State on track to be first with mandated rent controls

SALEM, Ore. — Faced with a housing shortage and skyrocketing rents, Oregon is on track to become the first state to impose mandatory rent controls, with a measure establishing tenant protections moving swiftly through the Legislature.

Many residents have testified in favor of the legislation, describing anxiety and hardship as they face higher rents. Some have gone up by as much as almost 100 percent, forcing people to move, stay with friends or even live in their vehicles.

The town of Medford recently authorized churches to offer car camping for the homeless on their parking lots. Cities across the West Coast are struggling with soaring housing prices and a growing homelessness problem. A House committee on Wednesday backed the measure, sending it to the full chamber for a vote as soon as next week. The Senate passed it last week, and Gov. Kate Brown has said she will endorse it.

“We’ve waited too long as it is, and there are too many people living in tents. It is an emergency,” said Rep. Tawna Sanchez, a Portland Democrat and member of the House Committee of Services and Housing that endorsed the legislation.

The housing shortage is getting worse as people keep moving to Oregon, drawn by its forests, mountains, coastline, relaxed lifestyle and job opportunities. Oregon ranked second to Vermont as the top moving destination in 2018, according to a study by United Van Lines, the nation’s largest household goods mover.

Lawmakers noted Oregon will be a pioneer in statewide rent control if the measure becomes law.

California actually restricts the ability of cities to impose rent control. Last November, voters defeated a ballot initiative that would have overturned that law.