Homelessness and Affordable Housing

By Robert J Haaland

The shortage of affordable housing means working families that are the backbone of San Francisco's economy cannot buy or even rent a home in our City + and it's getting worse every day.

I will increase funding to homeless prevention programs. Five years ago, I participated in a progressive city budget group and one of the ideas I forwarded, the rent assistance program at the Eviction Defense Collaborative, currently is being funded, but at far less than adequate levels. This program helps prevent homelessness by giving one-time assistance to low-income working renters who have fallen behind in their rent and are about to be evicted. In order to qualify, the individual has to show that she or he can make future rent payments. This program has been highly successful and kept many people from losing their homes. Since the program is under-funded, however, many qualified people are turned away and many of them become homeless.

Rent Control and Eviction Protections

I will continue to fight for rent control and other tenant protections. When 83-year-old renter Lola McKay faced eviction through use of the Ellis Act loophole, I organized protests and secured community support, leading to an extension of her lease. When landlords tried to repeal rent control in 2-4 unit buildings in 1998, I led the successful effort to defeat the initiative. I also served as the lead organizer for the Proposition G campaign in 1998 which aimed to place limits on "owner move-in " evictions. In 2000, I was the lead organizer for the Yes on H campaign to stop the unfair rent increases in capital improvement pass-throughs. I was on the steering committee to defeat the "HOPE" initiative in 2002, which would have loosened the restrictions on the conversion of rental housing to condominiums.

I will fight to preserve affordable rental housing. Under state law, rent-controlled units can be replaced by market-rent apartments that have no rent control or eviction protections. Landlords can also demolish apartment buildings and replace the units with high-rent units, like at Trinity Plaza. When the tenants get evicted, there is no longer rent control on the new units. I will continue to preserve San Francisco's rent-controlled homes.

I also support reform of the Rent Board. The Rent Board is intended to balance the interests of tenants and landlords in the city, including enforcing rent control, and protecting tenants from unjust evictions. On this Commission, tenants get just 40 percent of the seats, even though we make up two-thirds of the city. I support greater representation of tenants on the Board. I want to make sure that they understand the perspective of renters when considering their decisions. I will support future efforts to amend the City Charter to require proportional representation.

I strongly supported the "No Fast Pass to Eviction" legislation that will only grant the special privilege of bypassing the condo-conversion lottery to those buildings that have not evicted a senior/AIDS/disabled tenant. Our current eviction rate is three times 2003 levels and is rising. Tenants in buildings eligible to bypass legal limits on condo conversion are targets for eviction. Real estate speculators are purchasing these buildings, evicting the tenants using the Ellis Act (which takes the property permanently off the rental market), and reselling the individuals units as condos for high profits. Sixty-five percent of Ellis Act evictions throw a senior, disabled or catastrophically ill person out of his/her home. In fact, twice a day one of these individuals is evicted in San Francisco by real estate speculators. This is not the answer to our city's housing crisis. The "No Fast Pass" legislation curbs this speculation and helps protect our most vulnerable city residents from losing their homes.

I will continue to champion the rights of tenants in Project-Based Section 8 Housing. Four years ago, I helped tenants in several housing developments in Bayview/ Hunters Point. Tenants were living in untenable conditions due to toxic mold and mildew in their apartments. After several environmental reviews of the property that I organized as an staff member with the Housing Rights Committee of San Francisco, the City Attorney filed a groundbreaking lawsuit (the first of its kind) against the landlord, and now finally the property's problems are being fixed. I will continue to assist tenants who are experiencing habitability problems in housing developments and in the private sector as well.

I will also strongly advocate for continued funding for federal low-income housing programs. The current administration has proposed deep cuts to our Section 8 funding which would leave many families searching for housing literally out in the cold. Those who live in subsidized housing could lose their rent assistance and be forced from their homes. We can not let the families of the Western Addition and the Fillmore be displaced once again --as they were in the 1960s and 1970s--by reckless and mean-spirited government policies. I have worked with our congressional representatives and with HUD on many occasions before to advocate for the preservation of Section 8 and Public housing. I have the experience and the means to strongly advocate for federal and state programs that affect our district and will have the foresight to plan locally now for low-income housing options rather than pick up the pieces later.