HomeMy WebLinkAboutHomelessness and Housing Subcommittee 2025-10-21 Agenda Packet City of San Rafael
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee
October 21, 2025 | 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
Community Development Large Conference Room, 3rd Floor
San Rafael City Hall
1400 Fifth Avenue, San Rafael, CA
To view meeting (non-participation):
https://cityofsanrafael-org.zoom.us/j/84566869827
Phone: (669)444-9771
Meeting ID: 845 6686 9827
AGENDA
1. Call to Order
2. Reports/Action Items
a. Existing Tenant Protections in San Rafael
The Subcommittee will consider staff analysis and recommendations
regarding existing City of San Rafael policies including Cause Required for
Eviction, Relocation Assistance, and Mandatory Mediation.
b. Rooted in Marin: Strategies for Anti-Displacement
The Subcommittee will receive a presentation on the 2025 report, Rooted in
Marin: Strategies for Anti-Displacement, a collaboration between the Cities
and Towns and County of Marin.
c. ERF3, Homelessness, and Sanctioned Camping Area Update
The Subcommittee will receive an update on Encampment Resolution Fund
(ERF) 3 and the City’s efforts related to homelessness, camping ordinance,
enforcement, and interim shelter.
3. Open Time for Public Expression
The public is welcome to address the Committee at this time on matters not on the
agenda that are within its jurisdiction. Comments may be no longer than two
minutes and should be respectful to the community.
4. Future Agenda Items
5. For the Good of the Order
6. Adjournment
Any records relating to an agenda item, received by a majority or more of the Subcommittee less
than 72 hours before the meeting, shall be available for inspection in the City Manager’s Office,
1400 Fifth Avenue, San Rafael, CA 94901. Sign Language interpreters and assistive listening devices
may be requested by calling (415) 485-3066 (voice), emailing lindsay.lara@cityofsanrafael.org, or
using the California Telecommunications Relay Service by dialing “711”, at least 72 hours in
advance of the meeting. Copies of documents are available in accessible formats upon request. To
request Spanish language interpretation, please submit an online form at
www.cityofsanrafael.org/request-for-interpretation/. Public transportation is available through
Golden Gate Transit, Line 22 or 23. Paratransit is available by calling Whistlestop Wheels at (415)
454-0964. To allow individuals with environmental illness or multiple chemical sensitivity to attend
the meeting/hearing, individuals are requested to refrain from wearing scented products.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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Program Update: Mandatory Mediation
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Through the City’s Mandatory Mediation Program, landlords and tenants can discuss issues
related to rent increases with the support of a third-party mediator. Most mediations conducted
through the program since its adoption in 2019 have resulted in an agreement between the tenant
and the landlord; however, use of the program is limited. The City may be able to boost program
use and impact by increasing landlord and tenant awareness of the program and improving
program accessibility. Additional data collection would support future evaluations of this program.
II. BACKGROUND
In June 2019, the City Council established the Mandatory Mediation Program in San Rafael via
Ordinance 1971. The program offers an opportunity for landlords and tenants to discuss issues
related to rent increases that exceed five percent in a one-year period with a neutral third-party
mediator present. If a tenant or landlord requests mediation, both parties are required to
participate in good faith for the entirety of the mediation process, even if they do not settle their
dispute. The goal is to facilitate constructive conversations between tenants and landlords. The
program applies to most of the rental units in San Rafael, except for certain types of affordable
housing. The City of San Rafael contracts with the Marin County District Attorney’s Office (DA) to
provide mediation services.1
III. ANALYSIS
A. Mediation Requests and Outcomes
From July 2019 to June 2025, the DA received 91 requests for mandatory mediation in San
Rafael, with an increasing number of requests in 2022, 2023, and 2024. Ninety-nine percent of
program applicants were tenants, with just one landlord requesting mediation through the
program.
55% of the requests submitted were eligible for the program. Most of the ineligible requests were
ineligible because they did not involve a rent increase. Some of the ineligible applicants were
successfully engaged in the DA's voluntary mediation program, which is available to tenants
throughout the county.
Mediation was conducted in 21 cases, and an agreement was reached in 76% (16) of these cases.
In eight additional cases, the parties reached an agreement before mediation. In most other
cases, the applicant withdrew their request for mediation.
Attachment 1 provides additional information on mediation requests and outcomes.
B. Reasons for Limited Program Participation
Most mediations conducted through the program since its adoption in 2019 have resulted in an
agreement between the tenant and the landlord; however, use of the program is limited. The 91
1 The DA also offers a voluntary mediation service for other landlord-tenant disputes. These two programs
differ, and this report focuses solely on the mandatory mediation program for rent increases exceeding
five percent.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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requests for mediation involved a total of 86 tenants and 32 property owners, with two real estate
investment firms associated with sixty-two percent of all mediation requests submitted by tenants.
Some potential reasons for the low level of program participation include, but are not limited to:
• Diminished relevance during the pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic and associated
eviction moratorium and rent freeze policies may have impacted use of the program in its
initial years.
• Lack of awareness. Anecdotal insights from service providers, including a senior staff
person at Legal Aid of Marin and the former supervising attorney at the DA, suggest that
many tenants and landlords are not familiar with the program.
• Lack of interest. Eligible tenants may not be interested in a program that requires
participation but does not require the landlord to make any concessions.
• Landlord avoidance. Some landlords have indicated to City and County of Marin
(County) staff that they will institute rent increases below five percent to avoid mandatory
mediation.
• Barriers to access. Certain program characteristics could hinder participation for tenants
who would otherwise want to use the service.
C. Improving Program Accessibility
While there is no cost for landlords and tenants to participate in mandatory mediation, other
program aspects may impact accessibility.
i. Language Accessibility
After English, Spanish is by far the most widely spoken language in San Rafael. The
2023 American Community Survey estimates that 27 percent of the city’s residents
speak Spanish at home, including 58 percent who speak English less than “very well”.
As part of the Mandatory Mediation program, landlords must provide a Notice of Tenant
Rights to tenants when entering into a new rental agreement, when renewing a rental
agreement, and when providing notice of a rent increase. The notice includes a form
to request mediation and is the primary mechanism to notify tenants of the program.
Currently, San Rafael’s ordinance requires the landlord to provide the Notice of Tenant
Rights in a language other than English only if the lease was negotiated in that
language. The City could require landlords to provide the Notice of Tenant Rights in
Spanish, given the prevalence of Spanish in the San Rafael community. The Notice of
Tenant Rights is available in English and Spanish on the City website, and the DA
offers mediation in Spanish.
ii. Time to Request Mediation
The City ordinance requires tenants to submit a mediation request form within ten
calendar days of receiving a rent increase notice. While we do not know how many
tenants would have requested mediation but were not able to submit the form within
the ten-day window, both Legal Aid of Marin staff and tenants who participated in
recent San Rafael housing workshops identified the quick ten-day turnaround time as
a barrier. While a time limit is necessary to allow for the mediation process to occur in
a timely manner following the notice of rent increase, the City could consider extending
the timeframe to provide additional opportunity for tenants to submit a request. For
example, Concord and Fremont provide fifteen calendar days. Unless the County also
chooses to make this adjustment, the City and County program requirements would
differ, with the County remaining at ten calendar days.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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iii. Service Provider
The Marin County District Attorney’s Office administers the Mandatory Mediation
Program. In terms of compliance, respondents who are required to participate in
mediation may be more responsive to the DA than to another organization. However,
some tenants, including people of color and those who are undocumented, may be
uncomfortable engaging with the DA as a law enforcement entity. The DA does not
collect any information from program applicants regarding immigration status. That
said, this potential barrier also has emerged in relation to the DA’s voluntary mediation
service, which receives funding from San Rafael and other jurisdictions through the
Marin General Services Administration (MGSA).
In 2024, the MGSA Board established an ad hoc subcommittee to investigate the
matter. In July 2025, the City received notification from the MGSA Executive Director
stating that the “[the] County has determined that, because the Mediation program is
a County of Marin program managed by the Elected DA, and MGSA is the pass-
through fiscal agent, it is not appropriate for the MGSA to modify the existing program
or issue an RFP for a program it does not control.”
The City Council could direct staff to research models for providing this service that
could improve program accessibility and bring forward a recommendation on whether
the City should continue to participate in the DA’s voluntary and mandatory mediation
services or establish its own contract with a non-governmental entity for these
services. Other jurisdictions in the Bay Area, such as Union City, Albany, Concord,
and Alameda County, contract with a non-governmental agency to administer
mediation programs.
D. Increasing Awareness of the Program
i. Landlord Education
In the recently published Rooted in Marin report, one of the shared Community
Engagement Findings between renters and landlords was a lack of clear, accessible
information and resources about their rights and responsibilities. The City could
assess landlords’ interest in informational sessions on local policy requirements and
explore potential partnership opportunities with the County of Marin, especially for
policies such as mandatory mediation that are similar across the two jurisdictions.
Additionally, the City can leverage existing touchpoints with landlords, such as the
housing inspection program, residential building resale inspections, and business
license renewal, to deliver information and reminders to landlords regarding City rental
housing policies.
ii. Noticing Requirement
The Notice of Tenant Rights is the primary mechanism to notify tenants of the
Mandatory Mediation Program; however, the City does not currently collect data on
landlord compliance with the requirement to provide the notice to tenants when
entering into a new rental agreement, when renewing a rental agreement, and when
providing notice of a rent increase. To better gauge landlord awareness and
compliance, the City could require landlords to notify the City of rent increases and
indicate whether they provided the Notice of Tenant Rights, such as through a rental
registry. This would increase the data available regarding the rental housing market in
San Rafael and allow for targeted education to bolster understanding and awareness
among landlords. The requirement would add an additional step for landlords in the
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rent increase process and a new responsibility on City staff to review and analyze
landlord submissions. Given the administrative capacity required to implement and
maintain a rental registry, the County of Marin may be best positioned to lead a
countywide effort.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommend focusing efforts on increasing program accessibility and awareness among
landlords and tenants. Strategies include, but are not limited to:
• Requiring landlords to provide the Notice of Tenant Rights in English and Spanish in the
translated form made available by the City.
• Extending the timeframe for tenants to submit a request for mediation from ten calendar
days to fifteen calendar days after receiving the rent increase notice.
• Researching service models that could improve program accessibility and developing a
recommendation regarding the administration of San Rafael’s mediation programs going
forward.
• Conducting outreach to landlords to increase awareness of program requirements.
• Requesting that the County of Marin lead exploration of a countywide rental registry with
City support.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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ATTACHMENT 1
Mandatory Mediation Cases, July 2019 to June 2025
Number of Cases
Total Cases Through June 2025: 91
By Calendar Year:
2019 (July through December) 3
2020 3
2021 1
2022 8
2023 25
2024 49
2025 (January through June) 2
Eligibility Information
Number of Cases Percent of Total
Eligible Cases 50 55%
--Eligible Cases Median Rent Increase 9.1%, range from 5.02% to 41%
Ineligible Cases 41 45%
Eligible Cases
Outcome of Eligible Cases Number of Cases
Agreement Reached Pre-Mediation 8
Agreement Reached Through Mediation 16
Mediation Conducted, No Agreement 5
Request Withdrawn 18
Party Unresponsive 2
Mediation Pending 1
Agreements Reached Number of Cases*
Defer rent increase 8
Perform requested repairs/maintenance 7
Withdraw the rent increase 4
Reduce the rent increase to 5% 3
Waive utility charges 3
Provide more flexible/favorable move-out terms 2
*Some cases included agreements in multiple categories.
Ineligible Cases
Reasons for Ineligibility Number of Cases
No Rent Increase 35
Rent Increase of Less Than 5% 2
Tenant Request Not Submitted Within 10 Days 2
Tenant Withheld Rent 1
Property Outside of San Rafael 1
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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Program Update: Cause Required for Eviction and Relocation Assistance
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This memo provides an overview of two of the City of San Rafael’s (City’s) tenant protection
policies: (i) Cause Required for Eviction and (ii) Relocation Assistance. In 2019, the City Council
adopted the Cause Required for Eviction policy to provide stability and fairness in the residential
rental market by regulating the grounds for eviction. Likewise, in 2005, the City Council adopted
the City’s Relocation Assistance policy, which requires residential property owners to provide
financial assistance to low-income tenants who are displaced from their residences due to
property improvement or rehabilitation. The City Council updated the policy in 2021 to require
property owners in two census tracts in the Canal neighborhood to provide a higher relocation
payment to tenants in all cases of “No Fault” eviction.
Staff has identified opportunities for improvement to both the Cause Required for Eviction and
Relocation Assistance policies. For example, the City’s current Cause Required for Eviction policy
does not include data collection, which would help determine how many notices of eviction are
issued in San Rafael each year and for what cause.
With regards to the Relocation Assistance policy, the City could develop a single relocation
assistance policy that applies in all cases of No Fault eviction to increase clarity for tenants and
landlords, streamline program administration, and ensure that low-income tenants citywide
receive sufficient assistance. Additionally, staff have an opportunity to improve enforcement of
the City’s existing policy with the implementation of new permitting software.
Furthermore, staff have identified policies other than Cause Required for Eviction and Relocation
Assistance that may help mitigate the displacement of San Rafael tenants.
II. BACKGROUND
Cause Required for Eviction
In June 2019, the San Rafael City Council adopted the Cause Required for Eviction policy via
Ordinance 1972. Under the policy, an eviction of a residential tenant must qualify as either “For
Cause” or “No Fault,” and the housing provider must state the cause of termination in their notice
to the tenant. Housing providers may terminate a tenancy “For Cause” based on failure to pay
rent, breach of rental contract, tenant's illegal activities in or around the dwelling unit, threat of
violent crime, or nuisance behavior. Allowable “No Fault” terminations include if the owner will
permanently remove the unit from the rental market, move into the unit, or conduct substantial
rehabilitation for health and safety, or if the tenant refuses to execute a lease with substantially
similar terms to the existing one. The policy applies to properties that contain at least three
separate dwelling units. A u nit is exempt from the policy if it is owned, operated, or directly
subsidized by a government agency; restricted for affordable housing; or occupied by an onsite
property manager, the property owner, or their family members.
In April 2024, the City Council adopted Ordinance 2034, which removed substantial rehabilitation
for health and safety as an allowable cause for eviction in the Canal Opportunity Zone through
December 31, 2026. The urgency ordinance was enacted based on the high risk of permanent
displacement for tenants in the Opportunity Zone due to eviction for substantial rehabilitation. The
urgency ordinance was intended to prevent displacement in the Opportunity Zone in the interim
while staff work with stakeholders to evaluate and develop citywide tenant protection policies as
described in the City’s 2023-2031 Housing Element.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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Relocation Assistance
In 2005, the San Rafael City Council adopted SRMC Section 14.16.279, which requires owners
of residential properties to provide financial assistance to low-income tenants who are displaced
from their residences due to a development project or property improvement, such as renovation
or rehabilitation. At least thirty days before the date the tenant is displaced, the landlord is required
to pay the tenant an amount equal to two times the monthly rent of the residential unit being
vacated.
In 2021, the San Rafael City Council modified the City’s Relocation Assistance policy when it
adopted SRMC Chapter 10.111, which requires owners of residential properties in Opportunity
Zones to provide financial assistance to tenants who are displaced from their residences due to
“No Fault” terminations of their tenancies. The relocation payment to the tenant includes three
months’ rent, estimated moving expenses, a per diem for any remaining days in the month that
the tenant is evicted, and an additional one month’s rent if the tenant’s household includes a
person under the age of 18 or over the age of 62, and/or a person with a disability.
Established in 2017 by the United States Congress, Opportunity Zones (OZ) are economically
distressed communities where the federal government offers preferential tax treatment for certain
new investments, including the acquisition and rehabilitation of residential properties. San Rafael
currently has one OZ, located in the Canal neighborhood. The investment period for the original
OZ program was scheduled to end on December 31, 2026. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which
the president signed into law on July 4, 2025, extended the OZ program indefinitely and
authorized state governors to propose new OZs to the federal government every ten years.
III. ANALYSIS
A. Cause Required for Eviction
i. Data on Evictions and Displacement
The City’s Cause Required for Eviction ordinance does not provide the City with data related to
eviction and displacement because the ordinance does not require housing providers to notify the
City when they initiate an eviction or if their eviction notice ultimately results in the tenant vacating
the unit. Many tenants leave their home upon receiving an eviction notice, prior to the eviction
lawsuit proceeding to trial or a final judgment. These informal evictions never reach the court
system and are largely undocumented. Tenant legal service providers, the County Court, and the
County Sheriff have valuable but incomplete data on eviction and displacement, as shown in
Figure One.
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Figure One. Stages of Displacement and Data Sources
Image: Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (modified)
The City could require landlords to notify the City of their service of eviction notices and whether
the tenant ultimately vacates the unit. This would provide the City with the option to audit a sample
of eviction notices for compliance with City policies. It would also increase the data available
regarding the number and types of For Cause and No Fault eviction notices served to tenants in
San Rafael and the properties and neighborhoods where tenants are receiving eviction notices,
which could inform future policymaking. Additionally, requiring landlords to file notices of
termination of tenancy would align the City’s Just Cause Eviction policy with standards for Just
Cause Eviction recently established by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) under
its Transit-Oriented Communities (TOC) Policy. By meeting this standard, the City may be better
positioned for future funding opportunities. The change would add an additional step for landlords
in the eviction process and a new data management responsibility for City staff.
One way to collect this data is through a rental registry, which is a system or database where
landlords are required to register details about their rental properties. A rental registry may include
information such as property addresses, landlord contact details, lease terms, rent amounts, and
compliance with housing laws. A countywide rental registry could streamline the process for
landlords who own properties in multiple jurisdictions, allow for regional data analysis, and provide
additional staffing and resources for implementation and ongoing maintenance.
While Cause Required for Eviction is helpful in preventing arbitrary evictions, existing eviction
data suggests that the policy is not stopping the displacement of San Rafael tenants. For
instance, nonpayment of rent is the most common cause listed on notices of eviction among low-
income clients served by Legal Aid of Marin. Among Bay Area cities that require landlords to file
eviction notices with local agencies, nonpayment was the cause cited in 85 to 97 percent of all
eviction notices from July to December 2023.1 Given that failure to pay rent is an allowable cause
1 Evictions in the Nine-County Bay Area, July 2025
Formal eviction
Informal
eviction
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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for eviction, additional strategies may be needed beyond Cause Required for Eviction to reduce
displacement in San Rafael. For example, habitability issues emerged as a theme across Rooted
in Marin and Housing Element community engagement efforts, as well as recent tenant protection
workshops. The City could evaluate its Housing Inspection Program and identify opportunities to
strengthen efforts related to habitability. The City has also received substantial feedback from
tenants and community-based organizations regarding the financial burden of fees charged
separately from the advertised rental price, especially for utilities that are not individually metered.
City staff received direction from the Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee in 2025 to further
investigate the prevalence of this issue in the San Rafael community.
ii. State Prohibition on Price Gouging as a Complementary Policy
The California Tenant Protection Act of 2019 limits annual rent increases for most rental properties
to five percent plus the change in the Consumer Price Index or ten percent, whichever is lower.
While five to ten percent increases in rent are still difficult for many rental households to absorb,
this State law helps prevent price-gouging. Without it, a landlord who wishes to evict a tenant but
does not have grounds under the City’s Cause Required for Eviction ordinance could displace the
tenant by implementing an exorbitant rent increase that the tenant is unable or unwilling to pay.
Since failure to pay rent is a “for cause” eviction, the tenant would not be eligible for relocation
assistance. The Tenant Protection Act is set to expire on January 1, 2030, and efforts have begun
to extend the law beyond its original sunset date. The City could consider supporting the State’s
extension of the Tenant Protection Act past 2030 as a complementary policy to the City’s Cause
Required for Eviction Ordinance.
B. Relocation Assistance
Enhanced enforcement efforts and a single citywide policy could help increase program impact.
i. Enhanced Enforcement
For most types of No Fault eviction, the City does not have an opportunity to enforce payment of
relocation assistance, and the City’s relocation assistance policy relies on a tenant’s private right
of action in cases where a landlord fails to comply. However, in cases of substantial rehabilitation
for health and safety and conversion of residential rental units to condominiums, the City enforces
relocation assistance payments through the Community and Economic Development (CED)
Department’s permitting process.2 Staff ’s relocation assistance review has typically occurred
outside of the City’s permitting system, which lengthens review time and increases the chance of
failing to identify a relocation assistance eligible project. The CED Department is preparing to
transition to new permitting software. As part of that transition, staff are planning for better
integration of relocation assistance review into the application and review process to increase
consistency and efficiency, accelerate approvals, help landlords understand their obligations, and
ensure that eligible tenants receive assistance.
ii. Single Citywide Policy
The City’s two relocation assistance policies create additional complexity for tenants and
landlords navigating rights and responsibilities across local and state laws, as well as additional
administrative demands on staff. Furthermore, the policies provide differing levels of assistance
2 Per SRMC Section 15.12.080, the City does not approve applications for conversion of existing residential
rental units to condominiums when the citywide residential rental vacancy rate is less than five percent. In
recent years, the rental vacancy rate has remained below five percent, disallowing any conversions.
Housing and Homelessness Subcommittee Meeting – October 21, 2025
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to low-income tenants across the City and apply in different situations. The Opportunity Zone
relocation assistance policy provides broader coverage and a substantially higher payment than
the Citywide relocation assistance. As a result, tenants with similar income and household
composition can receive drastically different levels of support based on where they live. In many
cases, the payment amount required in the Opportunity Zone is more than double the amount
required in the rest of San Rafael. Table One provides a sample relocation assistance payment
calculation for a two-bedroom unit based on its location and the type of No Fault eviction. In this
example, a household living in the OZ is eligible for $15,166, more than double the payment of
$7,208 for a substantial rehabilitation eviction in other parts of the City. Households living outside
of the OZ who are evicted due to owner move-in or removal of the unit from the rental market are
not covered by the City’s policy and receive one month’s rent under the California Tenant
Protection Act of 2019 ($3,604 in this example).
Table One. Sample Permanent Relocation Assistance Payment Calculation for a Two-Bedroom
Unit in Fiscal Year 2026
Any No Fault
Eviction in the OZ
Outside of the OZ
Eviction for
Substantial Rehab
Other No Fault
Eviction
Two Months’ Rent $7,208 $7,208 --
Security Deposit $3,604 -- --
Moving Expenses $750 -- --
Per Diem $0 -- --
Supplemental Payment
for Household with
Child, Elderly, or
Disabled Individual
$3,604 -- --
One Month’s Rent
Under State Law
-- -- $3,604
TOTAL $15,166 $7,208 $3,604
Assumptions: Tenant’s rent is equal to Fair Market Rent for the San Francisco HUD Metro Area;
Move-out date is the end of the month.
In 2023, there were an estimated 1,033 renter households in the OZ with an annual income of
less than $75,000; an additional 4,346 such renter households were estimated to reside in the
City as a whole. Regardless of whether the Canal neighborhood is re-designated as an OZ, low-
income tenants in the OZ and across the City are vulnerable to displacement. If the City Council
is interested in transitioning to a single Citywide policy, staff could engage community
stakeholders to develop such a policy that applies in all cases of No Fault eviction. This presents
an opportunity to align the City’s policy with the standards for Tenant Relocation Assistance under
MTC’s TOC Policy, which include requiring relocation payments for all no-fault evictions in an
amount equal to at least three months’ fair market rent. By meeting these minimum standards,
the City may be better positioned for future funding opportunities.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
Staff recommend:
• Requesting that the County of Marin lead exploration of a countywide rental registry with
City support.
• Supporting the State’s extension of the anti-gouging provisions in the Tenant Protections
Act of 2019 as a complementary policy to the City’s Cause Required for Eviction
ordinance.
• Strengthening enforcement of relocation assistance in cases of substantial rehabilitation
for health and safety.
• Engaging stakeholders with the goal of creating a single citywide relocation assistance
policy for low-income tenants that applies in cases of No Fault eviction.
• Exploring additional policies to help address eviction and displacement, including those
related to habitability and regulation of utility cost pass-throughs.
Memo
TO: City of San Rafael
FROM: Community Development Agency of Marin County
DATE: 4/30/2025
RE: Rooted in Marin Anti-Displacement Report at Housing Subcommittee on October
21, 2025
SUMMARY: Rooted in Marin has reached a critical milestone and the final report is complete.
The report includes an analysis of anti-displacement data, summary of community outreach,
and explanation of potential policies. This report was Housing Working Group project, co-
managed by the County of Marin, the City of Novato, and the City of San Rafael, with input from
all cities and towns, and completed by Community Planning Collaborative. The work was done
in the context of each jurisdiction’s Housing Element program implementation. The report
highlights key insights on the problem of displacement in Marin and actions it can take to
address it.
BACKGROUND
In 2019, County staff reconvened the Housing Working Group, a countywide working group of
Planning Directors and planning staff to encourage interjurisdictional collaboration on housing
issues and solutions, with a specific focus on responding to new state legislation to streamline
housing development.
Representatives of all Marin County municipalities participate actively in the Housing Working
Group. The Community Development Agency Housing & Grants Division staff the operations
and consultant support for the working group.
The Rooted in Marin Report is an outgrowth of this collaboration of cities and towns with the
County to take the next step in implementing the programs set forth in their respective Housing
Elements. As part of each jurisdiction’s Housing Element, they completed a Needs Assessment
which highlighted the necessity of promoting neighborhood stability, particularly for older adults,
people of color, and lower income households who rent. As a result, anti-displacement
strategies were analyzed and discussed in several of the jurisdictions’ Housing Elements to help
strengthen preservation of existing naturally occurring affordable housing. Marin jurisdictions
included anti-displacement programs and policies in their Housing Elements, as part of the
state-mandated requirement to affirmatively further fair housing.1 This project provides
countywide education and engagement regarding anti-displacement strategies as the first step
toward assisting jurisdictions in more specific program and policy implementation. The tasks for
this work are done at a Countywide, general level exploring the full range of potential strategies
to inform consideration, not as recommendations or deliverables for specific jurisdictions.
The objective for this work is to educate and engage the public, staff, policymakers, and
stakeholders to gain feedback to supplement the needs assessments from jurisdictions’
Housing Elements. Staff and the consultants have conducted community workshops and
developed educational materials, conducted a written survey reaching over 800 residents, and
facilitated focus groups engaging a diverse range of stakeholders.
These figures underscore the urgency of addressing displacement through coordinated policy
action:
• 64% of the workforce of Marin lives outside of Marin County
• 42% of the Population of Marin County is low income
• 76% of the Black population is low-income
• 61% of the Latino population is low-income
• Marin County has the third highest rental rate in the Bay Area and State
• 60% of Marin Renter households are rent burdened
• 50% of older adults are financially burdened (Area Agency on Aging)
DISCUSSION
Staff partnered with Community Action Marin in holding a series of community briefings to
gather feedback on the various policies, which policies would have the most impact, and where
to focus our attention.
The report contains a menu of options that could be considered in Section 4. The report has in-
depth analysis with case studies and policy implementation considerations. The list of policies
that appear in the City, Town, and County Housing Elements include:
• Tenant Commission/Rent Board: The commission or board may serve as an entity that
oversees and ensures compliance with local regulations such as rent stabilization and
just cause eviction protections.
• Just Cause Evictions: A local “just cause” eviction ordinance can protect tenants from
some evictions and potential harassment or discrimination.
• Landlord and Tenant Dispute Resolution/Mediation: requiring tenants and landlords to
go through a non-binding mediation process under certain conditions,
• Tenant Right to Counsel: Right to counsel programs give residents a right to full scope
legal representation in civil cases.
• Rental Assistance: Tenant rental assistance programs are initiatives designed to help
low-income renters afford their housing costs.
1 Affirmatively furthering fair housing (AFFH) is a legal obligation for federal agencies and those receiving federal housing funds to
take meaningful actions to address housing discrimination and overcome patterns of segregation, promoting diverse and inclusive
communities
• Rent Stabilization: prohibit rent increases more than a certain amount in a certain time
frame.
• Community/Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act: Opportunity to Purchase Act policies
give tenants, specified community organizations, or the government the first opportunity
to acquire housing when an owner decides to sell.
• Rental Registry: A rental registry creates a system for tracking rental housing and
monitoring compliance with local ordinances
• Relocation Assistance: Relocation assistance includes financial support and other
resources provided to tenants displaced due to “no-fault” evictions, such as code
enforcement
• Right of Return: A tenant right of return refers to a tenant’s right to return to their rental
unit after it has been temporarily vacated, usually from renovations or redevelopment.
• Regulation of Utility Cost Pass-Throughs: Regulating the cost of utilities passed on from
landlords to tenants
Community Action Marin (CAM) sponsored Community Briefings in Novato, Marin City, West
Marin (Point Reyes Station), San Rafael (Canal District), and online via Zoom. During these
briefings staff presented an overview of the reports findings and attendees were asked about
policies they would like to see implemented, and the top three policies selected were:
• Living Conditions/Habitability Issues
• Legal Support
• Rent Stabilization
Relocation Assistance and Right of Return were the policies highlighted in the Housing
Elements that directly relate to ensuring the habitability of rental units, but other options could
include Habitability Plans, and Proactive Code Enforcement as options to address habitability
issues as well.
Several other jurisdictions have also expressed openness to an Inter-Jurisdictional Rental
Registry, noting that accurate data on the housing stock would support better policy decisions
and that sharing resources could facilitate its implementation.
EQUITY IMPACT
The actions taken today will support countywide goals to address inequities in housing and
affirmatively further fair housing, as detailed in several jurisdictions’ Housing Element.
Collaborative education and engagement, with a particular focus on elevating the experiences of
Marin’s most vulnerable populations, has allowed jurisdiction representatives to hear directly
from stakeholders across Marin with the goal of informing future policies.
Marin County is a high-cost community, with housing expenses typically representing a
significant proportion of a households’ income. Housing industry standards say that to allow for
disposable income for other necessities, housing costs should not exceed 30% of gross income.
Significant proportions of both owner-occupied and renter-occupied households pay housing
costs that exceed this threshold. Thirty-three percent (33%) of owners and 52% of renters are
considered housing cost burdened in Marin. Fifteen percent (15%) of owners and 26% of renters
spend more than 50% of their income on housing and are considered severely housing cost
burdened 2. With little affordable housing options available, this figure increases for lower-
income households3. In Marin, over 65% of low-income households are housing cost burdened.
Thirty-seven percent (37%) are severely housing cost burdened4. Displacement pressures are
disproportionately experienced by low-income renters, who often face additional barriers in
maintaining housing stability5.
NEXT STEPS
Rooted in Marin staff are presenting at each City and Town Council and the Board of
Supervisors in the months of May and June. Local staff may develop a plan to consider the
policies in their housing element and/or identify any additional or alternative policies to address
these issues. Additionally, city staff may consider:
• Council study sessions
• Engagement with stakeholders
• Taking action on applicable policies