On June 26, California Secretary of State Alex Padilla’s office announced that the Rental Affordability Act, a November 2020 state ballot initiative that will allow for the expansion of rent control throughout California, has formally assigned an official number for the ballot initiative, which will now be known as Proposition 21.

The news comes as the Proposition 21 campaign added key endorsements from federal and state elected officials, local city councils and social, housing and racial-justice organizations. The measure has also received the endorsement of the Rev. Al Sharpton and the National Action Network, as well as the endorsements of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont), labor and civil rights icon Dolores Huerta, U.S. Reps. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) and Barbara Lee (D-Oakland), California Senate Pro Tempore Emeritus and L.A. City Councilman-elect Kevin de León, 14th District, and a suite of California’s tenant advocacy and social justice organizations.

The measure first qualified for placement on the November California ballot in early February after the backers submitted over 1 million voter signatures in support of the measure. Signatures of more than 600,000 California voters were needed to qualify the measure.

The Rental Affordability Act would remove current state law restrictions, giving cities and counties the power to implement and expand rent control policies that limit how much rents can increase each year.

For information, visit rentcontrolnow.org and housinghumanright.org.