[Mintwood-place] FW: URGENT-Warning to Tenants & Critical Hearing this Friday at 5:00 PM

[Jim Graham]

From: Kevin B Fitzgerald [mailto:fitzge22 at wharton.upenn.edu] 
Sent: Monday, March 27, 2006 2:50 PM
To: undisclosed-recipients:
Subject: URGENT-Warning to Tenants & Critical Hearing this Friday at 5:00 PM


PLEASE FORWARD IMMEDIATELY!
****************************************************************************
*
WARNING TO TENANTS - 
YOUR LANDLORD IS LYING TO YOU! 
****************************************************************************
*
Several buildings have reported receiving letters from their landlords
asking tenants to sign a document in support of a bill which will "improve"
the DC Rent Control law. 
 
DO NOT BELIEVE IT. DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING.
 
Landlords say the bill is "pro-tenant." Don't believe them!


It is not the original bill introduced by Council member Jim Graham. It was
drafted by the building industry and the Mayor's Office. It gives more
rights to the landlord, and takes away rights from tenants. It would make
the law much worse for tenants (details below).
 
ACTION - Reject the landlords' request to support the Mayor's bill 
 
*** Do not sign any document supporting the Mayor's bill.
 
*** Call or email Council members Fenty and Brown ask them to reconsider
their vote, and come to the hearing - they have been absent!:
 
Council member Adrian Fenty AFenty at dccouncil.us (202) 724-8052
Council member Kwame Brown KBrown at dccouncil.us (202) 724-8176
 
*** Come to the March 31 Roundtable.  Tell your story about high rent
increases and why D.C. tenants need a stronger, better rent control law to
protect low and moderate income tenants NOT a law to protect landlords. 
 
       Public Roundtable on Rent Control
       March 31, 2006 at 5:00 pm 
       1350 PA Ave, NW -5th Floor.  
       To testify: call John Adams at (202) 724-8198 before 5 pm Wed, Mar
29. 
       (Bring picture ID - Wear Red!)
 
*** Sit in the audience during the hearing, WEAR RED, show your support for
Graham's Bill and OPPOSE the Landlord's Relief Bill !!!!
 
****************************************************************************
*************************
INFO:  Tenant Action Network 202.747.0345 dctenants at yahoo.com 
****************************************************************************
************************
 
THE TRUTH ABOUT THE LANDLORD RELIEF ACT 

*	This is not the original bill introduced by Council member Jim
Graham. It is a substitute that was introduced in the Consumer & Regulatory
Affairs Committee by Sharon Ambrose (W6), a council member who has never
been a friend of tenants. It replaced Graham's pro-tenant bill (by a vote of
4 to 1 over his objections) with one favoring landlords. The bill was
written by the Mayor's office with the help of high paid lobbyists for the
Apartment and Office Building Association (AOBA), a very powerful landlord
trade association in the District. 

*	Landlords say the Mayor's bill is "pro-tenant." - Don't believe it!
The Mayor's bill gives more rights to the landlord, and t! akes away rights
from tenants. It would make the law much worse for tenants than it is now. 

1.	It will lead to higher rent increases. 

2.	It has fewer protections for tenants from illegal rent increases. 

3.	It gives you less time to challenge a rent increase. 

4.	It limits your right to a rent refund based on housing code
violations, even if those violations are very serious. 

5.	It erases a very good court decision for tenants (the Sawyer
decision). The Sawyer case says tenants can undo rent increases if the
landlord did not file on time. The new law would get rid of that rule. 

6.	It says landlords do not have to file any notice of important
information, like changes in ownership or management of the building. 

7.	It lets landlords take very high rent increases any time there is a
vacancy. 

 
          The Mayor's Bill, supported by Landlords is a Sneak attack on
Tenants!
 
Ask yourself this: 
Has your landlord cooperated with you in the past? Has your landlord told
you the truth in the past? If not, then why should you listen to the
landlord now? 
 
AOBA and their lawyers, the firm of Greenstein, DeLorme & Luchs (including
Richard Luchs and Mark Policy), have only one goal: making sure landlords
make as much money as possible. They have no interest in protecting your
rights - especially your rights to challenge rent increases and keep your
rent lower. The bill is a sneak attack on tenants!.
 
Urge council members Fenty and Brown to reconsider their votes on the
landlord's bill. Ask Fenty and Brown to come to the Roundtable on Fr! id!
ay, March 31 listen to tenants!
 
Roundtable: 
This Friday, March 31 at 5:00 PM, Council Chambers - 5th Floor.WEAR RED!!!! 
 
                                  Sign up TODAY - (202) 724-8198



INFO:  Tenant Action Network 202.747.0345  <mailto:dctenants at yahoo.com>
dctenants at yahoo.com 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.mutualaid.org/pipermail/mintwood-place/attachments/20060328/42433a5f/attachment.html