fringe activist groups that are being told to renters.
MYTH #1: A lawyer will somehow change the laws of economics and existing leases so that renters will no longer have to pay rent now or in the future for the housing they are receiving.
FACT #1: Lawyers are not Leprechauns, and they don’t create a pot of gold for renters to use to pay their past, current or future rent. Renters unable to pay their rent today and facing eviction will equally be unable to pay rent tomorrow, next week and next month.
MYTH #2: A lawyer will stop a renter from owing back rent that remains unpaid.
FACT #2: A lawyer cannot expunge rent that is legally owed and unpaid. S/he will only delay the eviction process for a short period of time.
MYTH #3: A lawyer will prevent an owner from starting an eviction.
FACT #3: A lawyer only comes into the situation AFTER an eviction proceeding has been started and notice has been served to the renter.
MYTH #4: A lawyer will reduce the rent currently being paid by the renter.
FACT #4: A lawyer cannot change the terms of the current lease without the owner willingly agreeing to do so.
MYTH #5: Renters can be kicked out by multifamily owners just so they can increase the rent, so renters need more protection.
FACT #5: It is already prohibited statewide for multifamily owners with properties built before 2008 to evict tenants without having either an At-Fault reason to do so (such as non-payment of rent) or No-Fault (such as owner move-in). This has been prohibited since January 1, 2020, when the Tenant Protection Act (Assembly Bill 482) became effective.
MYTH #6: A lawyer is needed to get the sink fixed or to have the bug infestation addressed.
FACT #6: Any renter can pick up the phone today and call the County’s Code Enforcement Department to report code violations, which will then be investigated.
Taxpayer Funds for Private Lawyers Is NOT The Answer, So What IS the Answer?
- Permanent Rental Assistance Program for Low-Income Renters. Instead of paying $22 million for lawyers to stuff their pockets with taxpayer dollars, help renters pay the rent owed for their housing. According to Stay Housed LA, 76% of all evictions they have worked on are due to non-payment of rent. By the County providing rental assistance, evictions will be prevented entirely without lawyers getting involved. The County needs to PAY THE RENT, NOT THE LAWYERS!
- Mediation Program. The County already provides mediation under the Department of Consumer and Business Affairs (DCBA). Director Carbajal admitted during the meeting that currently his department only sends renters to mediation AFTER sending them to Stay Housed LA to seek representation by a County-paid attorney. This is completely backwards as mediation should be the FIRST place for renters and rental housing providers to work out their differences without lawyers. Mediators cost far less and can achieve far better outcomes with significantly less hostility and long-term damage to relationships. Thanks to Supervisor Hahn mediation was added to the motion before it passed and will be part of the draft permanent ordinance. To this we say, MEDIATION FIRST, LAWYERS LAST.
- Education and Outreach on EXISTING Tenant Protections. The County should conduct more education and outreach via Stay Housed LA and its many subcontractors as well as DCBA’s website regarding the County’s Rent Stabilization and Tenant Protections Ordinance (RSTPO) adopted in 2019 and the statewide law created by AB1482 that went into effect January 1, 2020. To this we say, EDUCATE, DON’T LITIGATE.
- Expand Breath Program Pilot for Guaranteed Income. The County currently has a pilot program for guaranteed income called the Breath program that is targeted to renters at or below the Area Median Income (AMI). It is currently providing $1,000 per month for 36 months to 1,000 residents. The County should expand this program to more renters in need of such assistance and reducing the monthly amount to between $300 to $500 based on the new University of California, San Francisco study. And, to this we say, INCOME FOR ALL, NOT LAWYERS FOR ALL
Attn. All Members: Call to Action
While we were unable to stop this motion from passing on Tuesday, we still have more time to defeat this horrible concept of Universal Right to Counsel by contacting the individual Supervisors and urging them to STOP Right to Counsel and START a Permanent Rental Assistance Program. We encourage our members throughout Los Angeles County to call or email the full Board of Supervisors about this issue and to join an AAGLA Advocacy Team TODAY by emailing Max Sherman at Max@aagla.org.
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If you want to STOP harmful regulations like these from proliferating throughout Southern California in the future, give us the resources we need to support candidates that will bring a fair and balanced approach to policy making. Make a contribution to the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles’ Political Action Committee TODAY! Make your contribution at: https://aagla.org/candidatespac/.
This article is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions regarding your property or specific tenancies and the requirements of any local law changes described herein, please consult with an attorney.