After months of debate among landlords, tenants and council members, the Santa Barbara City Council is set to decide Tuesday on permanent rent stabilization policies.

The council will have numerous policy options to discuss, including on what to base rent limits, the formation of a rental registry and landlord exemptions.

After receiving feedback from the council, city staff will be expected to bring a draft ordinance to the council in June. The council could decide to put a rent stabilization measure on the Nov. 3 general election ballot as opposed to adopting it outright, according to the city staff report.

The discussion comes after the city established a temporary rent freeze, which took effect in February.

That temporary freeze will last through the end of 2026 or whenever a permanent rent stabilization ordinance is finalized.

The rent stabilization policies apply only to tenants and landlords of properties located within city of Santa Barbara boundaries.

The rent stabilization discussion is scheduled to begin around 5 p.m. Tuesday at Santa Barbara City Hall, 735 Anacapa St. 

Public comments can be made in person, via Zoom or by emailing clerk@santabarbaraca.gov before the start of the meeting, which begins at 2 p.m.

Tuesday’s Discussion

City staff will present three options to establish rent limits: tie rent increases to a percentage of the consumer price index (CPI), the percentage of change in prices consumers pay over time; establish a fixed annual percentage to increase rent by; or combine a CPI-based increase with a fixed percentage cap. 

According to the city staff report, tenants in focus groups advocated for a rent cap formula of 60% of CPI.

Housing providers advocated for a rent cap formula aligned with AB 1482, the California Tenant Protection Act, which allows annual increases up to 5% plus CPI, or 10%, whichever is lower. 

Staff also recommended that the rent stabilization ordinance allow property owners to request an adjustment on the first rent increase under the new ordinance to account for revenue not received during the temporary rent freeze.

For rent banking — when property owners save an allowed rent increase they didn’t use from a previous year and apply it later — staff recommended that the council either not allow rent banking or allow it with restrictions. 

The staff report states that allowing rent banking gives landlords flexibility but may reduce reliability for tenants. 

For a rental registry, a database that keeps track of rental properties, landlords and unit details, staff have three suggestions. Those include establishing a registry, establishing a basic registry with limited data, or establishing a comprehensive registry with detailed unit and rent data. 

Tenants advocated for a public rental registry that includes data on units that are both exempt and not exempt from the ordinance, according to the staff report.

Meanwhile, landlords had concerns about the administrative burden of registration and documentation requirements. 

For ordinance exemptions, the council can either apply exemptions based on state law mandates or expand exemptions based on property size, type, age or regulatory status. 

Housing providers wanted exemptions for small-property owners with 10 units or fewer, while tenants advocated for no additional exemptions beyond what is required by state law.

There are numerous policy options that the council will have to decide on regarding whether landlords should be able to petition for a rent increase above the allowed cap.

The council could choose to have a limited petition or a comprehensive petition that has more flexibility. 

The petition process could be through an independent hearing officer, board or commission, or a designated city official such as the city administrator. 

Appeals could be made either through city administrative procedures or through a board or commission, according to the city staff report.

The discussion also comes as the city faces backlash for its temporary rent freeze. The Santa Barbara Rental Property Association last week sued the city over the temporary freeze, alleging it is unconstitutional. The association, which has 1,200 members, had said in March that it planned to file a lawsuit.

A Divided Council

The City Council has been divided over the rent freeze and plans for a permanent rent stabilization ordinance. 

Councilwomen Meagan Harmon, Wendy Santamaria and Kristen Sneddon and Councilman Oscar Gutierrez have supported a rent freeze, citing concerns from residents struggling to afford to live in the city.

Councilmen Eric Friedman and Mike Jordan, as well as Mayor Randy Rowse, voted against the freeze.

They argued it was government overreach and could hurt the city’s existing rental stock. 

In October 2025, Santamaria and Sneddon proposed their own rent stabilization ordinance, but it failed to pass. The other council members said they didn’t want to pass something that was written by only two council members.

Instead, the council directed city staff to work on a permanent rent stabilization plan.