Friend --

I'm a marine corps veteran. I never thought that after risking my life for this country that my family would be where we are: facing our second no-fault eviction in just over a year.

The first eviction happened just a week before Christmas 2020 after we lost our jobs due to COVID and left my wife and 3 kids homeless for a month. It was hardest time of my life. We finally found new housing - but just 10 months later we are now getting ANOTHER no-fault eviction.

The Ellis Act is a statewide eviction loophole that allows for families like mine to be unfairly evicted for no fault of their own. But tomorrow we have a chance to change that by passing AB 854 out of the housing committee. We think there is a good chance it can pass, but there is still one key legislator that needs to hear from us - take 30 seconds to urge Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel to vote yes on AB 854!

The Ellis Act was originally passed to protect small “mom and pop” landlords who could no longer tend to their rental property. A series of court decisions vastly expanded the Act’s reach. This led to speculators buying buildings and then “going out of the rental housing business” soon after as a means to remove rent-controlled tenants from their homes and make more money. Since 2001, Los Angeles alone has lost 27,478 rent-controlled units due to the Ellis Act (thats hundreds of thousands of renters!), and San Francisco has lost 5,478 since 1994.

Email Assemblymember Gabriel and urge him to vote yes on AB 854!

AB 854 would impose a five-year holding period before the Ellis Act can be used, significantly deterring speculator abuse of the Ellis Act. The housing crisis in California is out of control - and this is one significant step we can take to keep families in their homes rather than pushed out onto the streets.

Take 30 seconds to click to email Assemblymember Gabriel and urge him to vote yes on AB 854!

In solidarity,

Gabriel Guzman, ACCE San Diego Member

ACCE Action
http://www.acceaction.org/