City Government

Two Days After Passing Moratorium, Council Stalls Rent Protection Vote

Published

10 years ago

April 8, 2016

Many of the speakers who lined up to speak at the Oakland City Council Tuesday night reminded the audience and council that passing a temporary moratorium on rent increases and evictions would only be a first step.

The City Council now has 90 days to come up with comprehensive legislation that will mitigate Oakland’s housing crisis and severely lessen the level of displacement that is pulling communities apart.

“The goal on everybody’s mind should be to get a handle on the city’s runaway evictions and displacement,” said James Vann of the Post Salon Community Assembly.

A necessary next step for the city is to set up a “feedback mechanism for how the community can participate in this process,” said Vann.

“While city staff is hammering out policies during the moratorium, there should be a stakeholder committee working with the city,” he said.

Council Votes Down Key Rent Protection Vote

One of the key measures being proposed is the Protect Oakland Tenants Initiative, which would limit rent increases to five percent per year and strengthen the existing Rent Board by adding more tenant representatives.

Increasing tenant representation on the Rent Board would more fairly reflect Oakland’s population, which is made up of 59 percent renters and 41 percent homeowners.

Speakers on Tuesday evening asked council members to put the measure on their April 19 meeting agenda in order to to directly place the tenant initiative on the November ballot – bypassing the need to collect signatures.

But at Thursday’s Rules and Legislation Committee meeting, council members voted instead to schedule the rent initiative for the Community and Economic Development (CED) Committee on May 24, which will decide whether it will go to the full council for a vote.

As a result of this change, the rent protection law is unlikely to come to the full council before June, which is the deadline for turning in signatures to go on the ballot.

For housing rights activists, rescheduling the decision goes against the urgency that was intended when the housing state of emergency was passed.

“It’s a disappointment. They have been presented with a strong measure from the grassroots, and the council is taking the long way around to listen to it,” said Camilo Zamora of Causa Justa: Just Cause, which sits on the Committee to Protect Oakland Renters.

“Council trusted Oakland residents to elect them but don’t trust (residents) when they present a measure (to the council),” said Zamora.

According to Vann, a tenants’ rights advocate, the city’s current landlord-written rent law is in large part responsible for the local housing and displacement crisis.

Funding to Enforce Existing Rent Protection Law

Meanwhile, some council members are pushing the city administration to release funding, which the council approved last year for the enforcement of the city’s Just Cause for Eviction law.

Without the funds, most tenants do not know their rights to protection against landlord abuse, illegal rent increases or unjust evictions.

“We need to be taking serious action to protect Oakland tenants, and if we do not educate the public about the laws and enforce them, many will continue to suffer needlessly,” said Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, who has been pushing for the City Administration to release the funds.

“Going to the legal system is not enough for tenants because it’s not set up to protect renters, especially (speakers) of other languages,” said Zamora. “Having a funded department within the city to be responsible for supporting its residents is extremely necessary.”

Voter Registration Drive

Looking to the November elections, Post publisher Paul Cobb is calling on churches, neighborhood organizations and individuals to participate in a city and countywide voter registration drive to register 10,000 people to vote over the next 90 days.

Cobb was appointed chair of the John George Democratic Club’s Voter Registration Committee and will be meeting with non-profit organizations and churches to help register tenants throughout the city.

“We need to have enough eligible voters on the ground to put sanctions to threaten the eviction of the city council members who do not pass legislation to protect Oakland’s tenants,” said Cobb.

“There is also a housing bond measure that people are trying to get on the November ballot for Alameda County that would create a source of funds that could remedy evictions and would be used as construction money for affordable housing,” he said.

The Post and the John George Democratic Club will be hosting an organizing event in the coming weeks for those interested in participating in the upcoming voter registration drive. For more information, contact the Post at (510) 287-8200.

Tackling State Costa-Hawkins Act

On the state level, one of the largest obstacles to tenant protections is California’s Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which exempts properties built after 1983 from local rent caps or Just Cause eviction protections.

In Tuesday’s City Council meeting, Councilmembers Kaplan and Dan Kalb agreed that the state law should be changed.

“We have to close the loopholes in tenant protection laws which exempt newer buildings, and thus deprive thousands of tenants from protections,” said Kaplan. “One of the actions we must continue to work on is to end the state exemption for newer buildings from rent protections.”

“Closing the loophole for ‘just cause for eviction’ requires a vote on a ballot measure by the people of Oakland, and we should work to put this on the ballot during the next election cycle,” said Kaplan.

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Oakland Council Expands Citywide Security Cameras Despite Major Opposition

In a 7-1 vote in favor of the contract, with only District 3 Councilmember Carroll Fife voting no, the Council agreed to maintain its existing network of 291 cameras and add 40 new “pan-tilt-zoom cameras.”

Published

3 days ago

December 21, 2025

Oakland Post

At the International Association of Chiefs of Police Conference, Flock Safety introduces new public safety technology – Amplified Intelligence, a suite of AI-powered tools designed to improve law enforcement investigations. Courtesy photo.

By Post Staff

The Oakland City Council this week approved a $2.25 million contract with Flock Safety for a mass surveillance network of hundreds of security cameras to track vehicles in the city.

In recent weeks hundreds of local residents have spoken against the camera system, raising concerns that data will be shared with immigration authorities and other federal agencies at a time when mass surveillance is growing across the country with little regard for individual rights.

The Flock network, supported by the Oakland Police Department, has the backing of residents and councilmembers who see it as an important tool to protect public safety.

“This system makes the Department more efficient as it allows for information related to disruptive/violent criminal activities to be captured … and allows for precise and focused enforcement,” OPD wrote in its proposal to City Council.

According to OPD, police made 232 arrests using data from Flock cameras between July 2024 and November of this year.

Based on the data, police say they recovered 68 guns, and utilizing the countywide system, they have found 1,100 stolen vehicles.

However, Flock’s cameras cast a wide net. The company’s cameras in Oakland last month captured license plate numbers and other information from about 1.4 million vehicles.

Speaking at Tuesday’s Council meeting, Fife was critical of her colleagues for signing a contract with a company that has been in the national spotlight for sharing data with federal agencies.

Flock’s cameras – which are automated license plate readers – have been used in tracking people who have had abortions, monitoring protesters, and aiding in deportation roundups.

“I don’t know how we get up and have several press conferences talking about how we are supportive of a sanctuary city status but then use a vendor that has been shown to have a direct relationship with (the U.S.) Border Control,” she said. “It doesn’t make sense to me.”

Several councilmembers who voted in favor of the contract said they supported the deal as long as some safeguards were written into the Council’s resolution.

“We’re not aiming for perfection,” said District 1 Councilmember Zac Unger. “This is not Orwellian facial recognition technology — that’s prohibited in Oakland. The road forward here is to add as many amendments as we can.”

Amendments passed by the Council prohibit OPD from sharing camera data with any other agencies for the purpose of “criminalizing reproductive or gender affirming healthcare” or for federal immigration enforcement. California state law also prohibits the sharing of license plate reader data with the federal government, and because Oakland’s sanctuary city status, OPD is not allowed to cooperate with immigration authorities.

A former member of Oakland’s Privacy Advisory Commission has sued OPD, alleging that it has violated its own rules around data sharing.

So far, OPD has shared Flock data with 50 other law enforcement agencies.

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Activism

Black Arts Movement Business District Named New Cultural District in California

Located in the heart of District 3, the BAMBD is widely regarded as one of the nation’s most important centers of Black cultural production — a space where artists, entrepreneurs, organizers, and cultural workers have shaped generations of local and national identity. The state’s recognition affirms the district’s historic importance and its future promise.

Published

3 days ago

December 20, 2025

Oakland Post

Councilmember Carroll Fife celebrates major milestone for Black arts, culture, and economic power in Oakland. Courtesy photo.

By Post Staff

Oakland’s Black Arts Movement Business District (BAMBD) has been selected as one of California’s 10 new state-designated Cultural Districts, a distinction awarded by the California Arts Council (CAC), according to a media statement released by Councilmember Carroll Fife.

The BAMBD now joins 23 other districts across the state recognized for their deep cultural legacy, artistic excellence, and contributions to California’s creative economy.

“This designation is a testament to what Black Oakland has built — and what we continue to build when we insist on investing in our own cultural and economic power,” said Fife.

“For years, our community has fought for meaningful recognition and resources for the Black Arts Movement Business District,” she said. “This announcement validates that work and ensures that BAMBD receives the support it needs to grow, thrive, and continue shaping the cultural fabric of California.”

Since taking office, Fife has led and supported multiple initiatives that strengthened the groundwork for this achievement, including:

Restoring and protecting arts and cultural staffing within the City of Oakland.
Creating the West Oakland Community Fund to reinvest in historically excluded communities
Advancing a Black New Deal study to expand economic opportunity for Black Oakland
Ensuring racial equity impact analyses for development proposals, improving access for Black businesses and Black contractors
Introduced legislation and budget amendments that formalized, protected, and expanded the BAMBD

“These efforts weren’t abstract,” Fife said. “They were intentional, coordinated, and rooted in a belief that Black arts and Black businesses deserve deep, sustained public investment.”

As part of the Cultural District designation, BAMBD will receive:

$10,000 over two years
Dedicated technical assistance
Statewide marketing and branding support
Official designation from Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2030

This support will elevate the visibility of BAMBD’s artists, cultural organizations, small businesses, and legacy institutions, while helping attract new investment to the district.

“The BAMBD has always been more than a district,” Fife continued. “This recognition by the State of California gives us another tool in the fight to preserve Black culture, build Black economic power, and protect the families and institutions that make Oakland strong.”

For questions, contact Councilmember Carroll Fife at CFife@oaklandca.gov.