SLO’s rental housing ordinance treads on people’s rights

March 8, 2016

OPINION by DAN CARPENTER

In 2015, the majority of San Luis Obispo City Council passed a new Rental Housing Inspection Ordinance. I was one of two council members who opposed it, with the majority — Jan Marx, John Ashbaugh, and Carlyn Christianson — voting in favor.

Everything about this overreach of authority is wrong. It treads on people’s 4th Amendment rights by mandating interior inspections without cause.

This action is nothing less than discriminatory based on one’s housing status. It’s extremely onerous as tenants will ultimately absorb the cost of registration and inspection fees into future leases.

Effectively, rentals in our community will become even less affordable, negatively affecting our most vulnerable residents. Is it just a matter of time before San Luis Obispo County adopts a similar ordinance?

Will Supervisor Adam Hill support this type of regulation as his celebrated endorsers do (Marx, Ashbaugh, and Christianson)? Adam proudly highlights their endorsements and testimonials on his campaign website.

To protect your rights and prevent overzealous regulations, I encourage you to vote for me, Dan Carpenter for supervisor on June 7.

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