On Tuesday, November 4, San Francisco voters voted 61% to 39% to pass Prop. M, which will amend the San Francisco Residential Rent Ordinance to prohibit specific acts of tenant harassment by landlords and to provide for enforcement by means of court orders, rent reduction, monetary awards and criminal penalties.
The new law prohibits tenant harassment by landlords by:
- failure to provide required housing services, repairs or maintenance
- failure to safely complete repairs once they are begun
- attempts to intimidate a tenant into vacating the unit
- threats of physical harm to the tenant
- violation of laws against discrimination
- refusal to acknowledge receipt of a rent check, or refusal to cash a rent check for over 30 days
- request information that could violate a tenant's right to privacy, including information about residence, citizenship status or social security number.
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