Office of Councilmember Chappie Jones

On Thursday April 26, 2018, the BART Board of Directors voted 5-0 in support of the Single-Bore tunneling method. I, along with my colleagues on the VTA Board of Directors, voted in support of Single-Bore on April 5th, 2018, and I am ecstatic to see our two agencies working together to bring much needed public transit infrastructure to San José.

• ARO

  • Clarify that the pass-through of utility charges to tenants are not allowed (Ratio Utility Billing System (RUBS) and other related methodologies)

  • Allow landlords that currently retain RUBS policies to petition for a one-time rent increase to offset losses in costs resulting from discontinuing RUBS

• TPO

  • Prohibit landlords from disclosing or threatening to disclose a tenant’s immigration or citizenship status to authorities with the intent of retaliation

  • Add “Criminal Activity” as a separate just-cause basis for eviction for tenants who are “held to answer” in a court of law for a serious or violent felony committed during tenancy within 1,000 feet of the premises

  • Other items to return to Council for further consideration

• Ellis Act

  • Subject redeveloped properties to a 50% re-control of ARO units

  • Allow an exemption of said requirements if 20% of new construction is voluntarily-restricted affordable rental housing built on-site.

    • 15% to meet the Inclusionary Ordinance

    • 5% to be restricted at 100% Area Median Income (AMI)

I was proud to have the Council accept my memo on the TPO to improve public safety within our communities. Often times, a community may be afraid to come forward and testify against a tenant that may be causing harm. The “Held to Answer” criminal activity provision gives communities another tool to address crime and improve their quality of life.