San Jose Renters Launch 'Healthy Homes' Campaign: White Paper Cites 23,000 Housing Code Violations and One Penalty in Three Years
SAN JOSE, California — Renters from across San Jose, in Santa Clara County, California, joined tenant-rights organizers and community organizations at a press conference in front of City Hall on October 19 to launch the Healthy Homes San Jose campaign, calling on the City Council to strengthen the Code Enforcement department. The campaign is supported by the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley, LUNA, RTO and other community organizations.
A white paper released by the Law Foundation says the Code Enforcement department's Multiple Housing Inspection Program has failed to hold landlords accountable: among roughly 23,000 documented housing code violations over the past three years, there has been only one penalty. 'There has only been 1 penalty amongst the 23,000 documented housing code violations. This is an insufficient system that lacks enforcement and enables a culture of unsafe and undignified living standards for San Jose renters,' said Cindy Tran, a tenant organizer at the Law Foundation. Participants cited rat and roach infestations, persistent mold and vandalized mailboxes among the conditions in their buildings, and urged the council to adopt the white paper's recommendations. (GSM, based on the Law Foundation of Silicon Valley release)
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 圣何塞市政厅资料图。图片：HarshLight，CC BY 2.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / San Jose City Hall, file photo. Photo: HarshLight, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
