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CC - ACTION ITEM: (1) Adoption of an Interim Ordinance Establishing a Tenant Right to Counsel Program for a Period of 12-Months; and (2) (If Desired) Direction to the City Manager Regarding Additional Funding for the Program in the Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
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Meeting Date: April 14, 2025
Contact Person/Dept.: Tevis Barnes, Housing and Human Services Department
Christina Burrows, Assistant City Attorney
Phone Number: (310) 253-5660
(310) 253-5780
Fiscal Impact: Yes [X] No [] General Fund: Yes [X] No []
Attachments: Yes [X] No []
Public Notification: (E-Mail) Meetings and Agendas - City Council (04/10/2025)
Department Approval: Tevis Barnes, Housing and Human Services Director (03/26/2025); Heather Baker, City Attorney (04/08/2025) _____________________________________________________________________
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council (1) adopt an interim ordinance establishing a Tenant Right to Counsel Program for a period of 12-Months; and (2) if desired, direct the City Manager regarding additional funding for the Tenant Right to Counsel Program in the Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
BACKGROUND
On March 3, 2025 the City Council directed staff to prepare an urgency ordinance establishing a Tenant Right to Counsel Program. On March 17, 2025, after discussing the options for a Tenant Right to Counsel Program, the City Council introduced an interim ordinance which would establish a Tenant Right to Counsel Program for a period of 12-months (the “Pilot Program”).
DISCUSSION
Proposed Pilot Program
The table below compares the Current Service Model with the Pilot Program.
Evaluation of Pilot Program
Bet Tzedek currently provides one staff attorney to cover Culver City. The cost of the existing agreement for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 will be approximately $160,000. In order to provide full scope legal representation to all eligible tenants, Bet Tzedek anticipates needing a ramp up period to hire and train at least seven additional attorneys and four administrative staff. To fund the additional staff, the contract amount would need to be increased by $1,070,000for Fiscal Year 2025-2026.
Staff anticipates using the 12-month Pilot Program in order to evaluate the need for services and to evaluate the costs to provide different levels of service.
Data Collection
At the March 4, 2025 and March 17, 2025 City Council meetings, City Council members asked what data the City collects on evictions. The City requires landlords to provide a copy of a “Notice of Termination” but the City does not track actual eviction actions. Notices of Termination and Eviction/Unlawful Detainer Actions are described in more detail below. In addition, the attached Culver City Data Report shows the data collected in 2024 by Bet Tzedek for the current service model.
Notices of Termination
Ø For all tenancies of 12 months or more, the Tenant Protections Ordinance requires landlords to submit copies of all Notices of Termination issued to a tenant within 5 days of serving the notice.
Ø Notices of Termination require the tenant to complete an action by a deadline. For example, a Three-Day Notice to Pay or Quit requires that a tenant pay the rent due within three days or vacate the premises. A tenant’s failure to do so permits the filing of an eviction action (eviction).
Ø Not all Notices of Termination result in an eviction action.
Ø Bet Tzedek offers counsel and advice on responding to a Notice of Termination, and on legal issues that are unrelated to eviction actions, such as non-eviction notices from landlords, substandard housing conditions, rent increases, breaking a lease, security deposits, etc. Bet Tzedek generally does not provide limited or full scope representation of a tenant unless an unlawful detainer action commences (see below).
Unlawful Detainers
Ø If a tenant is not responsive to a Notice of Termination or doesn’t complete the action within the specified deadline, the landlord can file an eviction case (called an Unlawful Detainer or “UD” action). The landlord must have a copy of the court papers delivered (served) on the tenant.
Ø If the landlord wins, they can ask the judge for a court order directing the sheriff to evict the tenants. The sheriff will post a Notice to Vacate and the tenant has time to move out.
Ø The Tenant Protections Ordinance does not require landlords to submit any notices or decisions of unlawful detainer actions to the City.
Ø Bet Tzedek currently provides limited and full scope representation to tenants who are facing an unlawful detainer action.
Outreach
If the Pilot Program is adopted, staff will work with its communications consultant to craft and implement an outreach plan to ensure public education and awareness of the Pilot Program launch including an animated video, decision tree, fact sheet, FAQs, GovDelivery emails, and social media posts. In addition, the City’s website will highlight the launch of the Pilot Program and will be regularly updated with pertinent information to ensure awareness of services.
Staff reviewed Los Angeles County’s Tenant Right to Counsel Program and noted that the County requires landlords to provide tenants with a notice of the Tenant Right to Counsel Program when serving an eviction notice on the tenant. Pursuant to the authority granted by Section 3.C of the Ordinance, City staff intends to prepare a regulation requiring landlords to provide notice of the Tenant Right to Counsel Program to tenants, unless directed otherwise by the City Council during the discussion of this agenda item.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
If the Ordinance is adopted, and full scope legal representation is provided to every eligible tenant starting in the 12-month Pilot Program, it is estimated that the Bet Tzedek contract will need to be increased by $1,070,000 for a total not-to-exceed of $1,230,000 for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 in order to provide full scope legal representation under the Program. In the event the tenant demand for the Pilot Program services exceeds the existing proposed contract amount, staff would return to the City Council to see if the City Council wishes to provide additional funding.
Existing costs for the Rent Stabilization Program, which include the Bet Tzedek contract, are covered by Rental Unit Registration Fees. Those fees do not generate additional revenue. If approved by Council, funding for the increased scope of the agreement would come from the General Fund and would be included in the Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026. This would increase the existing structural deficit in the General Fund.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Interim Ordinance Establishing a Tenant Right to Counsel Program.
2. Culver City 2024 Data Report.
3. Bet Tzedek Estimated Budget Memo
MOTION(S)
That the City Council:
1. Adopt an interim ordinance establishing a Tenant Right to Counsel Program for a Period of 12-Months;
2. (If desired) Direct the City Manager regarding including additional funding in the Proposed Budget for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 for the Tenant Right to Counsel Program; and
3. Provide other direction to the City Manager as deemed appropriate.