Rent Control Policy with Jennifer Arnold of Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia (IX)

In 2021, Minneapolis voters approved a ballot question giving the go-ahead for a rent control ordinance. In 2022, the City Council and Mayor Frey formed a Rent Stabilization Work Group to make policy recommendations. Those meetings began in September and wrapped up last week. A majority of the work group (14 of 25) voted for a policy recommendation that, if placed on the ballot and approved by voters in 2023, would be the most strict in the country.

We start the episode with a ten-minute check-in with Jimmy Harris about his experience as a renter and tenant organizer -- and the precarious housing situation facing many Minneapolis renters. Then, a conversation about rent control policy, and the city's Rent Stabilization Work Group, with Jennifer Arnold, co-director of the tenant advocacy non-profit Inquilinxs Unidxs por Justicia (IX). The headline is the proposed 3% cap on annual rent increases, but there's a lot more to it. In addition to giving us the perspective of rent control advocates, Jennifer explains key concepts like rent banking, inflation adjustment, exemptions for affordable housing or new construction, and how rent control would be enforced. We explore the issue of "vacancy control" -- and how "decontrol" would interact with the city's current lack of just cause eviction protections.

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