Promulgated in 2004, the Oakland Nuisance and Unlawful Activity Ordinance permitted landlords to evict Oakland tenants for nuisance and unlawful conduct on or near their rental homes, such as drug offenses, sex-work, and gang-related activity.  Passed in the wake of the early-90s California crimewave and Oakland’s soaring homicide rate, Oakland implemented the law intending to reduce crime.  However, the recent, emerging prevalent opinion is that the law, and other similar laws, (shockingly) have no practical impact on crime and (not shockingly) disproportionately impacted black Oakland tenants.  Further, a recently enacted state law prohibits cities from enforcing policies that require or encourage landlords to evict residential tenants due to alleged unlawful conduct or arrest (The Oakland law empowered the City of Oakland to fine landlords who took no action to oust an Oakland tenant from their home for unlawful or nuisance conduct).   For these reasons, the Oakland City Council repealed the law in December 2024.

Does this mean that Oakland tenants may henceforth go dumb reenacting scenes from Scarface, Menace II Society, Lola, Party Monster, Blow, Up, and, our personal favorite, Christiane F. all from the comfort of their rental homes?  No.  Rather, the Oakland City Council has simply repealed one aspect of their statutory scheme making official city policy to compel landlords to evict Oakland tenants engaging in nuisance and unlawful conduct.  The Oakland Rent Ordinance’s just cause for eviction ordinance still contains a provision enabling landlords to evict Oakland tenants for nuisance activity at the property, such as for hosting unlawful gambling dens or raves, or unlawful commercial cannabis grow operations.  Oakland Municipal Code § 8.22.360(A)(5).  And, another provision of that same law permits landlords to evict Oakland tenants that use their home or the parcel’s common areas for unlawful purposes, such as for drug sales, stabbings, sex-work, and gun violence. Oakland Municipal Code § 8.22.360(A)(6).  So, while the City of Oakland no longer has a policy requiring landlords to evict tenants for nuisance or unlawful conduct, Oakland tenants must still follow the law and be good, very good.