Press "Enter" to skip to content

Renters’ Commission to be Established to Better Protect King County Tenants

Advertisement

king county council, king county metropolitain councilKing County renters will soon have a stronger voice with elected leaders and county departments. The King County Council on Wednesday approved an ordinance to establish a King County Renters’ Commission.

“As inequality grows in this region, it is the Council’s responsibility to ensure that renters’ rights are protected, and their voices are elevated,” said Councilmember Larry Gossett, who was the prime sponsor of the ordinance. “The King County Renters’ Commission gives renters the vehicle to strengthen their role in unifying their voices to create and advocate for policies that will benefit renters, especially those in the unincorporated areas of King County.”

Advertisement

The ordinance will set up a seven-member Renters’ Commission that would advise the council and the executive on issues and policies impacting renters in unincorporated King County. Councilmembers Larry Gossett and Jeanne Kohl-Welles sponsored the measure as part of a suite of legislation to bolster tenant protections and improve access to affordable housing, primarily in unincorporated areas of King County.

With nearly half of all households in King County renting their homes, rental issues are top of mind for many of the county’s 2 million residents. Additionally, 72% of African American households are renters, compared to 38% of white households, and renter households have significantly lower median household income than homeowners in King County.

“This commission will bring a much-needed fresh perspective to our policy-making decisions regarding tenants’ rights and regulations that impact renters,” Kohl-Welles said. “As we move forward as a government and representative body of the people of this County, it is imperative that we continue to bring new voices to the table – especially those voices that have traditionally been left out of the process.”

The seven appointed members will represent a variety of backgrounds and perspectives including historically underrepresented groups.

Advertisement

Similar to the City of Seattle’s renters’ commission, established in 2017, the county Renters’ Commission will monitor enforcement of existing laws, look for opportunities to strengthen and improve those laws or advise creation of new ones. The group will also develop an annual report that includes recommendations on improving affordability with a focus on unincorporated parts of the county.

The council recently approved legislation that would create a strategy to develop and retain affordable housing in Skyway and White Center. A committee is still considering other actions that would clarify county code on when and how landlords can evict tenants as well as set up a pilot program to help low-income renters when they are displaced by rent hikes in Skyway and White Center.


The above is a press release from the King County Council. The Auburn Examiner has not independently verified its contents and encourages our readers to verify any information they find may be overly biased or questionable. The publication of this press release does not indicate an endorsement of its contents. 

Advertisement
Advertisement
More from PoliticsMore posts in Politics »
Advertisement

Be First to Comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

WP2Social Auto Publish Powered By : XYZScripts.com