Los Angeles housing officials say it would take the city five years to fully implement a proposal to guarantee free lawyers to low-income renters facing eviction. And by the time the potential “right to counsel” program is fully funded in 2028, it would cost close to $68 million per year.
The long-awaited report from the city’s housing department — which was months overdue — came up for discussion in the City Council’s Housing and Homelessness Committee meeting on Wednesday afternoon. The committee unanimously voted to move the recommendations toward a vote in the full council.
“I’m very excited about this moving forward,” said Councilmember Nithya Raman, the committee chair. Raman and other councilmembers proposed the right to counsel policy back in February.
If approved by the full council, the program would still take years to get fully up and running. The city aims to provide a dedicated stream of funding for eviction defense. But in order to meet demand from low-income tenants, L.A. would first need to greatly expand the number of legal aid attorneys currently helping tenants.
Does L.A. have enough lawyers?
The report comes at a time when evictions are rising and calls for a right to counsel program have grown louder. A similar policy is being weighed by the L.A. County Board of Supervisors.
L.A. is gradually removing the last remaining tenant protections from the COVID-19 pandemic. Tenant advocates say evictions could further increase after Feb. 1, when renters in the city who deferred rent during the pandemic will have to pay back all of their remaining debts. On that same date, tenants in rent-controlled L.A. housing will face allowable rent hikes of up to 6%.
Tenants in L.A. currently have no right to an eviction defense attorney if they can’t afford one themselves. Some have secured free legal services through the city-funded program StayHousedLA.org. Others are starting to connect with lawyers who are volunteering to offer pro bono services.
Despite those new resources, the vast majority of L.A. tenants go to court without an attorney, facing landlords who have legal representation in about 95% of cases. A 2019 study commissioned by right to counsel advocates found that when L.A. tenants go to eviction court without an attorney, 99% experience some level of displacement, such as formal eviction or other forms of housing disruption.
Other cities including San Francisco, Philadelphia and Cleveland have already passed right to counsel programs. New York City was the first to enact the policy in 2017, providing full legal representation to tenants with incomes up to 200% of the federal poverty line. The city reports that 84% of those who receive lawyers stay housed. Eviction filings have fallen 30% in the city. But New York has been struggling to match tenants with attorneys, who are in short supply.
Right to counsel proponents say L.A. has a long way to go if it hopes to replicate outcomes like those in cities like New York. In order to meet projected demand, housing department officials say L.A. will need about 200 full-time eviction attorneys to handle about 10,000 cases per year. One recent study estimated there are currently only about 50 attorneys representing tenants across all of L.A. County.
Where will the city get $68 million per year?
The city’s proposed policy would not cover everyone facing eviction. The plan would provide free attorneys only to tenants earning up to 80% of the area’s median income. Under current income levels, that would mean a family of four earning up to $100,900 per year would qualify.
Pablo Estupiñan, the right to counsel campaign director with Strategic Actions For A Just Economy, said those eligibility requirements should cover most tenants needing help.
“That's something to applaud,” Estupiñan said. “It’s providing full legal representation. This isn't just tenants getting brief advice. They will have an attorney from start to finish.”
During the first four years of the proposed implementation plan, lawyers would be prioritized for tenants living in certain ZIP codes. Estupiñan said areas will be chosen based on factors like higher renter populations, lower median incomes and higher percentages of residents from races disproportionately targeted for eviction. If approved by the full council, officials plan to implement the policy city-wide by 2028.
Facing eviction in Los Angeles?
Read our guide on how to look for an attorney.
Tenant advocates who view eviction courts as the frontlines of L.A.’s homelessness crisis cheered the city’s move toward a right to counsel program. But landlords in the city have said the program is a waste of money.
When the policy was first proposed, the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles submitted a statement to the council saying a right to counsel “wrongfully promotes class warfare between renters and rental housing providers,” and detracts from other priorities such as the creation of new affordable housing and income support for disabled and senior tenants.
City councilmembers plan to fund the right to counsel program through Measure ULA, a ballot initiative passed by L.A. voters in 2022 that taxes property sales of $5 million or more. However, revenues from that tax have so far fallen below projections that claimed it could raise as much as $1.1 billion every year. The tax collected about $55 million in its first four months, and the city council has approved an initial spending plan for the first $150 million.
“Obviously, with ULA, we're hoping the resources will be bigger,” Councilmember Bob Blumenfield said during the committee meeting Wednesday.
The city estimates that each eviction defense case would cost about $5,000. That money would largely go toward paying lawyers at organizations such as the Legal Aid Foundation of L.A., which already have attorneys that specialize in this work. Those nonprofits would need to greatly increase their hiring in order to make the city’s proposed program work.
Beyond legal representation, L.A. also plans to use ULA money on rent relief programs and enforcement of the city’s law against landlords harassing tenants.
