Over 100 OC activists faced State Capitol police after attempting to lobby for strengthened rent control and tenant protections at State Sen. Dave Min’s (D-Irvine) Sacramento office on April 24.
According to the Voice of OC, local activists and members from organizations such as Housing Now and Promotoras de Salud were denied an audience with Min. Activist groups previously scheduled a meeting with Min’s office to lobby for California Senate Bill (SB) 567, the Homelessness Protection Act.
SB 567 was drafted to address the statewide housing crisis, according to lawmakers. The law, if passed, will strengthen tenant protections, lower California’s rent cap from 10% to 5% annually and eliminate loopholes used to enact no-fault evictions. According to ABC Bakersfield, groups from all over California joined together to advocate for the bill ahead of the California Senate Judiciary Hearing on April 25.
The activists attempted to meet with Min, but the meeting was canceled by Min’s office on claims of “bullying” behavior towards staffers. According to the Voice of OC, activists and individuals with Promotoras de Salud claimed that while waiting to meet with Min, staffers from Min’s office did not take notes while speaking with activists.
A video posted on Instagram by Victor Valladares, a Huntington Beach community organizer, depicted the confrontation between a staffer from Min’s office and a group of activists at Min’s office.
“We were there, peacefully, pouring our hearts and souls, and sharing our stories about why SP567 [sic] is important to us and our community,” Valladares stated in the post’s caption. “Unfortunately, your staffer did not seem to care or take any notes, which I personally pointed out. It’s important to note that we were not bullying or harassing anyone, but simply expressing our concerns and trying to be heard.”
In an interview with the Voice of OC, Vallardes expanded on events leading up to the interaction with staffers.
“Everything was super peaceful. People traveled fourteen hours from OC — buses broke down,” Vallardes said. “Some of these Promotoras, these ladies were at the State Capitol for the first time, and we saw government officers surrounding us and telling everybody to vacate the office.”
Kelly Jones, a spokesperson for Min’s office, released a statement to the Voice of OC that claimed an activist at the meeting was “confrontational” with the staffer and that Min was unavailable because he “was busy taking other, previously scheduled meetings.”
California Capitol police, also known as Senate Sergeants, were called by Min’s office to remove individuals from the premises. Min addressed the alleged behavior of the activists on April 24.
“I don’t know who needs to hear this, but the tactics of trying to intimidate or bully my staff to try to lobby me on a particular bill are VERY counterproductive,” Min Tweeted.
Housing Now addressed Min’s claims of “intimidation” and “bullying” by lobbying groups in a statement as reported by the Voice of OC.
“This is simply not true,” the statement read. “We were there to share our stories and express our concerns about the critical need for renter protections in our community.”
During the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on April 25, Min voted to pass the Homeless Protection Act as amended. The bill was re-referred to the Senate Appropriations Committee and if passed, will require a passing vote and approval from the State Senate and State Assembly. It will then be sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom to be signed into law.
Frank Granda is a City News Intern for the spring 2023 quarter. He can be reached at grandaf@uci.edu.
