Santa Barbara City Council on verge of approving Rent Stabilization Ordinance and Registry
KEYT News Channel 3-12
September 29, 2026
Santa Barbara's renters have been waiting a long time for this one. The City Council is close to adopting a Residential Rent Stabilization Ordinance and Rental Registry, and this week they heard from the public before formally introducing it. Most speakers who showed up asked the council not to carve out Section 8 housing from the protections — a sign of just how much this matters to some of our most vulnerable neighbors.
Councilmember Meagan Harmon pushed back, warning that including Section 8 could discourage more landlords from participating at all. It's a real tension: do you write the strongest possible ordinance, or the one that gets the widest buy-in? Either way, this is the kind of local decision that shapes who gets to keep living here.
As KEYT News Channel 3-12 reported, the ordinance and registry are now on the verge of approval. If you rent in Santa Barbara — or know someone who does — this is worth following closely. Details on the registry and what it means for tenants and landlords will matter long after the vote.
This summary was written by AI based on the original article from KEYT News Channel 3-12.
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Santa BarbaraSource
KEYT News Channel 3-12Published
September 29, 2026
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