The action comes (coincidentally) just hours before the Long Beach City Council is scheduled to consider an item agendized by Councilmembers Rex Richardson, Roberto Uranga, Jeannine Pearce and Mary Zendejas asking the City Attorney to draft as an urgency ordinance and minute order for consideration at the next City Council meeting "to establish a moratorium on all evictions on commercial and residential units for a minimum of 30 days" along with a number of other items (LBREPORT.com coverage here.)

The Governor's Executive Order doesn't relieve a tenant from the obligation to pay rent or restrict a landlord's ability to recover rent due but citing his constitutional authority and CA Government Code sections 8567 and 8571, Governor Newsom's action does the following:

[Scroll down for further.]

Sponsor

Sponsor

As previously reported by LBREPORT.com, in addition to a moratorium on all evictions on commercial and residential units for a minimum of 30 days, the Richardson/Uranga/Pearce/Zendejas March 17 LB City Council item also proposes to include a "prohibition on late fees and a prohibition on Section 8 terminations by the Housing Authority of Long Beach (HACLB) for the duration of this period"; and asks the City Manager "to work with the Department of Energy Resources, the Water Department and investor-owned utilities (IOUs) to suspend utility shutoffs for a minimum of 30 days or until emergency proclamations are no longer in effect, whichever is longer" and work with the City Attorney "to establish an ordinance during the duration of the declaration of emergency requiring all airport, convention center, and hotel employer allow all employees to wash their hands every 30 minutes to limit community transmission" and "all relevant Departments, to evaluate the feasibility of implementing an economic relief package for working families and small businesses impacted by the COVID-19."

Similar eviction moratoria have been adopted in San Francisco and Seattle (Mayor enacted) and San Jose (Council directed) and a number of Los Angeles City Councilmembers are pursuing similar measures.

Sponsor

Sponsor

In Long Beach, the eviction moratorium and related actions carry an unspoken de facto political stinger: three of the four co-agendizers -- Richardson, Uranga and Pearce -- have endorsed organized labor-backed efforts to oust Council incumbents Dee Anderws and Al Austin in November (with the unions angered over 2017 votes by Andrews and Austin against "Claudia's Law" for hotel workers. ) Incumbents Austin and Andrews continue to retain the endorsements of Mayor Robert Garcia and LB's police and firefighter unions...but in March 2020 balloting, both of the Mayor-backed incumbents finished second to the organized labor-backed challengers.

Other aspects of the eviction proposal also include barbs aimed at LB's hospitality industry. Two items in the co-agenders' "economic relief package" propose to explore "Relief for laid-off or furloughed workers in the affected industries such as hospitality including, but not limited to, a 'right of return' and 'layoff and recall" policy, that protects workers from being laid off and subsequently not given preference when re-hiring commences" and "a worker retention or just cause for termination policy, in the hospitality industry, to protect workers through potential bankruptcy or subcontracting that could occur during an active emergency proclamation related to COVID-19."

Sponsor

Other aspects of the agenda item are less politically charged. LB's Water Dept. has already suspended (March 13) water shut offs (to ensure residents can continue to wash their hands, a repeatedly stressed COVID19 preventative measure.) The full Council is the governing board of the Housing Authority where it could presumably agendize a prohibition on Section 8 terminations.

The four Council co-agendizers say their proposed "economic relief package" should "explore" the following::

1. A review of sick and disability leave processes and enhancements for City employees, who must miss work due to COVID-19,

2. Explore TOT, or other revenue sharing opportunities, to support hotels that experience significant economic impact due to COVID-19.

3. Partnerships with financial institutions and lenders to prohibit foreclosures or halt mortgage payments for individuals who have suffered loss of wages as a result of COVID-19,

4. Streamlined processes or resources through partnerships with EDD to support workers laid off or impacted by COVID-19, and explore support for impacted workers not covered by unemployment benefits,

5. Emergency loan assistance programs to small businesses who have suffered significant loss, as a result of COVID-19,

6. Potential resources and partnerships to safely assist people under self-quarantine, due to COVID-19, with a priority on seniors,

7. Extend training opportunities with the Long Beach Public Health Department on COVID- 19 prevention to businesses in the tourism and restaurant industry,

8. Relief for laid-off or furloughed workers in the affected industries such as hospitality including, but not limited to, a "right of return" and "layoff and recall" policy, that protects workers from being laid off and subsequently not given preference when re-hiring commences, and

9. A worker retention or just cause for termination policy, in the hospitality industry, to protect workers through potential bankruptcy or subcontracting that could occur during an active emergency proclamation related to COVID-19.

Sponsor

Sponsor

Support really independent news in Long Beach. No one in LBREPORT.com's ownership, reporting or editorial decision-making has ties to development interests, advocacy groups or other special interests; or is seeking or receiving benefits of City development-related decisions; or holds a City Hall appointive position; or has contributed sums to political campaigns for Long Beach incumbents or challengers. LBREPORT.com isn't part of an out of town corporate cluster and no one its ownership, editorial or publishing decisionmaking has been part of the governing board of any City government body or other entity on whose policies we report. LBREPORT.com is reader and advertiser supported. You can help keep really independent news in LB similar to the way people support NPR and PBS stations. We're not non-profit so it's not tax deductible but $49.95 (less than an annual dollar a week) helps keep us online.