Berkeley City Council
July 30, 2024

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advance the housing policies of the City with regard to low and fixed income persons, marginalized communities minorities, students, persons with disabilities handicapped, and older adults the aged.

13.76.040 Definitions.

A. "Board" refers to the elected Rent Stabilization Board established by this chapter and Article XVII of the Charter of the City of Berkeley.

B. "Commissioners" means the members of the Bboard who are denominated commissioners.

C. "Housing services" include but are not limited to repairs, maintenance, painting, providing light, hot and cold water, elevator service, window shades and screens, storage, kitchen, bath and laundry facilities and privileges, janitor services, refuse removal, furnishing, telephone, parking and any other benefit, privilege or facility connected with the use or occupancy of any rental unit, including the right for tenants to organize as set forth in Section 13.76.135. Services to a rental unit shall include a proportionate part of services provided to common facilities of the building in which the rental unit is contained.

D. "Landlord" means an owner of record, lessor, sublessor or any other person or entity entitled to receive rent for the use or occupancy of any rental unit, or an agent, representative or successor of any of the foregoing.

E. "Rent" means the consideration, including any deposit, bonus, benefit or gratuity demanded or received for or in connection with the use or occupancy of rental units and housing services.

Such consideration shall include, but not be limited to, monies and fair market value of goods or services rendered to or for the benefit of the landlord under the rental agreement.

F. "Rental agreement" means an agreement, oral, written or implied, between a landlord and a tenant for use or occupancy of a rental unit and for housing services.

G. "Rental unit" means any unit in any real property, including the land appurtenant thereto, rented or available for rent for residential use or occupancy (including units covered by the Berkeley Live/Work Ordinance No. 5217-NS), located in the City of Berkeley, together with all housing

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services connected with use or occupancy of such property such as common areas and recreational facilities held out for use by the tenant.

H. "Property" means a parcel of real property which is assessed and taxed as an undivided whole.

I. "Tenant" means any renter, tenant, subtenant, lessee, or sublessee of a rental unit, or successor to a renter’s interest, or any group of tenants, subtenants, lessees, or sublessees of any rental unit, or any other person entitled to the use or occupancy of such rental unit.

J. "Partially-covered unit" means any rental that is subject to all sections of this Chapter except:

Section 13.76.100: Establishment of base rent ceiling and posting; Section 13.76.110: Annual general adjustment of rent ceilings; and Section 13.76.120: Individual adjustments of rent ceilings.
"Skilled nursing facility" means a health facility or a distinct part of a hospital which provides the following basic services: skilled nursing care and supportive care to patients whose primary need is for availability of skilled nursing care on an extended basis. It provides 24-hour inpatient care and, as a minimum, includes medical, nursing, dietary, pharmaceutical services and an activity program. The facility shall have effective arrangements, confirmed in writing, through which services required by the patients, but not regularly provided within the facility, can be obtained promptly when needed.

K. "Fully-exempt unit" means any rental unit that is not subject to any section of this Chapter. "Health facility" means any facility, place or building which is organized, maintained and operated for the diagnosis, care and treatment of human illness, physical or mental, including convalescence and rehabilitation and including care during and after pregnancy, or for any one or more of these purposes, for one or more persons, to which such persons are admitted for a 24-hour stay or longer.

L. "Tenant Association" means any group of tenants, residing in rental units in the same building or in different buildings operated by the same management company, agent or landlord, which requests to be so designated as set forth in Section 13.76.135 of this Chapter.

LM. "Rent ceiling" means the maximum allowable rent which a landlord may charge on any rental unit covered by this chapter.

MN. "Base rent ceiling" means the maximum allowable rent established under Section 13.76.100 of this Chapter.

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NO. "Fees" means for the purpose of this chapter, a charge fixed by law for services of public officers or for use of a privilege under control of government.

P. "Nonprofit, accredited institution of higher education" means a post secondary educational institution whose legal status under the California Education Code is verified by an annual validation receipt from the California State Department of Education, and which is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges or the Association of Theological Schools and which is exempt from taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code and under Section 23701(d) of the Revenue and Taxation Code, and which, if otherwise required by law to do so, has obtained a valid unrevoked letter or ruling from the United States Internal Revenue Service or from the Franchise Tax Board which states that the organization so qualifies for exemption from taxation.

Q. "Newly Constructed" means a rental unit created after June 30, 1980. For purposes of this definition, the date a unit was created is based upon the date of the first certificate of occupancy issued for the subject unit. However, in the event of the repeal or amendment of Civil Code Section 1954.52, such that "certificate of occupancy" is no longer the operative standard set forth under state law, the date a unit was created shall be determined by the final inspection approval by the City.

13.76.050 Applicability.

A. All sections of Tthis Cchapter shall apply to all real property that is being rented or is available for rent for residential use in whole or in part, except for the following as provided in this section.:

B. The following rental units are Partially-covered units:

1. Newly constructed rental units. A rental unit created after June 30, 1980. For purposes of this partial exemption, the date a unit was created is based upon the date of the first certificate of occupancy issued for the subject unit.

However, in the event of the repeal or amendment of Civil Code Section 1954.52 such that “certificate of occupancy” is no longer the operative standard set forth under state law, the

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date a unit was created shall be determined by the final inspection approval by the City. A rental unit shall only be deemed newly constructed for fifteen years after the date of final inspection approval by the City.

Notwithstanding any provision in this Chapter and to the extent that state or local law permits, any residential rental units created as a result of demolition or replacement where such demolition or replacement is affected via the creation of a “housing development project” as defined in the Housing Crisis Act of 2019 (Senate Bill 330), shall not be exempt as “newly constructed rental units” and, unless otherwise exempt, shall be covered by all provisions of this Chapter.

2. Separately Alienable Rental Units. Rental units in a residential property containing only a Single Family Dwelling (as defined in Subtitle 23F.04 of the Zoning Ordinance), unless the tenancy commenced before January 1, 1996. This partial exemption shall apply only as long as the pertinent provisions of California Civil Code Section 1954.50 et. seq. ("Costa- Hawkins") remain in effect and require such an exemption.

C. The following rental units are Fully-exempt units:

1. Government-Owned or -Subsidized Rental Units. Rental units which a government unit, agency or authority owns, operates, manages, or in which governmentally subsidized tenants reside only if applicable Federal or State law or administrative regulation specifically exempt such units from municipal rent control.

2. Short-Term Transient Rentals. Rental units which are rented primarily to transient guests for use or occupancy less than fourteen consecutive days in establishments such as hotels, motels, inns, tourist homes, and rooming and boarding houses. However, the payment of rent every fourteen days or less shall not by itself exempt any unit from coverage by this Chapter.

3. Co-op Rental Units. Rental units in nonprofit cooperatives owned and controlled by a majority of the residents.

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4. Rental Units in Health Facilities. Rental units in any hospital, skilled nursing facility, health facility, asylum, or non-profit home for older persons.

For the purposes of this Subsection, the following definitions apply:
"Skilled nursing facility" means a health facility or a distinct part of a hospital which provides the following basic services: skilled nursing care and supportive care to patients whose primary need is for availability of skilled nursing care on an extended basis. It provides 24hour inpatient care and, as a minimum, includes medical, nursing, dietary, pharmaceutical services and an activity program. The facility shall have effective arrangements, confirmed in writing, through which services required by the patients, but not regularly provided within the facility, can be obtained promptly when needed.
"Health facility" means any facility, place or building which is organized, maintained and operated for the diagnosis, care and treatment of human illness, physical or mental, including convalescence and rehabilitation and including care during and after pregnancy, or for any one or more of these purposes, for one or more persons, to which such persons are admitted for a 24-hour stay or longer.

5. Owner-Occupied Shared Rental Units. A rental unit in a residential property where the landlord shares kitchen or bath facilities with the tenant(s) of such rental unit and where the landlord also occupied a unit in the same property as his/her principal residence at the inception of the tenancy.

For the purposes of this subsection, the term landlord shall be defined only as the owner of record holding at least 50% interest in the property.

6. Fraternities and Sororities. A rental unit or room which is rented by an active member of a fraternity or sorority recognized by the University of California Berkeley, or a rental unit or room which is rented by an active member of a fraternity or sorority identified by Rent Board Resolution. To qualify for the exemption, the rental unit must be owned by the fraternity or sorority or by an entity whose sole purpose is the maintenance and operation of

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the fraternity or sorority's rental units for the benefit of the members in order to provide housing to said members at cost.

7. Accessory Dwelling Units. Rental units in a residential property containing only a Single Family Dwelling (as defined in Subtitle 23F.04 of the Zoning Ordinance) and one lawfully established and fully permitted Accessory Dwelling Unit where the landlord also occupies a unit in the same property as his/her principal residence. This subsection (13.76.0S0N) shall only apply to properties containing a single Accessory Dwelling Unit, shall only apply to units compliant with all applicable requirements of Chapter 23C.24 ("Accessory Dwelling Units"), and shall only apply to tenancies created after November 7, 2018.

8. Shelters and Transitional Housing. Rental units in a facility owned or leased by an organization exempt from federal income taxes under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code that has the primary purpose of operating a treatment, recovery, therapy, sanctuary or shelter program for qualified clients, where such rental units are provided incident to the client's participation in the primary program and where the client has been informed in writing of the temporary or transitional nature of the housing at the inception of his or her participation in the program.

However, except as may be preempted by the Transitional Housing Participant Misconduct Act (California Health and Safety Code Sections 50580 et. seq.) or other state or federal law, such rental units shall not be exempted from the requirements of Section 13.76.130, Good Cause Required for Eviction. For purposes of Section 13.76.130.A.2, the client's continued eligibility for participation in the treatment, recovery, therapy, sanctuary or shelter program shall be deemed a material term of the client's rental agreement with the program's operator.

9. “Sabbatical” Exemption for Single-Family Homes. A rental unit in a residential property containing only a Single Family Dwelling (as defined in Subtitle 23F.04 of the Zoning Ordinance) and owned by a property owner who:
a) owns only one residential unit in the City;

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b) occupied that residential unit for at least 365 consecutive days as their principal residence immediately prior to renting the unit; and
c) is absent from the unit for a period not to exceed 24 months; and d) such period is specified in the lease.

10. Golden Duplex Exemption. Rental units in a residential property which is divided into two units where one of the units was owner-occupied on December 31, 1979, and is currently occupied by the landlord as their principal residence. This exemption may only be claimed by a landlord who occupies a unit on the property as their principal residence on July 1, 2024. A landlord who qualifies for this exemption may claim it for any existing tenancy or any tenancy created after July 1, 2024, during the period of time in which the landlord occupies a unit on the property as their principal residence. Rental units which become non-exempt under this provision shall have the provisions of Subsections 13.76.080J and 13.76.100C. applied to them.

For the purposes of this subsection, the term landlord shall be defined only as the owner of record holding at least 50% interest in the property.

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Rental units which are owned by any government agency. However, the exemption of units owned by the Berkeley Housing Authority from the terms of this chapter shall be limited to their exemption from the terms of Section 13.76.080, Rent Registration; Section 13.76.100, Establishment of Base Rent Ceiling and Posting; Section 13.76.110, Annual General Adjustment of Rent Ceilings; and Section

13.76.120, Individual Adjustments of Rent Ceilings, of this chapter.

A. Rental units which are rented primarily to transient guests for use or occupancy less than fourteen consecutive days in establishments such as hotels, motels, inns, tourist homes, and rooming and boarding houses. However, the payment of rent every fourteen days or less shall not by itself exempt any unit from coverage by this chapter.

B. Rental units in nonprofit cooperatives owned and controlled by a majority of the residents.

C. Rental units leased to tenants assisted under the Section 8 program (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f) or the Shelter Plus Care Program (42 U.S.C. 11403 et. seq.) or similar federally funded rent subsidy program. Except as may be preempted by state or federal law, the exemption of such rental units from the terms of this chapter shall be limited to Section 13.76.080, Rent Registration; Section

13.76.100, Establishment of Base Rent Ceiling and Posting; Section 13.76.110, Annual General Adjustment of Rent Ceilings and Section 13.76.120, Individual Adjustments of Rent Ceilings, of this chapter. However, the exemption from Sections 13.76.080, 13.76.110 and 13.76.120 shall apply only for so long as the rent demanded does not exceed the authorized Payment Standard, which, for purposes of this subsection, is the maximum monthly rental assistance potentially available to an assisted household before deducting the household share of income paid for rent and utilities as established by the Berkeley Housing Authority or successor agency. For units where the rent demanded exceeds the Payment Standard, the Payment Standard or an initial rent above the
Payment Standard if approved by the Berkeley Housing Authority, as reported to the board by the Berkeley Housing Authority or successor agency, shall become the unit’s base rent ceiling and the reference point from which the rent ceiling shall be adjusted in accordance with Sections 13.76.110 and 13.76.120.

D. Rental units in any hospital, skilled nursing facility, health facility, asylum, or non-profit home for the aged.

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E. Rental units in a residential property which is divided into a maximum of four units where one of such units is occupied by the landlord as his/her principal residence. Any exemption of rental units established under this subsection (13.76.050 F.) shall be limited to rental units that would have been exempt under the provisions of this chapter had this chapter been in effect on December 31, 1979. After July 1, 1982, this exemption shall no longer apply to rental units in a residential property which is divided into three or four units. It shall continue to apply to rental units in a residential property which is divided into two units, and which meet all the other requirements of this subsection (13.76.050F). Rental units which become non-exempt under this provision shall have the provisions of Subsections 13.76.080I and 13.76.100C. applied to them.

F. A rental unit in a residential property where the landlord shares kitchen or bath facilities with the tenant(s) of such rental unit and where the landlord also occupies a unit in the same property as his/her principal residence.

G. For the purposes of Subsections 13.76.050 F. and G., the term landlord shall be defined only as the owner of record holding at least 50% interest in the property.

H. Newly constructed rental units, as defined in Section 13.76.040. However, the exemption of such newly constructed units shall be limited to their exemption from the terms of Section 13.76.100, Establishment of Base Rent Ceiling and Posting: Section 13.76.110, Annual General Adjustment of Rent Ceilings; and Section 13.76.120, Individual Adjustments of Rent Ceilings, of this chapter. To the extent that state law permits, the exemption of such newly constructed units shall be limited to the first 20 years after completion of construction.

I. A rental unit which is rented by a nonprofit, accredited institution of higher education to a tenant or tenants who are student(s), faculty, or staff of the institution or of a member school of the Graduate Theological Union, provided, however, that the institution owned the unit as of January 1, 1988.

J. A rental unit in a residential property owned by an organization exempt from federal income taxes under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code that is rented to a low income tenant and subject to a regulatory agreement with a governmental agency that controls the unit’s rent levels. However, the exemption for such rental units from the terms of this chapter shall be limited to
Section 13.76.080, Rent Registration; Section 13.76.100, Establishment of Base Rent Ceiling and

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Posting; Section 13.76.110, Annual General Adjustment of Rent Ceilings; and Section 13.76.120, Individual Adjustments of Rent Ceilings of this chapter and shall apply only for so long as the regulatory agreement is in effect. This exemption shall not apply to rental units at the property that are not subject to a regulatory agreement with a governmental agency or that are rented by a tenant who occupied the unit prior to the property’s acquisition by the tax-exempt organization.

K. Rental units in a facility owned or leased by an organization exempt from federal income taxes under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code that has the primary purpose of operating a treatment, recovery, therapy, sanctuary or shelter program for qualified clients, where such rental units are provided incident to the client’s participation in the primary program and where the client has been informed in writing of the temporary or transitional nature of the housing at the inception of his or her participation in the program. However, except as may be preempted by the Transitional Housing Participant Misconduct Act (California Health and Safety Code Sections 50580 et. seq.) or other state or federal law, such rental units shall not be exempted from the terms of Section

13.76.130, Good Cause Required for Eviction. For purposes of Section 13.76.130.A.2, the client’s continued eligibility for participation in the treatment, recovery, therapy, sanctuary or shelter program shall be deemed a material term of the client’s rental agreement with the program’s operator.

M. A rental unit or room which is rented by an active member of a fraternity or sorority recognized by the University of California Berkeley, or a rental unit or room which is rented by an active member of a fraternity or sorority identified by Rent Board Resolution. To qualify for the exemption, the rental unit must be owned by the fraternity or sorority or by an entity whose sole purpose is the maintenance and operation of the fraternity or sorority’s rental units for the benefit of the members in order to provide housing to said members at cost.

N. A rental unit in a residential property containing only a Single Family Dwelling (as defined in Subtitle 23F.04 of the Zoning Ordinance) and one lawfully established and fully permitted Accessory Dwelling Unit where the landlord also occupies a unit in the same property as his/her principal residence. This subsection (13.76.050N) shall only apply to properties containing a single Accessory Dwelling Unit, shall only apply to units compliant with all applicable requirements of Chapter 23C.24 ("Accessory Dwelling Units"), and shall only apply to tenancies created after November 7, 2018.

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O. A dwelling or a unit alienable separate from the title to any other dwelling unit unless the tenancy commenced before January 1, 1996. However, the exemption of such units shall be limited to their exemption from the terms of Section 13.76.100, Establishment of Base Rent Ceiling and Posting: Section 13.76.110, Annual General Adjustment of Rent Ceilings; and Section

13.76.120, Individual Adjustments of Rent Ceilings, of this chapter. A property owner who owns only one residential unit in the City of Berkeley, and occupied that residential unit for 365 consecutive days as their principal residence immediately prior to renting the unit, and is absent from the unit for a period not to exceed 24 months, and such period is specified in the lease, shall also be exempt from the terms of Section 13.76.080, Rent Registration, of this Chapter. The exemptions provided in this Section shall apply only as long as the pertinent provisions of California Civil Code Section 1954.50 et. seq. ("Costa-Hawkins") remain in effect and require such an exemption.

13.76.060 Rent Stabilization Board.

A. Composition. There shall be in the city of Berkeley City an elected Rrent Sstabilization Bboard; the Bboard shall consist of nine Ccommissioners. The Bboard shall elect annually as chairperson one of its members to serve in that capacity.

B. Eligibility. Residents who are duly qualified electors of the Ccity of Berkeley are eligible to serve as Ccommissioners on the Bboard.

C. Full Ddisclosure of Hholdings. Candidates for the position of Ccommissioner shall fulfill the requirements as set forth in the City Charter in Article III, Section 6 1/2.

In addition, when filing nomination papers, candidates shall submit a verified statement of their interests and dealings in real property, including but not limited to its ownership, sale or management and investment in and association with partnerships, corporations, joint ventures and syndicates engaged in its ownership, sale or management during the previous three years.

D. Election of Ccommissioners. Commissioners shall be elected at the statewide general election held in November of even numbered years.

E. Terms of Ooffice. Commissioners’ terms of office shall be as set forth in Article XVII of the Berkeley City Charter.

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F. Powers and Dduties. The elected Rrent Sstabilization Bboard shall have the power to determine, to arbitrate and to set rent levels, whether through general or individual adjustments, of any unit which has controlled rents under any Berkeley Ordinance, and to administer any Berkeley program which regulates rents and evictions. The Bboard shall have the following powers and duties:

1. Set the rent ceilings for all rental units.

2. Require registration of all rental units under Section 13.76.080.

3. Publicize the manner in which the base rent ceiling is established under Section 13.76.100.

4. To make adjustments in the rent ceiling in accordance with Sections 13.76.110 and 13.76.120.

5. Set rents at fair and equitable levels in view of and in order to achieve the purposes of this Cchapter.

6. To issue orders, rules and regulations, conduct hearings and charge fees as set below.

7. Make such studies, surveys and investigations, conduct such hearings, and obtain such information as is necessary to carry out its powers and duties.

8. Report annually to the city council of the city of Berkeley on the status of rental housing units covered by this Cchapter.

9. Request the City Council to remove rent controls under Section 13.76.060Q. 910. Administer oaths and affirmations and subpoena witnesses and relevant documents. 101. Establish rules and regulations for settling civil claims under Section 13.76.150. 112. Seek injunctive relief under Section 13.76.150.
123. Pursue civil remedies in courts of appropriate jurisdiction. 134. Intervene as an interested party in any litigation brought before a court of appropriate jurisdiction by a landlord or tenant with respect to rental units covered by this Cchapter. 145. Hold public hearings.

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156. Charge and collect registration fees, including penalties for late payments and fines, as set by schedule, for failure to re-register a rental unit within fifteen (15) days of the commencement of a new tenancy.

16. Require that landlords of rental units subject to the requirement to register under Section

13.76.080 provide notice of the existence of this Chapter to each new tenant at the commencement of their tenancy.

17. Other powers necessary to carry out the purposes of this chapter which are not inconsistent with the terms of this Cchapter.

18. Except as provided in Section 13.76.060N of this Cchapter, the Bboard shall finance its reasonable and necessary expenses for its operation without the use of general fund monies of the city of Berkeley.City.

G. Rules and Regulations: The Bboard shall issue and follow such rules and regulations, including those which are contained in this Chapter, as will further the purposes of this Chapter. The Bboard shall publicize its rules and regulations prior to promulgation in at least one newspaper of general circulation in the city of Berkeley.City.

All rules and regulations and relevant documents explaining the decisions, orders, and policies of the Bboard shall be kept in the Bboard’s office and shall be available to the public for inspection and copying.

The Bboard shall publicize this Chapter so that all residents of Berkeley will have the opportunity to become informed about their legal rights and duties under this Chapter. The Bboard shall prepare a brochure which fully describes the legal rights and duties of landlords and tenants under this Chapter. The brochure shall be made available to the public.

H. Meetings: The Bboard shall hold regularly scheduled meetings. Special meetings shall be called at the request of at least a majority of the Ccommissioners of the Bboard. The Bboard shall hold its initial meeting no later than July 15, 1980.

I. Quorum: Five Ccommissioners shall constitute a quorum for the Bboard.

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J. Voting: The affirmative vote of five Ccommissioners of the Bboard is required for a decision, including all motions, rules, regulations, and orders of the Bboard.

K. Compensation: The Rrent Sstabilization Bboard shall be a working Bboard. Commissioners shall be paid compensation and benefits in an amount set by the Bboard in order to compensate Ccommissioners for their time and work performed as required by this Cchapter and the Ccity Ccharter.

L. Dockets: The Bboard shall maintain and keep in its office all hearing dockets, which shall be available for public inspection.

M. Vacancies: If a vacancy shall occur on the Bboard, a qualified person to fill such vacancy shall be selected in accordance with the procedures set forth in Article V of the City Charter.

N. Financing: The Bboard shall finance its reasonable and necessary expenses by charging landlords annual registration fees in amounts deemed reasonable by the Bboard. The registration fee for partially-exempt units shall reasonably approximate the cost of registration and counseling services for such units, and shall not include the cost of services from which such units are exempt.

Such registration fees shall not be passed on to tenants in the form of rent increases except with the express prior approval of the Bboard. The Bboard is also empowered to request and receive funding, when and if necessary, from the Ccity of Berkeley and/or any other available source for its reasonable and necessary expenses, including expenses incurred at the request of the City.

O. Staff: The Bboard shall be a working Bboard and shall employ such staff as may be necessary to perform its functions efficiently and as provided by Berkeley Ordinance.

P. Registration: The Bboard shall require the registration of all rental units covered by this chapter as provided for in Section 13.76.080. The Bboard may also require landlords to provide current information supplementing their registration statements.

Q. Decontrol: If the annual average vacancy rate for all rental units in the city of Berkeley exceeds five percent over a six month period, the city council is empowered, upon request by the board, at its discretion and in order to achieve the purposes of this chapter, to exempt rental units covered by this chapter from Sections 13.76.080, 13.76.100, 13.76.110 and 13.76.120 of this chapter. In determining the vacancy rate for the city of Berkeley the board and the city council shall consider

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all available data and may conduct their own survey. If units are exempted pursuant to this Subsection Q coverage shall be reimposed if the city council finds that the average annual vacancy rate has thereafter fallen below five percent. Prior to any decision to exempt or renew coverage for rental units under this Subsection Q the board shall hold at least two public hearings.

QR. Conflict of Interest: Commissioners shall be subject to the requirements of the California Political Reform Act and other applicable state and local conflict of interest codes. Commissioners shall not necessarily be disqualified from exercising any of their powers and duties on the grounds of a conflict of interest solely on the basis of their status as a landlord or tenant. However, a commissioner shall be disqualified from ruling on a petition for an individual adjustment of a rent ceiling under Section 13.76.120, where the commissioner is either the landlord of the property or a tenant residing in the property that is involved in the petition.

13.76.070 Security deposits.

Any payment or deposit of monies by the tenant, the primary function of which is to secure the performance of a rental agreement or any part of such agreement, including an advance payment of rent, shall be held by the landlord, in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of the tenant and shall accrue simple interest at the rate equal to the average rates of interest paid on six-month certificates of deposit by banks doing business in the City of Berkeley until such time as the payment or deposit is returned to the tenant or entitled to be used by the landlord as provided in Civil Code Section 1950.5. The interest accrued by said payment or deposit through October 31st of each year shall be returned to the tenant annually in December of each year, either through a rent rebate or cash payment, and shall be at a rate equal to the 12-month average of the average rates of interest paid on six-month certificates of deposit by banks doing business in the City of Berkeley on the first business day of each month for the prior 12 months ending on November 1st, rounded to the nearest tenth. On or before November 15th of each year, the Bboard shall give public notice of the rate to be effective for the following December. Upon the tenant’s departure from the premises, the balance of any interest accrued since the last October 31st shall be paid at the average monthly rate from the last November 1st to the date of departure and shall be returned to the tenant along with the appropriate part of the principal and any prior unpaid interest. The Bboard shall compute and publicize the interest rate applicable under this section on an ongoing basis.

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13.76.080 Rent registration.

A. The Bb oard shall require all landlords subject to the provisions of this chapter prior to November 3, 2020, to file a rent registration statement with the Bboard by September 1, 1980 for each rental unit covered by this Cchapter, except for Fully-Exempt Units as set forth in Section 13.76.050.C.

The board shall require all landlords subject to Subsections 13.76.050I. and 13.76.050O. of this chapter to file a rent registration statement with the board for each rental unit covered by this chapter as outlined in Subsection 13.76.080L. A property owner who owns only one residential unit in the City of Berkeley, and occupied that residential unit for 365 consecutive days as their principal residence immediately prior to renting the unit, and is absent from the unit for a period not to exceed 24 months, and such period is specified in the lease, shall also be exempt from the terms of Section 13.76.080, Rent Registration, of this Chapter and need not file a rent registration statement for the subject rental unit.

B. Landlords shall provide in their initial rent registration statement the following information:
(1) The address of each rental unit;
(2) The name and address of the landlord(s) and the managing agent, if any; (3) The date on which the landlord received legal title to or equitable interest in the rental unit; (4) The housing services provided for the rental unit;
(5) The rent in effect on June 6, 1978;
(6) The rent in effect on December 30, 1979;
(7) The base rent ceiling;
(8) The lowest rent in effect between June 6, 1978, and the date of the adoption of this Cchapter;
(9) The amount of any deposits or other monies in addition to periodic rent demanded or received by the landlord in connection with the use or occupancy of the rental unit; (10) Whether the rental unit was vacant or occupied on May 31, 1980;

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(11) Rent in effect on December 31, 1981.

C. All rent registration statements provided by landlords in accordance with this Cchapter shall include an affidavit signed by the landlord declaring under penalty of perjury that the information provided in the rent registration statement is true and correct.

D. Notice at Commencement of Tenancy. The landlord of any rental unit subject to this section must give the tenant a written notice on a form prescribed by the Board within 15 days of the commencement of the tenancy. The form shall include the following information:
(1). The existence and scope of this Chapter;
(2). The tenant's rights to petition against certain rent increases, if applicable; (3) Whether the landlord is permitted to set the initial rent and subsequent rents during the tenancy without limitation (such as pursuant to California Civil Code Sections 1947.12 and 1954.52); and
(4) Any provisions of this Chapter which the landlord claims the rental unit to be exempt from.

If rental units subject to this Chapter are located in at a property with an interior common area that all of the building's tenants have access to, the landlord must post a notice containing the information in subparagraph (1) and, if applicable to all units at the property, the information in subparagraphs (2) through (4).

All registration statements under this section shall include an affidavit signed by the landlord declaring under penalty of perjury that the landlord has provided this notice at the commencement of the current tenancy. A landlord that has failed to provide a notice pursuant to this subsection shall not be in compliance with this section.

E. Vacancy Registration. Any landlord who rents a unit to a new tenant after January 1, 1996, shall re-register the rental unit with the Board within fifteen (15) days of the commencement of a new tenancy on a form prescribed by the Board. Re-registering the unit shall include providing all current tenancy information as established by the Board's Regulations.

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D. The first annual registration fee of twelve dollars per unit shall be paid by the landlords to the board no later than September 1, 1980. Subsequent annual registration fees set in accordance with Section 13.76.060N of this chapter shall be paid no later than July 1 of each year. Because fees charged in years prior to 1991 were due on September 1, but paid for board expenses from each preceding July 1, the fee due 1991 shall be calculated to pay for twelve months of board expenses.

FE. The Bboard shall provide forms for the registration information required by this section and shall make other reasonable efforts to facilitate the fulfillment of the requirements set forth in this section.

GF. Every annual registration fee required by this Cchapter which is not paid on or before July 1 is declared delinquent, and the Bboard shall add to said registration fee and collect a penalty of one hundred percent of the fee so delinquent in addition to the fee. Every six months that the fee and penalty remain delinquent, the penalty shall be increased by one hundred percent of the original fee.

The Bboard may waive the penalty if payment is made within thirty days of the original due date.

A landlord may request the Bboard to waive all or part of the penalty if he/shethe landlord can show good cause for the delinquent payment.

HG. The amount of any registration fee, and penalty, and fine imposed by the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed a debt to the Ccity.

IH. Within thirty days after the filing of a rent registration statement, the Bboard shall provide a true and correct copy of said statement to the occupant of the respective unit.

JI. Landlords of formerly exempt units shall register within 60sixty days of coming under coverage of this Cchapter. The registration fee for this first-time registration shall be pro-rated based upon the number of months remaining to the next July 1 annual registration deadline.

KJ. No landlord shall be deemed to be in compliance with this Ssection with respect to a given unit until the landlord has completed registration for all covered units in the same property. Registration shall be deemed complete when all required information has been provided, any notice required by subsection 13.76.080.D has been provided to the Board, and all outstanding fees and penalties have been paid.

LK. Registration fees shall not be passed along to the tenants without the express, prior approval of the Bboard. Under no circumstances shall penalties be passed along to tenants.

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M. A landlord may not demand or collect rent from tenants during any period in which the landlord is out of compliance with the requirements of this Section. A landlord may demand rent upon full compliance with all registration requirements.

NL. Landlords of Ppartially-Coveredexempt Uunits (set forth above in Section 13.76.050.B s

13.76.050I. and 13.76.050O.) shall register within sixty 60 days of coming under coverage of this Cchapter. The registration fee for this first-time registration shall be pro-rated based upon the number of months remaining to the next July 1 annual registration deadline.

13.76.090 Confidentiality of information submitted to Board.

The Bboard shall adopt rules and regulations providing for the confidentiality of information submitted to the Bboard in support of a petition for an individual rent ceiling adjustment under Section 13.76.120 of this Cchapter when such confidentiality is deemed necessary by the Bboard and where otherwise permitted by state law.

13.76.100 Establishment of base rent ceiling and posting.

A. Base Rent Ceiling. Upon adoption of this Cchapter, no landlord shall charge rent for any rental unit covered by the terms of this Cchapter affecting rents in an amount greater than the lawful rent which was actually due and payable on, or last preceding, May 31, 1980, under the periodic term of the rental agreement, in accordance with the provisions of the Temporary Rent Stabilization Ordinance, No. 5212-N.S., except as permitted by the Bboard under Sections 13.76.110 and

13.76.120 of this Cchapter. Such lawful rent in effect on May 31, 1980, is the base rent ceiling and is a reference point from which the rent ceiling shall be adjusted in accordance with Sections 13.76.110 and 13.76.120. For such rental units where no rent was in effect on May 31, 1980, the base rent ceiling shall be the most recent lawful periodic rent in effect for that rental unit during the six months preceding that date. For such rental units where no periodic rent was in effect on May 31, 1980, or during the six months preceding that date and no other rent has been certified or determined by the Bboard after hearing, the base rent ceiling shall be the first periodic rent charged following May 31, 1980.

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B. Posting. The Bboard may establish reasonable rules and regulations for the posting of rent ceiling and other relevant information to further the purposes of this Cchapter.

C. Previously Exempt Units. For rental units specified in Section 13.76.050B(10), 13.76.050.F., the base rent ceiling shall be the rent in effect on December 31, 1981on June 1, 1980. For such rental units where the landlord lawfully established a new initial rent any time after January 1, 1996, the most recently established initial rent shall become the unit’s base rent ceiling and the reference point from which the rent ceiling shall be adjusted in accordance with Sections 13.76.110 and 13.76.120.

Initial rent shall mean the first periodic rental rate established for the existing tenancy.

For such rental units where no rent was in effect on December 31, 1981, the base rent ceiling shall be the most recent lawful periodic rent in effect for that rental unit during the six months preceding that date. For such rental units where no periodic rent was in effect on December 31, 1981, or during the six months preceding that date and no other rent has been certified or determined by the Bboard after hearing, the base rent ceiling shall be the first periodic rent charged following December 31, 1981.

D. Vacancy Rent Increases Preserved. This subdivision shall apply to the extent that state law no longer mandates that a landlord may establish the initial rental rate for any tenancy in a unit that is otherwise subject to a residential rent control ordinance. For such rental units where the landlord lawfully established a new initial rent under the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act (Civil Code Section 1954.50 et seq.), the Base Rent Ceiling shall be the most recent lawfully established periodic rent. For such rental units that were exempt from rent stabilization pursuant to the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, the Base Rent Ceiling shall be the most recent lawfully established periodic rent.

E. Utilities. A tenant may only be responsible for utilities if either: 1) the utility charge is included in the base rent does not increase during the tenancy; or 2) the utility service is separately or individually metered and the lease agreement requires that the tenant registers the utility account in their own name.

This prohibition shall not apply to leases entered into before February 6, 2024 to the extent that the lease provides that the tenant shall pay for one or more utility. For all other tenancies, this prohibition shall apply regardless of whether the written lease allows for split utility charges or ration utility billing services. In the event a lease entered into after February 6, 2024 charges the tenant for

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utilities in violation of this section, the landlord may petition pursuant to Section 13.76.120 of this Chapter to adjust the rent ceiling to include the average cost of utilities for the unit.

13.76.110 Annual general adjustment of rent ceilings.

A. Effective January 1 of each year, the rent ceiling for all rental units covered by this Cchapter for which the landlord did not establish an initial rent during the prior calendar year shall be adjusted by 65% of the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) in the
San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose region as reported and published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, for the twelve month period ending the previous June 30. In determining the allowable percentage rent increase, numbers of .04 and below shall be rounded down to the nearest tenth decimal place and numbers of .05 and above shall be rounded up to the nearest tenth decimal place. In no event, however, shall the allowable annual adjustment be less than zero (0%) or greater than seven three percent (73%). The Bboard shall publish and publicize the annual general adjustment on or about October 31st of each year.

B. An upward general adjustment in rent ceilings does not automatically provide for a rent increase. Allowable rent increases pursuant to a general upward adjustment shall become effective only after the landlord gives the tenant at least a 30 days written notice of such rent increase and the notice period expires.

C. If the maximum allowable rent specified under this Cchapter for a rental unit is greater than the rent specified for such unit in the rental agreement, the lower rent specified in the rental agreement shall be the maximum allowable rent until the rental agreement expires. If the maximum allowable rent specified under this Cchapter for a rental unit is less than the rent specified for such unit in the rental agreement, the lower rent specified under this Cchapter shall be the maximum allowable rent.

D. No rent increase pursuant to an upward general adjustment of a rent ceiling shall be effective if the landlord:

1. Has continued to fail to comply, after order of the Bboard, with any provisions of this Cchapter and/or orders or regulations issued thereunder, or

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2. Has failed to bring the rental unit into compliance with the implied warranty of habitability, or

3. Has failed to make repairs as ordered by the housing inspection services of the City of Berkeley, or

4. Has failed to completely register by July 1, except as provided in Subsection E. below.

E. The amount of an upward general adjustment for which a landlord shall be eligible shall decrease by ten percent (10%) per month for each month beyond October 1 for which the landlord fails to register.

F. An owner who has previously been out of compliance with the ordinance, regulations, or applicable housing, health and safety codes, and has been denied Annual General Adjustments, may be granted them prospectively as set forth in Rent Board rRegulations.

13.76.120 Individual adjustments of rent ceilings.

A. Petitions. Upon receipt of a petition by a landlord and/or tenant, the rent ceiling of individual controlled rental units may be adjusted upward or downward in accordance with the procedures set forth elsewhere in this Ssection. The petition shall be on the form provided by the Bboard. The Bboard may set a reasonable per unit fee based upon the expenses of processing the petition to be paid by the petitioner at the time of filing. No petition shall be filed before September 1, 1980.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Ssection, the Bboard or hearing examiner may refuse to hold a hearing and/or grant an individual rent ceiling adjustment for a rental unit if an individual hearing has been held and decision made with regard to the rent ceiling for such unit, within the previous six months.

B. Hearing Procedure. The Bboard shall enact rules and regulations governing hearings and appeals of individual adjustments of rent ceilings which shall include the following:

1. Hearing Examiner. A hearing examiner appointed by the Bboard shall conduct a hearing to act upon the petition for individual adjustments of rent ceilings and shall have the power to administer oaths and affirmations.

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2. Notice. The Bboard shall notify the landlord if the petition was filed by the tenant, or the tenant, if the petition was filed by the landlord, of the receipt of such a petition and a copy thereof.

3. Time of Hearing. The hearing officer shall notify all parties as to the time, date and place of the hearing.

4. Records. The hearing examiner may require either party to an individual rent ceiling adjustment hearing to provide it with any books, records and papers deemed pertinent in addition to that information contained in registration statements. The hearing examiner shall conduct a current building inspection and/or request the City to conduct a current building inspection if the hearing examiner finds good cause to believe the Bboard’s current information does not reflect the current condition of the controlled rental unit. The tenant may request the hearing examiner to order such an inspection prior to the date of the hearing. All documents required under this section shall be made available to the parties involved prior to the hearing at the office of the Bboard. In cases where information filed in a petition for an individual rent ceiling adjustment or in additional submissions filed at the request of the hearing examiner is inadequate or false, no action shall be taken on said petition until the deficiency is remedied.

5. Open Hearings. All individual rent ceiling adjustment hearings shall be open to the public.

6. Right of Assistance. All parties to a hearing may have assistance in presenting evidence and developing their position from attorneys, legal workers, Tenant Association,recognized tenant organization representatives or any other persons designated by said parties.

7. Hearing Record. The Bboard shall make available for inspection and copying by any person an official record which shall constitute the exclusive record for decision on the issues at the hearing. The record of the hearing, or any part of one, shall be obtainable for the cost of copying. The record of the hearing shall include: all exhibits, papers and documents required to be filed or accepted into evidence during the proceedings; a list of participants present; a summary of all testimony accepted in the proceedings; a statement of all materials officially noticed; all recommended decisions, orders and/or rulings; all final decisions, orders and/or rulings, and the reasons for each final decision, order and/or ruling. Any party may have the proceeding tape recorded or otherwise transcribed at his or her own expense.

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8. Quantum Burden of Proof and Notice of Decision. No individual rent ceiling adjustment shall be granted unless supported by the preponderance of the evidence submitted at the hearing. All parties to a hearing shall be sent a notice of the decision and a copy of the findings of fact and law upon which said decision is based. At the same time, parties to the proceedings shall also be notified of their right to and the time limit for any appeal allowed by the Bboard and/or to judicial review of the decision pursuant to this Ssection and Section

13.76.180 of this Cchapter.

9. Consolidation. All landlord petitions pertaining to tenants in the same building shall be consolidated for hearing, and all petitions filed by tenants occupying the same building shall be consolidated for hearing unless there is a showing of good cause not to consolidate such petitions.

10. Appeal. Any person aggrieved by the decision of the hearing examiner may appeal to the Bboard or to any appeals panel of the Bboard established by the Bboard, so long as such panel has at least three Ccommissioners. On appeal the Bboard or panel shall affirm, reverse, remand, or modify the decision of the hearing examiner. The Bboard or panel may conduct a new (de novo) hearing or may act on the basis of the record before the hearing examiner without holding a hearing. An appeal to the Bboard shall be filed no later than thirty days after receipt of the notice of the decision of the hearing examiner. The Bboard may set a reasonable appeal fee to be paid by the appellant at the time of filing the appeal.

11. Finality of Decision. The decision of the hearing examiner shall be the final decision of the Bboard in the event of no appeal to the Bboard. The decision of the hearing examiner shall not be stayed pending appeal; however, in the event that the Bboard or panel reverses or modifies the decision of the hearing examiner, the Bboard shall order the appropriate party to make retroactive payments to restore the parties to the position they would have occupied had the hearing examiner’s decision been the same as that of the Bboard’s.

12. Time for Decision. The rules and regulations adopted by the Bboard shall provide for final Bboard action on any individual rent adjustment petition within 120 days following the date of filing of the individual rent ceiling adjustment petition, unless the conduct of the petitioner or other good cause is responsible for the delay.

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13. Board Action in Lieu of Reference to Hearing Examiner. The Bboard, on its own motion or on the request of any landlord or tenant, may hold a hearing on an individual petition for a rent ceiling adjustment without the petition first being heard by a hearing examiner.

C. In making individual adjustments of the rent ceiling, the Bboard or the hearing examiner shall consider the purposes of this Cchapter and shall specifically consider all relevant factors, including (but not limited to):

1. Increases or decreases in property taxes;

2. Unavoidable increases or any decreases in maintenance and operating expenses;

3. The cost of planned or completed capital improvements to the rental unit (as distinguished from ordinary repair, replacement and maintenance) where such capital improvements are necessary to bring the property into compliance or maintain compliance with applicable local code requirements affecting health and safety, and where such capital improvement costs are properly amortized over the life of the improvement:

4. Increases or decreases in the number of tenants occupying the rental unit, living space, furniture, furnishings, equipment, or other housing services provided, or occupancy rules;

5. Substantial deterioration of the controlled rental unit other than as a result of normal wear and tear;

6. Failure on the part of the landlord to provide adequate housing services, or to comply substantially with applicable state rental housing laws, local housing, health and safety codes, or the rental agreement;

7. Whether parties conferred in good faith relating to housing services and conditions, landlord-tenant relations, rent increases, and other issues of common interest or concern;

87. The pattern of recent rent increases or decreases;

98. The landlord’s rate of return on investment. In determining such return, all relevant factors, including but not limited to the following shall be considered: the landlord’s actual cash down payment, method of financing the property, and any federal or state tax benefits accruing to the landlord as a result of ownership of the property.

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10 9. Whether or not the property was acquired or is held as a long-term or short-term investment; and
11 10. Whether or not the landlord has received rent in violation of the terms of this chapter or has otherwise failed to comply with the Cchapter.

It is the intent of this Cchapter that individual upward adjustments in the rent ceilings on units be made only when the landlord demonstrates that such adjustments are necessary to provide the landlord with a fair return on investment.

D. No individual upward adjustment of a rent ceiling shall be authorized by the Bboard by reason of increased interest or other expenses resulting from the landlord’s refinancing the rental unit if, at the time the landlord refinanced, the landlord could reasonably have foreseen that such increased expenses could not be covered by the rent schedule then in existence, except where such refinancing is necessary for the landlord to make capital improvements which meet the criteria set forth in Section 13.76.120 C.3. This paragraph shall only apply to that portion of the increased expenses resulting from the refinancing that were reasonably foreseeable at the time of the refinancing of the rental unit and shall only apply to rental units refinanced after the date of adoption of this Cchapter.

E. Except for cases of individual hardship as set forth in Subsection 13.76.120 I. of this Cchapter, no individual upward adjustment of a rent ceiling shall be authorized by the Bboard because of the landlord’s increased interest or other expenses resulting from the sale of the property, if at the time the landlord acquired the property, the landlord could have reasonably foreseen that such increased expenses would not be covered by the rent schedule then in effect. This Subsection (13.76.120 E.) shall only apply to rental units acquired after the date of adoption of this Cchapter.

F. No upward adjustment of an individual rent ceiling shall be authorized by the Bboard under this Ssection if the landlord:

1. Has continued to fail to comply, after order of the Bboard, with any provisions of this Cchapter and/or orders or regulations issued thereunder by the Bboard, or

2. Has failed to bring the rental unit into compliance with the implied warranty of habitability,

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G. Allowable rent increases pursuant to an individual upward adjustment of the rent ceiling shall become effective only after the landlord gives the tenant at least a 30 day written notice of such rent increase and the notice period expires.

H. If the Bboard makes a downward individual adjustment of the ceiling, such rent decrease shall take effect no later than 30 days after the effective date set by the Bboard for the downward adjustment.

I. No provision of this Cchapter shall be applied so as to prohibit the Bb oard from granting an individual rent adjustment that is demonstrated necessary by the landlord to provide the landlord with a fair return on investment.

13.76.130 Good Just cause required for eviction.

A. No landlord shall be entitled to recover possession of a rental unit covered by the terms of this chapter unless said landlord shows the existence of one of the following grounds:

1. Non-payment of Rent. The tenant has failed to pay rent to which the landlord is legally entitled pursuant to the lease or rental agreement and under the provisions of state or local law, unless the tenant has withheld rent pursuant to applicable law; and said failure has continued after service on the tenant of a written notice setting forth the amount of rent then due and requiring it to be paid, within a period, specified in the notice, of not less than three days. Rent that is lawfully withheld pursuant to emergency legislation that authorizes rent withholding during the effective period of a state of emergency applicable in Berkeley the City shall not constitute grounds for recovery of possession except as expressly provided in the applicable emergency legislation. Emergency legislation adopted during the emergency may prohibit recovery of possession for lawfully withheld rent even after the expiration of a state or local emergency. This subsection shall not constitute grounds where the amount of rent demanded is less than one month of fair market rent for a unit of equivalent size in the metro area OaklandFremont, CA HUD Metro FMR as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for the fiscal year in which the rent is demanded.

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2. Substantial Violation of Material Lease Causing Actual Injury. The tenant has continued, after written notice to cease, to substantially violate any of the material terms of the rental agreement, except the obligation to surrender possession on proper notice as required by law, and provided that such terms are reasonable and legal and have been accepted in writing by the tenant or made part of the rental agreement; and provided further that, where such terms have been accepted by the tenant or made part of the rental agreement subsequent to the initial creation of the tenancy, the landlord shall have first notified the tenant in writing that he or she need not accept such terms or agree to their being made part of the rental agreement.

Material terms of the rental agreement only include those terms of the rental agreement which both parties have expressly agreed upon and do not include any changes of the terms of tenancy, other than the amount of rent owing for the premises, which the landlord has attempt to impose unilaterally under Civil Code Section 827.

In order to assert this groundsthis ground for eviction, the landlord must demonstrate all of the following:
a. that the tenant's lease violation caused substantial actual damage to the landlord, and b. that the tenant's behavior was unreasonable.

Actual injury must be a direct result of the tenant’s breach of lease and is not limited to physical or personal injury. Substantial actual injury includes but is not limited to the harm caused by a tenant’s failure to comply with income recertification mandated by state or federal statute or regulation for deed-restricted affordable housing units.

Notwithstanding any contrary provision in this Cchapter or in the rental agreement, a landlord is not entitled to recover possession of a rental unit under this Ssubsection where a tenant permits his or her rental unit to be occupied by a subtenant, provided:
(a) The landlord has unreasonably withheld consent to the subtenancy; and (b) The tenant remains an actual occupant of the rental unit; and

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(c) The number of tenants and subtenants actually occupying the rental unit does not exceed the number of occupants originally allowed by the rental agreement or the Bboard’s regulations, whichever is greater.
(d) Withholding of consent by the landlord shall be deemed to be unreasonable where:
i. The tenant’s written request for consent was given at least two weeks prior to commencement of the subtenancy;
ii. The proposed new subtenant has, upon the landlord’s written request, completed the landlord’s standard form application or provided sufficient information to allow the landlord to conduct a standard background check, including references and credit, income and other reasonable background information; and iii. The proposed new subtenant meets the landlord’s customary occupancy qualifications and has not refused the landlord’s request to be bound by the terms of the current rental agreement between the landlord and the tenant; and iv. The landlord has not articulated in writing a well-founded reason for refusing consent.

Any notice to cease given pursuant to this Subsection must state allegations in sufficient detail so that a reasonable person would understand the alleged violation and resulting injury, including the specific term of the lease allegedly violated, the date of the alleged violation, and the injury that occurred as a result of the alleged violation.

3. Substantial Damage to Premises.ThePremises. The tenant has willfully caused or allowed substantial damage to the premises beyond normal wear and tear and has refused, after written notice, to pay the reasonable costs of repairing such damage and cease damaging said premises.

4. The tenant has refused to agree to a new rental agreement upon expiration of a prior rental agreement, but only where the new rental agreement contains provisions that are substantially identical to the prior rental agreement, and is not inconsistent with local, state and federal laws.

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45. Destruction of Peace. The tenant has continued, following written notice to cease, to be so disorderly as to destroy the peace and quiet of other tenants or occupants of the premises or the tenant is otherwise subject to eviction pursuant to subdivision 4 of Code of Civil Procedure Section 1161.

56. Refusal of Lawful Access to Unit. The tenant has, after written notice to cease, refused the landlord access to the unit as required by state or local law.

67. Substantial and Necessary Repairs.
(a) The landlord, after having obtained all necessary permits from the City of Berkeley, seeks in good faith to undertake substantial repairs which are necessary to bring the property into compliance with applicable codes and laws affecting the health and safety of tenants of the building or where necessary under an outstanding notice of code violations affecting the health and safety of tenants of the building, and where such repairs cannot be completed while the tenant resides on the premises.
(b) Where such repairs can be completed in a period of 60 or fewer days, and the tenant, within 30 days after the service of a notice of termination of his or her tenancy, agrees in writing to vacate the premises during the period required to complete the repairs at no charge to the landlord, other than abatement of the obligation to pay rent for the premises during the period required to complete the repairs, the landlord may not recover possession pursuant to this Ssubsection (13.76.130A.67.) unless the tenant shall fail or refuse to vacate the premises in accordance with such agreement. (c) Where the landlord owns any other residential rental units in the City of Berkeley , and any such unit is vacant and available at the time of premises or the entry of a judgment by a court of competent jurisdiction awarding possession of the premises to the landlord, the landlord shall, as a condition of obtaining possession pursuant to this Ssubsection (13.76.130A.67.), notify tenant in writing of the existence and address of each such vacant rental unit and offer tenant the right, at the tenant’s option:
i. To enter into a rental agreement (to be designated as a "temporary rental agreement") on any available rental unit which the tenant may choose, at a rent not to exceed the lesser of the lawful rent which may be charged for such available rental unit

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or the lawful rent in effect, at the time of the notice of termination of tenancy, on the unit being vacated, said rental agreement to be for a term of the lesser of ninety days or until completion of repairs on the rental unit being vacated by tenant; or ii. To enter into a new rental agreement or lease for such available rental unit at a rent not to exceed the lawful rent which may be charged for such available rental unit. (d) Where the landlord recovers possession under this subsection 13.76.130A.(67.), the tenant must be given the right of first refusal to re-occupy the unit upon completion of the required work. In the event the landlord files an application for an individual rent adjustment within six months following the completion of the work, the tenant shall be a party to such proceeding the same as if he or she were still in possession, unless the landlord shall submit, with such application, a written waiver by the tenant of his or her right to re-occupy the premises pursuant to this Ssubsection.

8. The landlord, after having obtained all necessary permits from the City of Berkeley, seeks in good faith to recover possession of the rental unit, in order to remove the rental unit from the market by demolition.

79. Owner Move-in Evictions.
(a) The landlord seeks in good faith with honest intent and without ulterior motive to recover possession for his/her own use and occupancy as his/her principal residence for a period of at least 36 consecutive months; or
(b) For the use and occupancy as the principal residence by the landlord’s spouse or by the landlord’s child, or parent for a period of at least 36 consecutive months. (c) For the purposes of this Ssubsection (13.76.130A.79.), the term landlord shall be defined as the owner of record, as of the time of giving of a notice terminating tenancy, and at all times thereafter to and including the earlier of the tenant’s surrender of possession of the premises or the entry of a judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction awarding possession of the premises to the landlord, holding at least a 50% interest in the property and shall not include a lessor, sublessor, or agent of the owner of record.

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(d) All notices terminating tenancy pursuant to subsection 13.76.130.A.79 shall include the following: the existence and potential availability of relocation assistance under subsection

13.76.130A.79.g; the existence of tenant protections for families with minor children as defined in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.k; the name and relationship of any qualified relative for purposes of Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79b; and the landlord’s ownership interest in any residential properties in the City of Berkeley where such interest, in any form whatsoever, is ten percent (10%) or greater. The landlord shall, within ten days of giving notice, file a copy of the notice terminating tenancy with the Rent Board.
(e) The landlord may not recover possession under this Ss ubsection (13.76.130A.79.) if a comparable unit, owned by the landlord in the City of Berkeley, was, at the time of the landlord’s decision to seek to recover possession of the rental unit, already vacant and available, or if a comparable unit, owned by the landlord in the City of Berkeley, thereafter becomes vacant at any time until the earlier of the tenant’s surrender of possession of the premises or the entry of a judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction awarding possession of the premises to the landlord. In an action by or against the tenant, evidence that a comparable unit was vacant and available within ninety days prior to the date of a notice terminating the tenant’s tenancy shall create a presumption that such unit was vacant and available at the time of the landlord’s decision to seek to recover possession of the premises. "Presumption" means that the court must find the existence of the presumed fact unless and until the contrary is proven by a preponderance of the evidence. (f) The landlord shall offer any non-comparable unit owned by the landlord to the tenant if a non-comparable unit becomes available before the recovery of possession of the tenant’s unit at a rate based on the rent the tenant is paying with an upward or downward adjustment based on the condition, size, and other amenities of the replacement unit.

Disputes concerning the initial rent for the replacement unit shall be determined by the Rent Board.
(g) Where a landlord recovers possession of a unit under Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79, the landlord is required to provide standard relocation assistance to tenant households where at least one occupant has resided in the unit for one year or more in the amount of $15,000.

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The landlord is required to provide an additional $5,000 relocation assistance to tenant households that qualify as low-income; or include disabled or elderly tenants; minor children; or tenancies which began prior to January 1, 1999. The relocation fees set forth above shall be increased in accordance with the rules set forth in Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79.h below. The procedures for payment of this relocation assistance are set forth below in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.p.(i) through (iv). The following definitions apply for any tenant households evicted for owner move-in under Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79:
i. "Low-income tenants" means persons and families whose income does not exceed the qualifying limits for lower income families as established and amended from time to time pursuant to Section 8 of the United States Housing Act of 1937, or as otherwise defined in Health and Safety Code Section 50079.5.
ii. A person is "disabled" if he/shethat person has a physical or mental impairment that limits one or more of a person’s major life activities within the meaning of the California Fair Housing and Employment Act (Government Code § 12926). iii. "Elderly" is defined as sixty (60) years of age or older. iv. "Minor child" means a person who is under 18 years of age.
v. "Tenancy began prior to January 1, 1999" is a tenancy where an "original occupant" (as defined by Berkeley Rent Board rRegulation) still permanently resides in the rental unit.
(h) Effective January 1 of each year beginning in 2018, the fees set forth above in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.g., shallmay be increased in an amount based on the Consumer Price Index - All Urban Consumers in the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose Region averaged for the 12-month period ending June 30, of each year, as determined and published by United States Department of Labor. Any increase shall be published by the Board on or before October 31st of each year.
(i) It shall be evidence that the landlord has acted in bad faith if the landlord or the landlord’s qualified relative for whom the tenant was evicted does not move into the rental unit within three months from the date of the tenant’s surrender of possession of

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the premises or occupy said unit as his/her principal residence for a period of at least 36 consecutive months.
(j) Once a landlord has successfully recovered possession of a rental unit pursuant to Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.a., then no other current or future landlords may recover possession of any other rental unit on the property pursuant to Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79.a. It is the intention of this subsection that only one specific unit per property may be used for such occupancy under Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.a and that once a unit is used for such occupancy, all future occupancies under Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.a must be of that same unit.
(k) A landlord may not recover possession of a unit from a tenant under Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79 if any tenant in the rental unit has a custodial or family relationship with a minor child who is residing in the unit, the tenant with the custodial or family relationship has resided in the unit for 12 months or more, and the effective date of the notice of termination of tenancy falls during the school year. The term "school year" as used in this subsection means the first day of instruction for the Fall Semester through the first day of the month following the last day of instruction for the Spring Semester, as posted on the Berkeley Unified School District website for each year. i. For purposes of Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.k, the term "custodial relationship" means that the person is a legal guardian of the child, or has a caregiver’s authorization affidavit for the child as defined by Section
6550 of the California Family Code, or that
the person has provided full-time custodial care of the child pursuant to an agreement with the child’s legal guardian or court-recognized caregiver and has been providing that care for at least one year or half of the child’s lifetime, whichever is less. The term "family relationship" means that the person is the biological or adoptive parent, grandparent, brother, sister, aunt or uncle of the child, or the spouse or domestic partner of such relations.
(l) A landlord may not recover possession of a unit from a tenant under Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79 if any tenant in the rental unit:

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i. Is 60 years of age or older and has been residing on the property for five years or more; or ii. Is disabled and has been residing on the property for five years or more; or
iii. Has resided on the property for five years or more and the landlord has a ten percent (10%) or greater ownership interest, in any form whatsoever, in five or more residential rental units in the City of Berkeley.
(m) A tenant who claims to be a member of one of the classes protected by Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79.l must submit a statement, with supporting evidence, to the landlord. A tenant’s failure to submit a statement at any point prior to the trial date of an unlawful detainer action for possession of the tenant’s unit shall be deemed an admission that the tenant is not protected by Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.l. A landlord may challenge a tenant’s claim of protected status by raising it as an issue at trial in an unlawful detainer action for possession of the tenant’s unit.
(n) The provisions of Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.l shall not apply to the following situations:
i. Where a person is the owner of three or fewer residential units in the City of Berkeley and has no greater than a nine percent (9%) ownership interest in any other residential unit in the City of Berkeley; or
ii. Where each residential rental unit in the CityBerkeley in which the landlord holds an ownership interest of ten percent (10%) or greater is occupied by a tenant otherwise protected from eviction by Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.I and the landlord’s qualified relative who is seeking possession of a unit subject to Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.b is 60 years of age or older or is disabled as defined in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.l.(ii) above; or
iii. Where each residential rental unit in the CityBerkeley in which the landlord holds an ownership interest of ten percent (10%) or greater is occupied by a tenant otherwise protected from eviction by Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.I, the landlord has owned the unit for which possession is being sought subject to Ssubsection

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13.76.130A.79.a for five years or more and is 60 years of age or older or is disabled as defined in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.l.(ii).
(o) Where a landlord recovers possession under Subsection 13.76.130A.79, the tenant must be given the right of first refusal to re-occupy the unit upon its next vacancy. (p) When a landlord is required to provide a relocation assistance payment subject to Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.g, the payment shall be divided among the tenants occupying the rental unit at the time of service of the notice to terminate tenancy. i. Within ten days of service of a notice terminating tenancy under Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79, the landlord shall deposit the standard relocation assistance (for households where an occupant has resided one year or more) with the City or its designated agent to be held in escrow. Within ten days after the funds are deposited into escrow, the City shall release the standard relocation assistance to the tenant household, unless the landlord notifies the Rent Stabilization Program in writing that he/shethe landlord disputes the tenant’s eligibility to receive such assistance. ii. In order to claim entitlement to additional relocation assistance under Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79.g, a tenant must notify the landlord and the Rent Stabilization Program in writing that the tenanthe/she is claiming low-income, disabled, elderly, tenant with minor child status, or a claim that the tenancy began prior to January 1, 1999 (hereinafter "entitlement to additional relocation assistance") per Ssubsection

13.76.130A.79.g within 30 days of filing of notice of termination of tenancy with the Rent Stabilization Program. The landlord shall deposit the additional relocation payment with the Rent Stabilization Program or its designated agent to be held in escrow for any tenant household who claims entitlement to additional relocation assistance within ten days after such notice claiming entitlement to additional relocation assistance is mailed. Within ten days after the funds are deposited into escrow, the Rent Stabilization Program shall authorize release of the relocation assistance to the tenant household that claims entitlement to additional relocation assistance, unless the landlord notifies the Rent Stabilization Program in writing that the landlordhe/she disputes the tenant’s eligibility to receive such assistance.

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iii. When a tenant household’s eligibility to receive standard or additional relocation assistance as described in Ssubsection 13.76.130A.79.g is disputed, either party may file a Rent Board petition with the Board requesting a determination of eligibility or file a claim in a court of competent jurisdiction. The BoardRent Stabilization Program shall release disputed relocation assistance funds to either the tenant or the landlord upon receipt of either a written agreement by both the landlord and the affected tenant, an order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or an order of a City or Rent Board hearing examiner issued pursuant to a petition process conducted in accordance with applicable Rent Board rRegulations.
iv. The landlord may rescind the notice of termination of tenancy prior to any release of relocation payment to the tenants by serving written notice stating such rescission on the tenants. In such instance, the relocation payment shall be released to the landlord. Subsequent to the release of any relocation payment to the tenants, the landlord may rescind the notice of termination of tenancy only upon the written agreement of the tenants to remain in possession of the rental unit. If the tenants remain in possession of the rental units after service of a landlord’s written notice of rescission of the eviction, the tenants shall provide an accounting to the landlord of the amount of the relocation payment expended for moving costs, return to the landlord that portion of the relocation payment not expended for moving costs, and assign to the landlord all rights to recover the amount of relocation payment paid to third parties. If a rescission occurs under this Ssubsection, the tenant(s) shall continue the tenancy on the same terms as before the notice was served. v. Where a landlord has served a notice of termination of tenancy on a tenant prior to the date that this amendment takes effect and the notice of termination of tenancy has not expired, the landlord shall deposit the full relocation payment with the City or its designated agent to be held in escrow for the tenants if the tenants have not vacated the rental unit as of the effective date of this amendment, and the landlord shall pay the full relocation payment to the tenants if the tenants have vacated the rental unit as of the effective date of this amendment. Said deposit in escrow or payment to the tenants shall be made within ten days of the effective date of this amendment.

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vi. Failure of the landlord to make any payment specified herein shall be a defense to any action to recover possession of a rental unit based upon the landlord’s termination of tenancy notice pursuant to this Ssubsection (13.76.130A.79). In addition, if the tenants of a rental unit have vacated the unit as a result of a notice of termination of tenancy pursuant to this Ssubsection (13.76.130A.79), and the landlord fails to make any payment specified herein, the landlord shall be liable to the tenants for three times the amount of the payment as well as reasonable attorney fees. (q) A tenant who prevails in an action brought under this Ss ubsection (13.76.130A.79), in addition to any damages and/or costs awarded by the court, shall be entitled to recover all reasonable attorney’s fees incurred in bringing or defending the action. (r) At least twice annually, Rent Board staff shall report to the Rent Board regarding the occupancy status of units possession of which has been recovered pursuant to this Ssubsection (113.76.130A.79) within the prior 36 months. (s) If any provision or clause of this Ss ubsection (13.76.130A.79) or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held to be unconstitutional or to be otherwise invalid by any court of competent jurisdiction, such invalidity shall not affect other provisions or clauses, and to this end the provisions and applications of this Ssubsection are severable.
810. Exemption of Temporary Lease of Owner’s Principal Residence. A landlord or lessor seeks in good faith to recover possession of the rental unit for his/her theiroccupancy as a principal residence, where the landlord or lessor has previously occupied the rental unit as his/her their principal residence and has the right to recover possession of the unit for his/her their occupancy as a principal residence under an existing rental agreement with the current tenants. 911. Expiration of Temporary Rental Agreement for Replacement Housing During Substantial Repairs. The tenant fails to vacate a rental unit occupied under the terms of a temporary rental agreement entered into pursuant to the provisions of Ssubsection 13.76.130A.67.c., following expiration of the term of said temporary rental agreement, and following written notice of the availability of tenant’s previous rental unit for re-occupancy by tenant (if the term of the rental agreement has expired by reason of the completion of repairs on the old rental unit), or of

Chapter 13.76 BMC, Rent Stabilization and Eviction for Good Just Cause Program Page 42 of 48

written notice to quit (if the term of the rental agreement has expired by reason of the expiration of a period of 90 days).

B. Contents of Notice to Terminate Agency. A landlord’s failure to specify good just cause as listed above in subsections 1. through 11. of Section 13.76.130A. in the notice of termination or the notice to quit and in the complaint for possession shall be a defense to any action for possession of a rental unit covered by the terms of this chapter. Any notice terminating tenancy must additionally include a statement that advice regarding the notice terminating tenancy is available from the Rent Board, the current phone number for the Rent Board's housing counseling services, and the current address to the Rent Board's website.

C. Allegation of Notice to Terminate Tenancy In any action to recover possession of a rental unit covered by the terms of this chapter, except an action to recover possession under Ssubsection

13.76.130A.67., and 13.76.130.A.8, or 13.76.130.A.11., a landlord shall allege, as to each rental unit on the property, substantial compliance as of the date of the notice of termination or notice to quit and as of the date of the commencement of the action for possession with the implied warranty of habitability and compliance as of the date of the notice of termination or notice to quit and as of the date of the commencement of the action for possession with Sections 13.76.100 (Rent Ceiling) and

13.76.080 (Rent Registration) of this Cchapter.

D. Filing of Termination Notices and Unlawful Detainer Summons and Complaints. The landlord shall file with the Bboard a copy of any notice of termination, notice to quit, and summons and complaint, within ten days no later than three business days after the tenant has been served with such notice or summons and complaint. The Board may provide an email address to which the landlord may send any notice of termination, notice to quit, and summons and complaint.

13.76.135 Right to Organize.

A. Tenant Association. This section shall be limited to 1) parcels that contain five or more rental units; and 2) parcels that contain three or four rental units, so long as the rental units are managed by a property management company as defined by Board regulation.

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Tenants of such a residential rental property may establish a Tenant Association by providing their Landlord a petition signed by Tenants representing at least 50% of the occupied rental units, including Rooming Houses as defined by Board regulation, of the residential rental property certifying their desire to form a Tenant Association, and identifying the Tenant Association. For purposes of this subsection, a petition may include individual written statements signed by said Tenants or some combination of individual and collective written statements.

B. Confer in Good Faith. Landlords and Tenant Associations shall confer with each other in good faith regarding housing services and conditions, community life, landlord-tenant relations, rent increases, and other issues of common interest or concern. “Confirm in good faith” means that the parties shall have the mutual obligation, personally or through their authorized representatives, to meet and confer and continue for a reasonable period of time, in order to exchange freely information, opinions, and proposals, and to endeavor to reach agreement.

Examples of conferring in good faith include, but are not limited to, maintaining a designated point of contact, engaging in regular communications, responding to reasonable requests for information, allowing participation by non-resident advocates, providing adequate time for limited-English speakers to obtain translation services, providing and adhering to timelines for addressing habitability concerns, and negotiating and putting agreements into writing. In addition, a Landlord may not prohibit a Tenant from allowing a Tenant Association representative to attend meetings involving the Landlord and one or more Tenants. The Board, through regulation, may further define good faith.

C. Organizing Activities. “Organizing Activities” means:

1. initiating contact with tenants, including conducting door-to-door surveys, to ascertain interest in and/or seek support for forming a Tenant Association;

2. joining or supporting a Tenant Association;

3. distributing literature, requesting or providing information, offering assistance, convening meetings (which may occur without a landlord or landlord representative present), or

4. otherwise acting on behalf of one or more tenants in the building regarding issues of common interest or concern.

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The term “Organizing Activities” shall include, but is not limited to, the operations of a Tenant Association. A person’s participation or failure to participate in Organizing Activities shall have no effect on whether that person qualifies as a tenant. The Board, through regulation, may further define Organizing Activities. In addition, a tenant’s right to engage in Organizing Activities, to receive assistance from a Tenant Association, and to have Organizing activities occur at the property shall qualify as a housing service, and a landlord’s failure to confer in good faith with a Tenant Association may send the Landlord a single standing request to attend meetings for the duration of the calendar year.

D. A Landlord must on written request of the Tenant Association attend, either themselves or through their representative, at least one Tenant Association meeting per calendar quarter, though more frequent attendance at the request of the Tenant Association is permitted.

Landlord or Landlord's representative must remain in attendance at the meeting until all agenda items are complete, unless the meeting extends for more than two hours, in which case the Landlord or Landlord's representative may withdraw from the meeting and request that the remaining items be continued to a subsequent meeting. These meetings shall occur at a mutually convenient time and place. To request that a landlord or their representative attend a meeting, the Tenant Association shall send the Landlord a written request at least 14 days in advance; alternatively, if the Tenant Association meets at a regularly scheduled time and place, then the Tenant Association may send the Landlord a single standing request to attend meetings for the duration of the calendar year.

E. Private Right of Action. In the event of a violation of this section, any Tenant Association, or individual tenant, aggrieved by the violation may institute a civil proceeding for injunctive relief, and actual money actual damages as specified below, and whatever other relief the court deems appropriate. In addition to the above awards of damages in a civil action under this Chapter, a prevailing plaintiff shall be entitled to an award of reasonable attorney's fees.

13.76.140 Retaliation prohibited.

No landlord may threaten to bring, or bring, an action to recover possession, cause the tenant to quit the unit involuntarily, serve any notice to quit or notice of termination of tenancy, decrease any services, including a tenant’s right to engage in Organizing Activities, or increase the rent where the

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landlord’s intent is retaliation against the tenant for the tenant’s assertion or exercise of rights under this Cchapter. Such retaliation shall be a defense to an action to recover possession, or it may serve as the basis for an affirmative action by the tenant for actual and punitive damages and injunctive relief. In an action by or against a tenant, evidence of the assertion or exercise by the tenant of rights under this Cchapter within six months prior to the alleged act of retaliation shall create a presumption that the landlord’s act was retaliatory. "Presumption" means that the court must find the existence of the fact presumed unless and until its nonexistence is proven by a preponderance of the evidence. A tenant may assert retaliation affirmatively or as a defense to the landlord’s action without the aid of the presumption regardless of the period of time which has elapsed between the tenant’s assertion or exercise of rights under this Cchapter and the alleged act of retaliation.

13.76.150 Remedies.

A. For Vviolation of Rent Ceilings or Failure to Register. If a landlord fails to register in accordance with Section 13.76.080 of this Cchapter, or if a landlord demands, accepts, receives or retains any payment in excess of the maximum allowable rent permitted by this Cchapter, a tenant may take any or all of the following actions until compliance is achieved:

1. A tenant may petition the Bboard for appropriate relief. If the Bboard, after the landlord has proper notice and after a hearing, determines that a landlord has willfully and knowingly failed to register a rental unit covered by this Cchapter or violated the provisions of Sections

13.76.100, 13.76.110 and 13.76.120 of this Cchapter, the Bboard may authorize the tenant of such rental unit to withhold all or a portion of the rent for the unit until such time as the rental unit is brought into compliance with this Cchapter. After a rental unit is brought into compliance, the Bboard shall determine what portion, if any, of the withheld rent is owed to the landlord for the period in which the rental unit was not in compliance. Whether or not the Bboard allows such withholding, no landlord who has failed to comply with the Cchapter shall at any time increase rents for a rental unit until such unit is brought into compliance.

2. A tenant may withhold up to the full amount of his or her periodic rent which is charged or demanded by the landlord under the provisions of this Cchapter. In any action to recover possession based on nonpayment of rent, possession shall not be granted where the tenant has withheld rent in good faith under this Ssection.

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3. A tenant may seek injunctive relief on behalf of herself or himself to restrain the landlord from demanding or receiving any rent on the unit until the landlord has complied with the terms of this Cchapter.

4. A tenant may file a damage suit against the landlord for actual damages when the landlord receives or retains any rent in excess of the maximum rent allowed under this Cchapter. Upon further proof of a bad faith claim by the landlord or the landlord’s retention of rent in excess of the maximum rent allowed by this Cchapter, the tenant shall receive a judgment of up to $750 in addition to any actual damages.

B. For Violation of Eviction Proceedings. If it is shown in the appropriate court that the event which the landlord claims as grounds to recover possession under Subsection 13.76.130A.67., Subsection 13.76.130A.8., Subsection 13.76.130A.79., or Subsection 13.76.130A.810. is not initiated within two months after the tenant vacates the unit, or it is shown the landlord’s claim was false or in bad faith, the tenant shall be entitled to regain possession and to actual damages. If the landlord’s conduct was willful, the tenant shall be entitled to damages in an amount of $750 or three times the actual damages sustained, whichever is greater.

C. Both tThe City Attorney and the Board shall have the separate authority to may bring an action for injunctive relief on behalf of the City or on behalf of tenants seeking compliance by landlords with this Cchapter or.

D. The board may seek injunctive relief to restrain or enjoin any violation of this chapter or of the rules, regulations, orders and decisions of the Bboard.

DE. If a tenant fails to bring a civil or administrative action within 120 days from the date of the first occurrence of a violation of this Cchapter, the Bboard may either settle the claim arising from the violation or bring such action. Thereafter, the tenant on whose behalf the board acted may not bring an action against the landlord in regard to the same violation for which the board has made a settlement or brought an action. In the event the Bboard settles the claim it shall be entitled to retain from any payments made by the landlord, the costs it incurred in settlement, and the tenant aggrieved by the violation shall be entitled to the remainder.

13.76.160 Partial invalidity.

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If any provision of this Cchapter or application thereof is held to be invalid, this invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of this Cchapter which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or applications, and to this end the provisions and applications of this chapter are severable.

13.76.170 Nonwaiverability.

Any provision in a rental agreement which waives or modifies any provision of this Cchapter is contrary to public policy and void.

13.76.180 Judicial review.

A landlord or tenant aggrieved by any action or decision of the Bboard may seek judicial review in a court of appropriate jurisdiction.

13.76.190 Criminal penalties.

Any landlord who is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be guilty of a willful violation of Section 13.76.130 of this Cchapter shall be subject to up to a $500 fine and/or 90 days in jail for a first offense and up to a $1000 fine and/or six months in jail for any subsequent offenses.

Section 3. Severability – Liberal Construction. If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this Ordinance is, for any reason, held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect other provisions or applications of this Chapter which can be given effect without the invalid provisions or application, and to this end the provisions of this Chapter are declared to be severable. The People of Berkeley declare that they would have adopted this Ordinance and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of the Ordinance in spite of the fact that any one or more of the same be declared unconstitutional or invalid. This Chapter shall be liberally construed to achieve the purposes of this Chapter and to preserve its validity.

Section 4. Competing Ordinances. In the event that there is another ordinance on the ballot during the same election which seeks to regulate residential housing which also passes, the ordinance which obtains the higher number of votes shall be the controlling ordinance.

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Section 5. Effective Date. This Ordinance shall be effective only if approved by a majority of the voters voting thereon and shall go into effect ten (10) days after the vote is declared by the City Council. The Mayor and City Clerk and hereby authorized to execute this Chapter to give evidence of its adoption by the voters.

Internal
Igor Tregub
Councilmember, District 4
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7140[XXXX] ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 E-Mail: [[email protected]]

ACTION CALENDAR
JULY 30, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Councilmember Igor Tregub
Subject: Alternative Ballot Measure to Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Initiative

RECOMMENDATION
Adopt a Resolution to place on the ballot an alternative measure to the initiative- submitted Fossil Fuel Emission Tax Ballot Measure for Large Buildings. This alternative measure was crafted with input from various stakeholders, including labor, environmental organizations, and the small business and nonprofit community.

Or
Direct staff to provide analysis, by the August 5, 2024, Special Meeting of the Berkeley City Council, of placing on the ballot a companion measure to the above-referenced initiative-submitted Fossil Fuel Emission Tax Ballot Measure, and to recommend alternative actions to mitigate certain unintended consequences of the initiative should it be adopted by Berkeley voters.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
The qualified initiative, if passed, calls for creation and management of a special fund.

Per that measure, the assessment of the tax starts in 2025 and collection of the tax commences in February 2026. This timeframe imposes very short timeframe between the passage of the tax and the need to establish a program to properly calculate and assess the tax for individual property owners and manage collection and proper distribution of the proceeds from the tax. All of this will likely impose the need to hire additional staff before any moneys are received by the city from the tax.

The alternative measure aims to prevent and/or mitigate the immediate fiscal impact on the City and aims to provide additional time to incorporate significant up-front expenditures associated with implementing this measure into the mid-cycle budget amendments and/or next two-year budget.

Internal
Alternative Ballot Measure to Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Initiative

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Numerous efforts have been launched in the City of Berkeley at various points to address the climate crisis we face, including through the decarbonization of its buildings. These include a prohibition on natural gas infrastructure in new buildings, which was unanimously approved as an ordinance by the Berkeley City Council in 20191 but struck down by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals,2 and a currently proposed effort to regulate nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions in certain new buildings.3 An initiative petition titled “Initiative Ordinance to Adopt a Special Tax on Natural Gas Consumption in Buildings 15,000 Sq. Ft. or Larger” was filed with the City Clerk on May 15, 2024. The petition was certified by the Registrar of Voters as being sufficient on May 28, 2024.4

BACKGROUND
The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Measure has qualified as an initiative for the November 2024 ballot. To address numerous concerns from various stakeholders who have the potential to be adversely impacted by the implementation of this initiative, a collaborative effort was initiated by our office. The to-be-delivered redline changes represent an effort to align the intent of the initiative to respond to the climate crisis at the scale it requires with the fiscal limitations and other realities that the City of Berkeley as well as the owners of and tenants in residential, commercial, and industrial properties face, particularly within the context of today’s economy. In particular, the alternative measure seeks to extend the phase-in period for implementation; exempt a broader number of nonprofits, small businesses, and residential and commercial tenants than the initiative-submitted ordinance; and harmonize the process of collecting and levying fees by the City of Berkeley with existing systems and practices, as compared to the initiative-qualified ballot measure.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
The environmental sustainability and climate impacts of both the alternative measure and the ballot-submitted initiative are unknown and require further staff analysis.

However, the intent of the measure is to align the intent of the initiative to respond to the climate crisis at the scale it requires with the fiscal limitations and other realities that the City of Berkeley as well as the owners of and tenants in residential, commercial, and industrial properties face, particularly within the context of today’s economy.

CONTACT PERSON
1 https://berkeley.municipal.codes/BMC/12.80
2 https://apnews.com/article/berkeley-california-natural-gas-ban-overturned-appeals-court- 7dafca58d19963f322100d73caf9c31a
3 https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/legislative-body-meeting-agendas/2024-05- 16%20Agenda%20Packet%20-%20Health.pdf
4 https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/07%2009%2024%20Supp%201%20Item%2019%20 CAO.pdf

Internal
Alternative Ballot Measure to Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Initiative

Councilmember Igor Tregub Council District 4 510-981-7140 Olga Bolotina, Chief of Staff

Internal
RESOLUTION NO. ##,###-N.S.

Alternative Ballot Measure to Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Initiative WHEREAS, Numerous efforts have been launched in the City of Berkeley at various points to address the climate crisis we face, including through the decarbonization of its buildings. These include a prohibition on natural gas infrastructure in new buildings, which was unanimously approved as an ordinance by the Berkeley City Council in 2019 but struck down by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, and a currently proposed effort to regulate nitrous oxide (NOx) emissions in certain new buildings; and WHEREAS, An initiative petition titled “Initiative Ordinance to Adopt a Special Tax on Natural Gas Consumption in Buildings 15,000 Sq. Ft. or Larger” was filed with the City Clerk on May 15, 2024 and certified by the Registrar of Voters as being sufficient on May 28, 2024; and
WHEREAS, To address numerous concerns from various stakeholders who have the potential to be adversely impacted by the implementation of this initiative, a collaborative effort was initiated by our office; and
WHEREAS, The to-be-delivered redline changes represent an effort to align the intent of the initiative to respond to the climate crisis at the scale it requires with the fiscal limitations and other realities that the City of Berkeley as well as the owners of and tenants in residential, commercial, and industrial properties face, particularly within the context of today’s economy; and
WHEREAS, In particular, the alternative measure seeks to extend the phase-in period for implementation; exempt a broader number of nonprofits, small businesses, and residential and commercial tenants than the initiative-submitted ordinance; and harmonize the process of collecting and levying fees by the City of Berkeley with existing systems and practices, as compared to the initiative-qualified ballot measure.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Council of the City of Berkeley Adopt a Resolution to place on the ballot an alternative measure to the initiative-submitted Fossil Fuel Emission Tax Ballot Measure for Large Buildings. This alternative measure was crafted with input from various stakeholders, including labor, environmental organizations, and the small business and nonprofit community Or
Direct staff to provide analysis, by the August 5, 2024, Special Meeting of the Berkeley City Council, of placing on the ballot a companion measure to the above-referenced initiative-submitted Fossil Fuel Emission Tax Ballot Measure, and to recommend

Internal
Alternative Ballot Measure to Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax Ballot Initiative

alternative actions to mitigate certain unintended consequences of the initiative should it be adopted by Berkeley voters.

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/

INFORMATION CALENDAR
July 30, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: LaTanya Bellow, Interim City Manager
Submitted by: Terrance Davis, Director, Public Works
Subject: Analysis and Response to Questions regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk- Related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

INTRODUCTION
At a regular Council Meeting on May 14, 2024, the City Council requested a report, under the provisions of California Elections Code Section 9212, on the two Pavement/Sidewalk related Voter Initiatives citizen initiative that will appear before Berkeley voters on the November 5, 2024 ballot.

The two initiatives are known as:

 SAFE STREETS (Sustainable and Accountable Funding for Equitable Street Transformation, Revitalization, Enhancements, and Essential Traffic Safety (SAFE STREETS) Initiative)
 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks
The Section 9212 report, prepared in response to this request and drafted as an Off- Agenda Memo, is attached.

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
As specified in Election Code Section 9212, this report must be presented to City Council no later than 30 days after the date on which the City Clerk certified the sufficiency of the initiative petition. Council requested that this report include:
 Estimated revenue to the City, broken down by the allocations as stated within each measure, in both current year and year of expenditure dollars, based on standard inflation and square footage growth expectations;  Estimated impact on pavement conditions index (PCI) from each measure, with modeling prepared by the City’s paving consultant, assuming the City maintains current street repair funding levels. If modeling is not available or not feasible, provide best estimates based on previous scenario modeling;  Estimated potential impact on implementation of the Vision Zero Action Plan and related safety plans (Pedestrian Plan, Bicycle Plan, Safe Routes to Schools) from each measure;

Analysis and Response regarding the Aerosols Requirements of the “Healthy City Buildings” Voter Initiative on the November 5, 2024 Ballot INFORMATION CALENDAR July 30, 2024

 A summary of the staff time and City activities required in each measure;  An estimate of any additional staff costs generated by each measure that is not funded by the measure;
 Estimated funding levels for the sidewalk repair program from each measure, discuss any alterations to the sidewalk repair program contained in each measure, and discuss any impacts to other City funding as a result; and  Any other information of interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager.

BACKGROUND
Staff from the Public Works Department have provided analysis and information on the Two Pavement/Sidewalk-Related Voter Initiatives’ potential impacts, to the greatest extent possible given constraints on available time and resources.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
Environmental impact may vary depending on the course of action and project implementation and phasing.

POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Future action will be dependent on the outcome of these initiatives at the ballot on November 5, 2024.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Overviews of the financial implications of adopting each of the initiatives have been provided in the attached Off-Agenda Memo.

CONTACT PERSON
Terrance Davis, Director Public Works Department
Attachments:
1: July 25, 2024 Off-Agenda Memo: Analysis and Response to Questions regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-Related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/ July 24, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: LaTanya Bellow, Interim City Manager
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk- Related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot Background:

Registered voters within the City of Berkeley will likely be asked to vote on two 50%- threshold voter initiatives to fund street and sidewalk repair on the November 5, 2024 General Election Ballot. Both voter initiatives are intended to improve streets, sidewalks and other related infrastructure, including specific funding allocations, and include typical language regarding background, purpose, exemptions, expiration, oversight, reporting, adjustment of inflation, etc.

The two initiatives are known as:

 SAFE STREETS (Sustainable and Accountable Funding for Equitable Street Transformation, Revitalization, Enhancements, and Essential Traffic Safety (SAFE STREETS) Initiative)
 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks

This brief staff report aims to provide an overview of pertinent issues and address specific questions from the Mayor and City Council. Staff collaborated closely with consultants.

Executive Summary
Important conclusions are listed below and detailed further in this staff report.  Both voter initiatives are well-structured and would benefit pavement/sidewalk maintenance in the City.
 Neither voter initiative will generate sufficient revenue to achieve the desired and stipulated pavement conditions index rating (PCI) of 70 out of 100.  All City costs associated the stipulated pavement/sidewalk improvements including collection, oversight, engineering, inspection, planning and reporting are eligible to be reimbursed form voter initiative revenues. These “soft costs” are estimated to be approximately 15%-20% of total costs.

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

o Additional FTEs, equipment and consulting services will be required to implement either voter initiative – however, these costs can be fully funded by the measures.
 Annual Year 1 Tax for typical 1,750 Single Family Residence o SAFE STREETS = $297.50
o Fix the Streets and Sidewalks = $227.50

Estimated Revenue Generated, City Costs and Stipulated Allocations The tables below display the 1.) Estimated revenue to the City, broken down by land use,

2.) estimated City costs, and 3.) stipulated allocations by type of infrastructure. Tables 1 , 2, and 3 are for the SAFE STREETS voter initiative and Tables 4, 5, and 6 are for the Fix the Streets and Sidewalk voter Initiative.

SAFE STREETS Voter Initiative:

Table 1
Year 1 SAFE STREET Voter Initiative Revenue
SAFE STREETS Initiative 2024:

Classification Parcels Building Square
Feet
Rate Assessment
Residential Parcels 25,250 58,031,516 $ 0.17 $ 9,865,358 Commercial Parcels 1,799 20,656,774 $ 0.25 $ 5,164,194 Undeveloped 605 - $ -
Non-Taxable 1,494 - $ -
Total 29,148 77,362,783 $ 15,029,551

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Table 2
Year 1 SAFE STREET Summary of Associated City Costs
SAFE STREETS Initiative 2024:

Revenue (a) $ 15,029,551
City Expenses Estimated Costs
Construction Management Annual $ 513,918

Independent Oversight Commission 4/year $ 105,573

Reporting
Public Input meetings 3 Every 3
Years
$ 41,548
City Manager's Report Annual $ 33,790

Auditors Report Every 3
Years
$ 55,944
City Manager Duties Annual $ 25,000
Council Review Annual $ 25,000
Project Related Design Annual $ 146,333
CIP, Paving Plan, Off cycle events Annual $ 114,394

Transportation Element in General Plan Every 10
Years
$ 500

Public Works Project Delivery process
update
Every 10
Years
$ 3,112

Collection
Levy prep Annual $ 15,000
County Collection Fee Annual $ 29,148
Attorneys Allowance Annual $ 10,000
Enforcement Annual $ 10,000

Deductions

Low Income (2500 units * 0.17 *1,750
sqft)
Annual $ 743,750

Management of Low-Income Exemption
program
Annual $ 10,000

Sum of Annual non-direct costs (b) $ 1,883,010
Effective Project Revenue (a-b=c) $ 13,146,542
Effective Percentage (c/a) 87%

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Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Table 3
Year 1 SAFE STREETS Stipulated Allocations
SAFE STREETS Initiative 2024:

Allocations Portion Frequency Rate Assessment
Streets and Sidewalks -
Streets
45% $5,915,943.69
Streets and Sidewalks -
Sidewalks and pedestrian
paths
15%
$1,971,981.23
Safety Improvements 30% $3,943,962.46
Environmental Enhancements,
County Fees,
10% $1,314,654.15
Total Revenue (a) 100% $ 13,146,542
SAFE STREETS Total Estimated Revenue (14 Years) = $240,000,000 (assumes 2% CPI)
FIX THE STREETS Voter Initiative:

Table 4
Year 1 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative Revenue Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative 2024:

Allocations Portion Frequency Rate Assessment

Street Repair, Repaving,
Reconstruction

37.5% $ 3,836,054
Sidewalk and Pathway Repair 35% $ 3,580,317
High Priority Pedestrian Safety 13.5% $ 1,380,979
Traffic Calming on Bicycle Boulevards 7% $ 716,063
Green Infrastructure and Environmental
Enhancements
7% $ 716,063

Total Revenues 100% $10,229,478

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Table 5
Year 1 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Summary of Associated City Costs Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative 2024:

Revenue (a) $ 10,229,478
City Expenses Estimated
Costs
Construction Management Annual $ 428,265
Independent Oversight Commission Annual $ 185,514 Reporting
CIP, Paving Plan, Off cycle events Annual $ 114,394 Public Works Annual Report Annual $ 33,790
3 Public meetings Annual $ 41,548
City Auditors Report every 3 years $ 55,944
City Manager Duties Annual $ 25,000
Council Review Annual $ 25,000
Project Related Design Annual $ 121,944
Develop baseline use, metrics and
Chapter 7.6
One Time/12
Years
$ 121,106
Programmatic evaluations Annual $ 38,244
Collection
Levy prep Annual $ 15,000
County Collection Fee Annual $ 29,148
Attorneys Allowance Annual $ 10,000
Enforcement Annual $ 10,000
Deductions
Low Income (2500 units * 0.13 *1,750 sqft) Annual $ 568,750 Management of Low Income Exemption
program
Annual $ 25,000
Sum of Annual non-direct costs (b) $ 1,848,647
Effective Project Revenue (a-b=c) $ 8,380,831
Effective Percentage (c/a) 82%

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Table 6
Year 1 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Stipulated Allocations Allocations Portion Frequency Rate Assessment

Street Repair, Repaving ,
Reconstruction

37.5% $ 3,142,812
Sidewalk and Pathway Repair 35% $ 2,933,291
High Priority Pedestrian Safety 13.5% $ 1,131,412
Traffic Calming on Bicycle
Boulevards
7% $ 586,658
Green Infrastructure and
Environmental Enhancements
7% $ 586,658

Total Revenues 100% $ 8,380,831
Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Total Estimated Revenue (12 Years) = $137,000,000 (assumes 2% CPI)
Responses to Questions
Question 1:

Estimated impact on pavement conditions index (PCI) from each measure, with modeling prepared by the City’s paving consultant, assuming the City maintains current street repair funding levels. If modeling is not available or not feasible, provide best estimates based on previous scenario modeling:

Answer 1:

Graph 1, PCI Levels Achieved for Various Funding Scenarios (Attachment 1), prepared by Pavement Engineering Incorporated (PEI), shows PCI levels achieved for various funding scenarios. Please note that the City currently invests approximately $19 million per year towards pavement/sidewalk maintenance and this investment level will be continued and added to the voter initiative taxes, if approved.

 SAFE STREETS Initiative - Yr. 1 Total Pavement Investment = $5.9million*+$19 million= $24.9 million
o SAFE STREETS PCI Achieved = 57 (Fair Condition)
*See Table 3

 Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative - Yr. 1 Total Pavement Investment = $3.1M**+$19M = $22.1 M
o Fix the Streets and Sidewalks PCI Achieved = 55 (Fair Condition) **See Table 6

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Question 2:

Estimated potential impact on implementation of the Vision Zero Action Plan and related safety plans (Pedestrian Plan, Bicycle Plan, Safe Routes to Schools) from each measure;

Answer 2:

The Vision Zero Action Plan recommends both capital projects and programmatic efforts to eliminate traffic deaths and severe injuries on Berkeley streets. The City currently allocates approximately $187,500 annually towards the Vision Zero Program for action plan implementation and staffing. Safety projects identified by the Vision Zero Action Plan, including the Martin Luther King Jr Vision Zero Quick Build and the Adeline Street Transportation Improvements Project are funded through grants matched with Berkeley’s Measure B/BB funding. Either measure would have significant impact on Vision Zero Action Plan Implementation, particularly in Public Works’ ability to plan and construct capital safety projects on high-injury streets, however the SAFE STREETS Initiative is estimated to provide more funding for these efforts, specifically stating that all safety improvements funded through it must be consistent with City adopted plans: Vision Zero Action Plan, Pedestrian Plan, Bicycle Plan, Complete Streets Policy.

SAFE STREETS Initiative – Year 1
Safety Improvements - $4,508,865

Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative - Year 1
High Priority Pedestrian Safety - $1,380,979
Traffic Calming on Bicycle Boulevards - $716,063
Total: $2,097,042

It should also be noted that sidewalk and pathway repair allocations in both measures also support the goals of the Berkeley Vision Zero Action Plan, Pedestrian Plan, and Safe Routes to Schools program by improving pedestrian safety and connectivity through sidewalk, curb ramps and pathway repair. However, even considering these allocations, the SAFE STREETS Initiative would still result in more overall funding for Vision Zero Action Plan implementation and related safety plans.

Question 3:

A summary of the staff time and City activities required in each measure; and an estimate of any additional staff costs generated by each measure that is not funded by the measure;

Answer 3:

Both measures include language indicating all costs, including “incidental costs” associated with the initiatives are eligible to be paid for by the tax revenue generated from the initiative. We recommend if either voter initiative is approved that the City thoroughly identifies and tracks any associated costs and ensures they are paid from the respective

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

initiative’s revenues. However, careful review by legal counsel is recommended to identify any costs that may not be included in this memo.

The language for each of the initiatives is as follows:

SAFE STREETS Voter Initiative

7.11.010 F.
“Proceeds of the tax may be used to pay or reimburse the City for actual, verifiable costs of City staff when they are performing work on, or necessary and incidental to, projects funded by the tax, or public input, oversight, and accountability elements required by this chapter. Proceeds of the tax may also be used to pay or reimburse the City for the costs of City Auditor staff time spent auditing the tax expenditures of this measure.”

Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Voter Initiative

7.11.10 G.
“Proceeds of the tax may be used to pay or reimburse the City for actual, verifiable costs of City staff when they are performing work on, or necessary and incidental to, such projects.”
Summary of Allocations and Associated Costs:

Tables 2 and 4, above, summarize the cost allocations and associated estimated non- direct-project costs for both voter initiatives, Again, all non-project costs should be eligible to be funded by voter initiative revenues. These estimates indicate about three-quarters of the revenue would support direct project costs.

Question 4:

Estimated funding levels for the sidewalk repair program from each measure, discuss any alterations to the sidewalk repair program contained in each measure, and discuss any impacts to other City funding as a result

Answer 4:

Staff estimates that an allocation of approximately $3.5 million per year (adjusted for inflation) over the next 12 years would eliminate the backlog of sidewalk repairs needed throughout the City. The effect on other City funding would depend on which ballot measure, if any, is implemented. If the City is able to continue contributions over and above any ballot measure revenue, then the 12 year period could be shortened

SAFE STREETS Sidewalk allocation = $ 1,971,981 per year (See table 3) Fix the Streets and Sidewalks Initiative = 2,933,291 per year (See table 6) Question 5:

Any other information of interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Answer 5:

Strict Allocations of Revenue Use
Each voter initiative includes specific funding allocations. See Tables 3 and 6, above which illustrate anticipated revenue for each allocation.

Maintenance of Effort Provisions
Maintenance of Effort (“MOE”) provisions are popular with voters and taxpayers, and they are intended to prevent local agencies from reducing existing discretionary sources of revenue (e.g. general fund) for a particular service when a new revenue source (e.g. special tax) is established. (This is often called “supplanting”). Both voter initiatives contain MOE provisions (see 7.11.020 in Fix the Streets and Sidewalks and 7.11.030 in SAFE STREETS), which add additional constraints and complexity for City budgeting, particularly during financially challenging periods.

Start-Up Timing
Infrastructure-related special taxes often require significant “start-up” time. Approximately 24 to 36 months of ramp-up should be allowed until the annual spending is equal to the annual revenue, and significant project work has been initiated.

Contracting Out or New Full Time Employees (FTE)
The City will need to make strategic decisions regarding the pros and cons of contracting out the project work versus making significant equipment and personnel investments to perform work internally with its own staff. Staff estimate that one additional FTE at the Assistant Civil Engineer level and an Engineering Inspector (with new vehicle) will be required for design and construction management/inspection of the projects to be considered with passage of either ballot measure. These functions could be performed by contracted consultants, but at an approximately 35% higher labor cost and the institutional knowledge that would come with Berkeley staff.

Low-Income Exemptions
Both initiatives include Low Income Exemption provisions which will significantly reduce the overall revenues as shown in Tables 2 and 4, above. Previous experience indicates an estimate of 10% of residences will apply for and receive these exemptions.

Attachments:

1. Graph 1: PCI Levels Achieved for Various Funding Scenarios cc:

LaTanya Bellow, Interim City Manager
Anne Cardwell, Deputy City Manager
Tasha Tervalon, Interim Deputy City Manager

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

Jenny Wong, City Auditor
Farimah Brown, City Attorney
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
Matthai Chakko, Assistant to the City Manager

July 24, 2024
Re: Analysis and Response to Questions Regarding Two Pavement/Sidewalk-related Voter Initiatives on the November 5, 2024 Ballot

City of Berkeley
07/18/2024
70 65
5757
60 54
52 50
55 60
65 70
75 After
Planned
2024
Work
2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 2036 PCI Range
Year
Paving Projection Scenarios (Target and Budget)
(S6) Increase Avg. PCI to 70 in 12 Years
Avg. $42.0M/Yr
($503.6M over 12 years)
(S5) Increase Avg. PCI to 65 in 12 Years
Avg. $35.5M/Yr
($425.7M over 12 years)
(S4) Increase Avg. PCI to 60 in 12 Years
Avg. $28.5M/Yr
($341.4M over 12 years)
(S2) Baseline + SAFE
Avg $24.9M/Yr
($298.8M over 12 years)
(S3) Baseline + FIX
Avg. $22.1M/Yr
($265.2M over 12 years)
(S1) Baseline
Avg. $19M/Yr
($228M over 12 years)

Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: https://berkeleyca.gov/

INFORMATION CALENDAR
July 30, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: LaTanya Bellow, Interim City Manager
Submitted by: Jordan Klein, Director, Planning and Development Department Subject: Section 9212 Report: Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax

INTRODUCTION
At a special meeting on June 14, 2024, the City Council requested a report, under the provisions of California Elections Code Section 9212, on the "Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” ordinance citizen initiative that will appear before Berkeley voters on the November 5, 2024 ballot. The Section 9212 report, prepared in response to this request, is attached.

CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
City Council specified that the report should include:
 Potential economic impacts and benefits, if any, on local businesses and city tax revenues;
 Analysis of costs to the City and other potential costs;  Consideration of additional factors such as the social cost of carbon, safety risks, gas use trajectory, and potential benefits for the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax initiative;
 City staffing implications;
 Feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances; and  Any other information and analysis of potential interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager and identified during the review process.

As specified in Election Code Section 9212, this report must be presented to City Council no later than 30 days after the date on which the City Clerk certified the sufficiency of the initiative petition.

BACKGROUND
Staff from Planning and Development, Finance, the Office of Economic Development, and the Rent Stabilization Board have provided analysis and information on the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax’s potential impacts, to the greatest extent possible given constraints on available time and resources. The attached report is based on

Section 2912 Report: Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax INFORMATION CALENDAR July 30, 2024

staff’s research and outreach with community members, technical experts, and impacted communities.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND CLIMATE IMPACTS
The attached report details potential sustainability and climate impacts associated with the "Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” ordinance citizen initiative, and its implementation if it is approved by voters on November 5, 2024.

POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Future action will be dependent on the outcome of this initiative at the ballot on November 5, 2024.

FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
If this initiative is approved by voters, the Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax would tax buildings which are 15,000 square feet or larger on their natural gas use beginning in 2025. The tax would apply to approximately 609 buildings in Berkeley. Staff estimate that the tax would generate approximately $26.7 million in its first year. The tax rate would escalate by 6% plus the local consumer price index (CPI) each year. The estimated first year tax collection is larger than Berkeley’s total annual sales tax revenue, and is about a third of Berkeley’s annual secured property taxes.

If the owners of affected properties perceived the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax to be overly burdensome, they could choose to remove property from the market, thus reducing City business license revenue. In that scenario, there would also be potential losses in sales tax, transient occupancy tax, and short-term rental taxes, if a building became or remained vacant. Also in this scenario, City revenues would in effect move from existing sources which go to the City’s General Fund, to be allocated by Council for a variety of community needs and priorities, to the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund for natural gas conversion of existing buildings.

It is unclear whether the initiative specified funding for City hiring to support the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund (approximately 10% of tax revenues) will be sufficient.

CONTACT PERSON
Jordan Klein, Planning and Development Department, 510-981-7534 Attachments:

1. California Elections Code Section 9212 Report: Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax, July 2024

Attachment 1, part 1
California Elections Code
Section 9212 Report

LARGE BUILDINGS FOSSIL FUEL EMISSIONS TAX
JULY 2024

1 Table of Contents
Executive Summary......................................................................................................................................3 Potential economic impacts and benefits, if any, on local businesses and city tax revenues ..................3 Analysis of costs to the City and other potential costs.............................................................................4 Consideration of additional factors such as the social cost of carbon, safety risks, gas use trajectory, and potential benefits for the fossil fuel tax initiative..............................................................................4 City staffing implications ..........................................................................................................................5 Feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances: .............................................................5 Any other information and analysis of potential interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager and identified during the review process: ...................................................................6 Background/Overview.................................................................................................................................7 Initiative Summary....................................................................................................................................7 Initiative Methodology .............................................................................................................................8 Methodology of Developing This Report..................................................................................................8 Estimates of Subject Properties and Tax Revenues ....................................................................................8 Annual Tax Rate Increase .......................................................................................................................10 Impacts to Specific Property and Business Types...................................................................................10 Limited Exemptions ................................................................................................................................12 Impacts to Residents and Consumers .......................................................................................................13 Equity Impacts ........................................................................................................................................13 Impact to Ratepayers..............................................................................................................................13 Impacts to Renters..................................................................................................................................14 Impacts to Consumers ............................................................................................................................15 Social Cost of Carbon..............................................................................................................................15 Mitigation of Safety Risk and Natural Gas Use Trajectory......................................................................16 Other Benefits ........................................................................................................................................16 Impacts on Businesses and Employment ..................................................................................................16 Impacts to Citywide Economic Development.........................................................................................17 Impacts to specific sectors......................................................................................................................18 Grocery Stores ....................................................................................................................................19 Restaurants.........................................................................................................................................19 Healthcare ..........................................................................................................................................20 Arts & Culture .....................................................................................................................................21

2 Non-profits and Community Based Organizations .............................................................................22 Life Sciences........................................................................................................................................22 Additionally, many stakeholders commented that if this tax was to pass, it would be counteractive to the many policy changes made by City Council in recent years to retain startups and R&D companies as they grow, including many that are developing renewable energy technologies and other environmental or climate solutions..........................................................................................22 Hotels & Lodging.................................................................................................................................22 Manufacturers ....................................................................................................................................23 Workforce...............................................................................................................................................24 Constraints for building owners to transition off natural gas ..................................................................24 Existing Building Retrofits and Costs ......................................................................................................25 Existing Building Retrofit Timelines ........................................................................................................25 Grid Constraints to Electrification ..........................................................................................................26 Impacts to the City of Berkeley .................................................................................................................26 Fiscal & Staffing Impacts for collecting the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax ...........................26 Fiscal & Staffing Impacts for implementing the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund............27 Impacts to the City’s General Fund & Tax Revenues ..............................................................................29 Impacts on Other Tax Revenues .........................................................................................................29 Impacts to the Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO) .................................................................29 Impacts to the Environment and Climate Commission ..........................................................................30 Administrative & Operational Feasibility of Tax Implementation ...........................................................30 Timeline of the Tax .................................................................................................................................30 Availability of Natural Gas Usage Data ...................................................................................................31 Conflicting Definitions ............................................................................................................................31 Limited Ability to Amend ........................................................................................................................31 Conclusion..................................................................................................................................................32

3 Executive Summary
On June 14, 2024, City Council requested a report, under the provisions of California Elections Code Section 9212, on the "Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” ordinance citizen initiative that will appear before Berkeley voters on the November 5, 2024 ballot. The proposed Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax would tax buildings, 15,000 square feet (sqft) or larger, on their natural gas use beginning in 2025. The tax would apply to approximately 609 buildings in Berkeley and would generate approximately $26.7 million of tax in its first year. The tax revenue would create a Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund that would be used to fund building decarbonization retrofit work, prioritizing low-rise residential buildings and restaurants.

This summary section provides key findings on the impacts requested by Council. These are excerpted from the full analysis of potential impacts of this initiative which comprises the remainder of this report.

City Council specified that the report should include the following:
 Potential economic impacts and benefits, if any, on local businesses and city tax revenues;  Analysis of costs to the City and other potential costs;  Consideration of additional factors such as the social cost of carbon, safety risks, gas use trajectory, and potential benefits for the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax initiative;  City staffing implications;
 Feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances; and  Any other information and analysis of potential interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager and identified during the review process.

Potential economic impacts and benefits, if any, on local businesses and city tax revenues There was insufficient time for a formal quantitative study of economic impact based on this proposed tax measure. However, staff conducted outreach to dozens of business and non-profit organization leaders from the various sectors of the Berkeley economy for their feedback on the proposed tax, including grocery stores, healthcare providers, arts & culture organizations, life sciences businesses, hotels, and manufacturers.
 Some stakeholders perceive that the passage of this tax would compound the problem that existing taxes are already considerably higher in Berkeley than other Bay Area locations.  Some stakeholders hypothesized that businesses would likely reduce employment and services as a short-term reaction to this initiative. The long-term economic impact of this initiative could include businesses leaving Berkeley, thereby resulting in fewer companies, fewer jobs, a smaller city tax base (corresponding with lower city service levels), higher costs of food and services, and decreased quality of life for Berkeley residents. Others noted that the adoption of an initiative that so dramatically increases costs over such a short period of time further “adds to the stigma of Berkeley...as a tough place to start a business.”  The potential exemption for non-profits, if adopted by Council, is not expected to apply to any properties, as no Berkeley non-profit organizations owning buildings of 15,000 sqft or greater have total annual revenues of under $1,000,000.
 The initiative precludes City Council from adopting any other exemptions, waivers, or discounts to the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax. The inability to provide relief to larger non-

4 profits, healthcare facilities, essential services such as grocery stores, or other properties that serve the public interest may result in a reduction of community services to Berkeley residents.

City tax revenues: Revenues from the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax are estimated to be significant, approximately $26.7M in the first year, and the tax rate escalates by 6% plus the local consumer price index (CPI) each year. This estimated first year tax collection is larger than Berkeley’s annual sales tax revenue and about a third of annual secured property taxes.

Business license taxes make up 8% of the City’s General Fund revenue. A large portion of business license taxes comes from rental of real property, including a tax on owners of five or more residential rental units. If the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax becomes overly burdensome to property owners, they may remove the property from the market and reduce overall business license revenue.

Additionally, there is a potential loss in sales tax, transient occupancy tax, and short-term rentals if a building becomes or remains vacant. The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax would exclusively fund the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund; business license, sales, and other taxes generate General Fund revenue which can be applied to a variety of community needs.

Analysis of costs to the City and other potential costs In addition to the City tax revenues discussed above, other potential costs include:
 Impacted building owners and communities: Some stakeholders expected that the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax would negatively impact the competitiveness of Berkeley, and have unintended economic consequences on citywide economic development and quality of life.
 Renters: Despite the residential rental protection language in the initiative, the tax may result in higher rental costs for subject properties either at the time of lease renewal or, for price- controlled units, adjustments during times of vacancy.
 Customers: Customers may be impacted by the increased costs to businesses with pass-through costs, and a reduction in services and quality.
 Workers: In the short-term, properties subject to the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax may reduce their staffing and/or remove employee benefits to generate the capital needed to pay the tax, resulting in a reduction in jobs and job quality.

Consideration of additional factors such as the social cost of carbon, safety risks, gas use trajectory, and potential benefits for the fossil fuel tax initiative  The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax is a carbon tax, based on high estimates of the social cost of carbon. The goals of this initiative -- to disincentivize greenhouse gas emissions and increase funding for building electrification and climate action programs -- are aligned with adopted City plans.
 If successful in its intended purpose, this initiative could reduce or eliminate natural gas use in existing buildings throughout Berkeley, thereby reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with buildings. Such reductions would help achieve Berkeley’s goal of becoming a Fossil Fuel Free City and mitigate climate change impacts.  According to an analysis of the funding needed to decarbonize residential buildings in Berkeley, as of July 2022 there was an estimated $20,000 - $40,000 funding gap per housing unit in

5 Berkeley, with low-income housing consistently facing larger funding gaps of almost $4,000/unit more on average. The initiative would create and provide annual revenues for the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, which could be used to address this gap in funding.  Reducing natural gas can mitigate safety risks. Natural gas line rupture is one of the chief causes of post-earthquake fires. Additionally, natural gas line rupture has climate implications.  The initiative may increase regional employment opportunities for contractors working in the electrification retrofit market (commercial and residential). It would likely spur new construction projects in Berkeley of buildings 15,000 sqft or greater to be built all-electric, in order to avoid future payment of the proposed Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax.

City staffing implications
 The Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax and resulting Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund would more than double the City’s current funding and staffing for climate action programs. The City’s Climate Equity Fund Home Electrification Pilot and Just Transition Residential Electrification Pilot for low-to-moderate income electrification retrofits are currently using $1.75M in implementation funds. The Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund could provide annual funding for these programs and other building decarbonization retrofits in Berkeley.
 The City would have to frontload funding, and authority to hire, in Fiscal Year 2025 in order to calculate and collect the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax before any tax proceeds for this purpose is received. The initiative specified funding for administration of Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax (3% of tax revenues) is likely sufficient to provide the staffing needs following Fiscal Year 2025.
 The City could also frontload funding and hiring for the design of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund programs to enable implementation in the beginning of Fiscal Year 2027 (shortly after the first revenue collection). Alternatively, utilizing the resources of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund for all hiring, program design, and implementation would likely result in Fund distribution beginning in Fiscal Year 2028.  It is unclear whether the initiative specified funding for hiring to support the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund (approximately 10% of tax revenues) will be sufficient. Its administrative percentage is low in comparison to the costs for municipal clean energy and home decarbonization programs in other jurisdictions, and in comparison to the City’s Just Transition Residential Electrification Pilot (27% for program administration).

Feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances:
 Data: Complexities of tax administration will include obtaining accurate building size and natural gas use information; the latter will need to be self-reported because California Data Privacy Laws prohibit the utility (PG&E) from providing this data without express permission from the property owner/account holder.
 Timing: The annual tax payment deadline specified in the initiative is not aligned with existing data collection processes and does not provide sufficient time to collect building gas usage data (PG&E’s Building Benchmarking Portal does not provide complete annual data until mid- February of the following year), calculate tax, issue tax bills, and provide at least 30 days for payment before the annual deadline of February 28.

6  Flexibility: The initiative allows for flexibility in how the funds are distributed, but provides limited opportunities for City Council or staff to address adverse impacts of the initiative, implement best practices not included in the initiative, or respond to lessons learned.  Conflicting Definitions: Some definitions set forth in the initiative are not aligned with other definitions and processes utilized by the City, which adds complication to verification and implementation.
 Workforce: There is a need to build up the workforce for commercial and residential building electrification in the Bay Area to meet the City and State’s ambitious climate and decarbonization goals. Progress is being made, but the current workforce constraints will be an impediment to the properties subject to this initiative.

Any other information and analysis of potential interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager and identified during the review process:
 Drafting Process: The initiative was not developed in partnership or consultation with the City.

Therefore, the City does not know the extent to which the community was engaged during the drafting process or whether this process was aligned with the City’s approach of equitable community engagement.
 Cost of gas comparison: As set by the initiative, the first year tax rate would be $2.96 per therm of natural gas, which is 1.5 to 2 times the average price of natural gas. The tax rate is expected to double within 10 years, triple within 15 years, and conclude at close to 10 times the first-year rate.
 Potential impacts to PG&E territory ratepayers: PG&E forecasts its annual budget based on anticipated electrical demand, and this budget forecast cost is spread across all ratepayers of the PG&E territory. PG&E has an obligation to serve, and will do so as required, but it may impact PG&E territory budget and timeline. As such, a large increase in projects in Berkeley, as a result of this initiative, could impact the budget forecast and potentially the rates of the entire PG&E territory, as well as the timelines of all projects needing service upgrades, including areas such as communities in the Central Valley that face significant environmental justice concerns.  Timeline for decarbonizing subject properties: In most cases it will take building owners several years before equipment and facilities can be transitioned to electric alternatives, likely requiring them to pay the tax during this transition period. There are also timeline constraints outside of the control of the property owner and City including PG&E timelines for energization and global supply shortages of transformers and other equipment that can add significant time to construction projects.

The remainder of this report the details on the full findings of staff’s research for this Section 9212 report.

7 Background/Overview
An initiative petition titled “Initiative Ordinance to Adopt a Special Tax on Natural Gas Consumption in Buildings 15,000 Sq. Ft. or Larger” (also known as the “Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” Ordinance) was filed with the Berkeley City Clerk on May 15, 2024. The petition was certified by the Registrar of Voters as sufficient on May 28, 2024.

On the agenda at the June 14, 2024 Special City Council Meeting, City Council referred to the City Manager preparation of a report under the provisions of California Elections Code Section 9212 on the proposed "Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” ordinance that will appear before Berkeley voters on the November 5, 2024 ballot.1
City Council specified that the report should include the following:
 Potential economic impacts and benefits, if any, on local businesses and city tax revenues;  Analysis of costs to the City and other potential costs;  Consideration of additional factors such as the social cost of carbon, safety risks, gas use trajectory, and potential benefits for the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax initiative;  City staffing implications;
 Feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances; and  Any other information and analysis of potential interest to the City or the public, as determined by the City Manager and identified during the review process.

As specified in Election Code Section 9212, this report must be presented to City Council no later than 30 days after the date on which the City Clerk certified the sufficiency of the initiative petition.

Initiative Summary
The “Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” citizen initiative states that, “The Buildings Emissions Tax is intended to disincentivize natural gas consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, thereby increasing the number of commercial and large residential property owners switching energy sources from fossil fuel gas to electricity, while also raising funds for municipal services, including funding a program to:
reduce greenhouse gas emissions rapidly through decarbonizing buildings; support unionized trades and municipal jobs; and improve public safety, health, and indoor and outdoor air quality.” The citizen-led initiative would impose an annual Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax on residential and non-residential buildings 15,000 square feet or larger that generate greenhouse gas emissions through the use of natural gas. Government-owned buildings, single family residences, and buildings with at least 50% affordable units are exempt. The annual tax amount for each building is determined by its annual natural gas usage multiplied by various factors specified in the initiative, resulting in a first- year tax rate of $2.9647 per therm of natural gas consumed. The tax would become effective January 1, 2025, with the first tax payment due by February 28, 2026. The tax is estimated to raise $26.7M in its 1 June 14, 2024 Item 1: Elections Code Section 9212 Reports on Initiative Ordinances “Control of Infectious Aerosols in City Buildings” and “Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2024-06- 14%20Special%20Item%2001%20Elections%20Code%20Section%209212%20Reports.pdf

8 first year and would increase each year by 6% plus the increase in the local Consumer Price Index (CPI) until it’s expiration on December 31, 2050.

The initiative would use the generated tax revenues to establish a Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund to support building decarbonization programs for existing buildings, prioritizing natural gas conversion and building decarbonization retrofits in low-rise residential buildings and restaurants.

The Environment and Climate Commission would serve as the oversight committee to monitor the fund and make recommendations on how to utilize it.

Attachment 1 includes the full initiative language.

Initiative Methodology
Tax-based funds for clean energy and climate projects established through ballot measures in other jurisdictions, such as Portland, OR (Portland Clean Energy Fund) and Denver, CO (Denver Climate Protection Fund), have been developed with coalitions that included input from city staff, community organizations, and technical experts on their initiative development processes. The ballot initiatives were created in facilitated, transparent public processes, that allowed for feedback, refinement, and multiple perspectives. These programs included equity impacts and are seen as best practices.2 Staff is not aware of any feasibility analyses or impact studies that were conducted. Because the City was not involved in the drafting of this initiative, staff does not know whether, how, and to what extent the community, including community organizations and impacted communities, was engaged during the drafting process. This initiative does not allow the City Council to make changes to its language; rather, it would require proposed changes to go back to voters.

Methodology of Developing This Report
Staff from Planning and Development, Finance, the Office of Economic Development and the Rent Stabilization Board have provided analysis and information on the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax’s potential impacts, to the greatest extent possible given constraints on available time and resources. This report is based on staff’s research and outreach with community members, technical experts, and impacted communities.

Given the limited timeframe provided to develop this report, it does not include a full economic analysis of the full scope of impacts of the initiative. This report also is not able to provide a technical analysis of grid capacity relative to the initiative, as PG&E grid capacity cannot be determined until a service request for an upgrade is received.

Estimates of Subject Properties and Tax Revenues
The proposed Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax would cover approximately 609 buildings in Berkeley (see Figure 1) and is estimated to generate approximately $26.7 million of tax in its first year for the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund.3 The tax applies to buildings of 15,000 square feet 2 Guidelines for creating community-driven building retrofit programs (C40, April 2024):
https://www.c40knowledgehub.org/s/article/Guidelines-for-creating-community-driven-building-retrofit- programs?language=en_US
3 Please note that, should the initiative become law, the applicability of the Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax to these buildings will be confirmed on a case-by-case basis.

9 (sqft) or larger; owners of smaller buildings, including single-family homes, are not directly impacted by the tax. However, all users of natural gas in Berkeley are subject to the Utility Users Tax (BMC Chapter

7.70) which imposes a tax of 7.5% on the charges made for natural gas for its storage, transportation, and delivery. Through this initiative, buildings of at least 15,000 sqft in Berkeley would be subject to the Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax in addition to the Utility Users Tax.

FIGURE 1: Estimated number of buildings, by property type and square footage category, subject to the Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax
Building Square Footage (sqft)
Property Type 15,000-
24,999
25,000-
49,999
50,000-
99,999
100,000-
249,999
250,000
or more
Estimated
Number of
Buildings
Education 4 8 1 0 0 13
Enclosed and Strip Malls 0 1 1 0 0 2
Food Sales 3 5 0 1 0 9
Healthcare 3 2 2 0 3 10
Hotel/Lodging 30 5 2 2 0 39
Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 28 24 7 4 0 63
Office 17 19 7 3 0 46
Other 6 6 8 0 1 21
Industrial 31 28 17 7 2 85
Public Assembly 8 2 2 2 0 14
Religious Worship 18 6 0 0 0 24
Residential 135 64 26 5 0 230
Retail 8 4 4 1 1 18
Service 0 1 0 0 0 1
Warehouse and Storage 20 9 5 0 0 34
Total 311 184 82 25 7 609
Attachment 2 provides the estimated first year taxes for buildings that are 15,000 sqft or larger. This initial list of taxable buildings is an estimate, subject to change as updated square footage information becomes available. In addition, case-by-case assessments of buildings for taxation may be needed for some properties. Annual natural gas data has been estimated based on the 47% of potentially taxable buildings that reported their usage through the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions4 or through Berkeley’s Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO) in 2022 or 2021. Natural gas usage data for the remaining 53% buildings is estimated by using a therms/square foot value provided by the US Energy Information Administration's Commercial Buildings 4 Under California’s Regulation for the mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions, industrial sources, fuel suppliers, and electricity importers must report their annual GHG emissions to CARB: https://ww2.arb.ca.gov/mrr- data

10 Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS).5 The tax amount for buildings using CBECS natural gas usage values will change as actual usage data is provided, and CARB and BESO data may also include inaccuracies. For example, BESO energy benchmarking data can be submitted as “campuses” for multiple co-owned and co-located properties. In this scenario, it is possible that some of the individual buildings are less than 15,000 sqft. BESO benchmarking is intended to provide transparency and education about energy use, to help identify areas for improvement and to quantify or verify energy savings; it is not designed as an instrument for levying tax.

The estimated tax for industrial buildings is likely to show an underestimate as CBECS data does not have a distinct industrial building therms/square foot value; instead it incorporates those buildings under a general "Other" category. Actual gas usage for industrial buildings will vary widely depending on the industrial use.

Annual Tax Rate Increase
As set by the initiative, the first year tax rate would be $2.96 per therm of natural gas, which is 1.5 to 2 times the average price of natural gas. Over the last three years, natural gas for commercial customers6 cost an average of $1.51/therm in the summer and $1.67/therm in the winter and cost an average of $1.98/therm for residential customers through PG&E.7
The annual tax rate is set to increase each year by the percent increase in the Consumer Price Index for the San Francisco/Oakland/Hayward area plus 6%. Figure 2 shows the estimated tax rate until the expiration of the tax on December 31, 2050. The tax rate is expected to double within 10 years, triple within 15 years, and conclude at nearly 10 times the first-year rate.

FIGURE 2: Estimated projected Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax rate ($/therm) Tax Year
2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050
Projected Tax
Rate* ($/Therm) $2.96 $4.60 $7.15 $11.10 $17.24 $26.77
*Assumed an annual CPI increase of 3.2% (the average annual percent increase from 2013-2023)8 Impacts to Specific Property and Business Types
The impact of the tax will vary by building type. Figure 3 shows an estimated first year tax assessment by property type and square footage. The natural gas usage is based on assumed therms/sqft values provided by CEBCS. Actual tax amounts will vary by building. Healthcare facilities, food service and food sales properties and businesses are likely to pay the highest tax per square foot compared to other property types.
5 U.S. Energy Information Administration. 2018 Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CEBCS):
https://www.eia.gov/consumption/commercial/data/2018/index.php?view=consumption 6 Most commercial customers fall under PG&E’s G-NR1 natural gas rate for small businesses. 7 PG&E Natural Gas Rate Data: https://www.pge.com/tariffs/en/rate-information/gas-rates.html 8 Association of Bay Area Governments. Bay Area Consumer Price Index (May 15, 2024): https://abag.ca.gov/tools- resources/data-tools/consumer-price-index

11 FIGURE 3: Estimated first year Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax* assessment based on property type, assumed natural gas usage** (provided through CBECS3) and square footage Property Type 15,000 sqft 25,000 sqft 50,000 sqft
100,000
sqft
250,000
sqft
Education $8,200 $13,700 $27,400 $54,900 $137,200
Food Sales $32,300 $53,900 $107,700 $215,500 $538,700
Food Service $57,900 $96,600 $193,200 $386,300 $965,800 Health Care $26,900 $44,800 $89,500 $179,000 $447,600
Hotel/Lodging $13,400 $22,400 $44,800 $89,500 $223,800
Office $8,400 $14,000 $28,100 $56,100 $140,300
Religious Worship $6,900 $11,400 $22,800 $45,700 $114,200 Residential $9,300 $15,600 $31,100 $62,300 $155,600
Retail $8,000 $13,300 $26,700 $53,300 $133,400
Warehouse $5,100 $8,400 $16,900 $33,700 $84,300
* The annual tax amount is estimated to double within 10 years, triple within 15 years, and conclude at nearly 10 times the first-year rate.
**Actual natural gas usage can vary widely by building.

Figure 4 lists the estimated first year tax for the top 20 buildings in Berkeley that have submitted gas usage data to the City or State, through CARB’s mandatory reporting or BESO. Three of the top five buildings with the highest estimated tax are healthcare facilities.

FIGURE 4: Estimated Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax* for top 20 buildings based with reported natural gas usage data.

Business/Building Name Building Type Address
Estimated
Tax in 2025
(First Year)
Estimated
Tax in 2030**
Bayer Main Campus Industrial 2550 7TH ST $6,460,081 $10,032,831 Alta Bates Summit Medical
Center - Ashby
Health Care 2450 ASHBY AVE $2,531,583 $3,931,676
Alta Bates Herrick Hospital
Campus
Health Care 2001 DWIGHT WAY $909,863 $1,413,064
Takara Sake USA Retail 719 ALLSTON WAY $566,388 $879,628 Kaiser Permanente Berkeley
Lab
Health Care 1740 SECOND ST $397,353 $617,109
Berkeley Bowl West Food Sales 920 HEINZ AVE $231,596 $359,680 Doubletree Hotel & Meeting
Center
Hotel/Lodging 200 MARINA BLVD $190,386 $295,679
Downtown Berkeley YMCA Public Assembly 2001 ALLSTON WAY $178,417 $277,090 901 Heinz Ave Industrial 901 HEINZ AVE $166,633 $258,790 901 Gilman St Industrial 901 GILMAN ST $163,590 $254,063

12 Business/Building Name Building Type Address
Estimated
Tax in 2025
(First Year)
Estimated
Tax in 2030**
Regent Street Medical
Office Building and Care
Center
Healthcare 2999 REGENT ST $152,654 $237,079
Gilman District North
(Whole Foods) Food Sales 1011 GILMAN ST $133,670 $207,596 Great Western Building (Sky
Deck)
Office 2150 SHATTUCK
AVE $131,633 $204,433
Berkeley City Club Hotel/Lodging 2315 DURANT AVE $121,559 $188,788 Safeway (North Shattuck) Food Sales 1425 HENRY ST $116,830 $181,443 Whole Foods Ashby Food Sales 3000 TELEGRAPH
AVE $109,649 $170,291
The Graduate Berkeley
Hotel
Hotel/Lodging 2600 DURANT AVE $108,819 $169,002
Hotel Shattuck Plaza Hotel/Lodging 2086 ALLSTON WAY $97,864 $151,987 Pacific School of Religion
Student Housing
Residential 1798 SCENIC AVE $94,655 $147,004
Fourth & U Apartments Residential 700 UNIVERSITY
AVE $92,846 $144,195
* The annual tax amount is estimated to double within 10 years, triple within 15 years, and conclude at nearly 10 times the first-year rate.
**The estimated tax in 2030 assumes natural gas usage has remained the same since 2025.

Limited Exemptions
The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax provides exemptions for City, County, or State-owned buildings, single family homes, and residential buildings with 50% or more units deed-restricted to be affordable to households making less than 80% of the area median income. Additionally, City Council can annually adopt exemptions, waivers, discounts, or rebates for non-profit organizations classified as 501(c)(3)s which have total annual revenues under $1,000,000.

Based on staff’s initial analysis, 22 buildings with affordable housing units and 47 buildings owned and operated by public entities, such as the City of Berkeley, UC Berkeley, Berkeley Unified School District, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, are exempt from the tax. No Berkeley non-profit organizations owning buildings of 15,000 sqft or greater have total annual revenues of under $1,000,000; this potential exemption is not expected to apply to any properties.

City Council would not have the authority to adopt exemptions, waivers, or discounts aside from the exemptions listed above. The inability to provide additional exemptions to larger non-profits, healthcare facilities, essential services such as grocery stores, or other properties that serve the public interest may result in a reduction of community services to Berkeley residents.

13 Impacts to Residents and Consumers
Equity Impacts
The initiative directs use of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund for building decarbonization retrofits, prioritizing low-rise residential buildings and restaurants, including low- or no- interest loans to assist property owners in retrofitting properties. This funding, if applied to low-income residents and other disadvantaged communities, would increase resources to these communities beyond what will become available through regional, state, and federal programs including BayREN, Ava Community Energy, the California Energy Commission Equitable Building Decarbonization Program, and the Inflation Reduction Act Home Energy Rebate Programs.

The City works to center equity in its sustainability and decarbonization work. Foundational to equitable decarbonization policy is working alongside disadvantaged communities in the development of any new policies and programs to ensure that underrepresented voices are included early on and throughout the implementation process to ensure equitable outcomes. Through the Berkeley Existing Building Electrification Strategy, community helped develop the Equity Guardrails, which specify minimum requirements related to equity that must be met before a building decarbonization policy or program should be enacted.

Because voters, rather than the City, drafted the initiative, the Equity Guardrails were not applied. As a result, not all equity impacts of this initiative are known at the time of writing this report.

Impact to Ratepayers
This initiative is expected to require a large number of electric service upgrades in Berkeley in order for subject buildings to accommodate full electrification, as well as to allow for the electrification that would be supported by the tax proceeds deposited in the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund.

Costs for service upgrades are shared by PG&E and property owners. PG&E develops annual electrification forecasting, in conjunction with the California Public Utility Commission’s Integrated Energy Policy Report, that is used to determine the PG&E electrification budget for the entire PG&E territory. As policies and regulations spurring electrification are adopted, such as the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Building Appliances Rules 9-4 and 9-6, which will begin prohibiting the sale and installation of water heaters and furnaces that emit nitrogen oxide starting in 2027, they are adopted into the PG&E annual forecast.

If adopted on November 5, 2024, this initiative would become effective in less than 2 months, on January 1, 2025. In addition to providing inadequate time for subject facilities to electrify their operations, and for City staff to hire and plan for tax collection and fund management, this timeline would not allow PG&E to incorporate this initiative into their electrification forecasting for budgeting resources before its effective date. As a result, if PG&E’s spending to support building electrification in Berkeley exceeds expectations, the electrification projects that PG&E could support in other areas of its territory would be compromised. For example, PG&E upgrades for electrification in communities in the Central Valley and the greater East Bay that face significant environmental justice concerns, may be limited if Berkeley receives more of ratepayer funds for electrification than forecast.

14 Impacts to Renters
Robust renter protections are critical to developing and implementing any policy, program, or initiative that impacts residential real estate, and renters represent a large and historically underserved group of our community. The initiative includes language intended to protect renters: “the Buildings Emissions Tax is intended to incentivize climate mitigation improvements to large buildings in Berkeley but shall not permit the costs of such improvements to be passed on to residential tenants in the form of rent increases or other increased costs.” However, this language is unenforceable in many tenancies as written and does not have an actualized mechanism to prevent harm to renters, such as increased costs or displacement. Despite the language in the initiative, the tax may result in higher rental costs for rental units in subject properties either at the time of lease renewal or, for price-controlled units, adjustments during times of vacancy.

State law gives owners the right to set initial rent at the onset of a new tenancy even in price-controlled housing, such as rental units covered by the City’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance. In such price-controlled housing, the Rent Stabilization Board can ensure that an owner does not pass the cost of the tax to existing tenants because the tax cannot be used to raise the rent ceiling (the maximum rent that can be charged). However, for non-price controlled housing, including housing that is granted eviction protection through Measure MM and housing that is fully exempt from Berkeley’s Rent Stabilization Ordinance, an owner is permitted to raise the rent as they see fit (with a cap for those units that fall under the state rent cap rules). For such units, it would be difficult to determine why an owner raised the rent unless the rental increase is very transparently linked to the tax (i.e., the total amount of the tax divided by the number of units). Owners of residential rental units subject to price-control may pass on the cost of the tax by raising the starting rent of new tenancies. Of the 293 residential buildings in the inventory of 609 properties estimated to be subject to this tax, around 60% of the rented units are price- controlled. In the remaining 40% of the rented units, the statement within this initiative is likely unenforceable.

Renters are subject to additional potential burdens and risks9, including:
 The onus is on the renter to be aware of and advocate for their rights, but less than 3% of renters nationwide have the assistance of an attorney in court for an eviction and it is difficult to prove a rent increase or eviction due to upgrades as landlords are not required to provide reasoning for rent increases.
 Rent stabilization laws often lack enforcement mechanisms, making it difficult to hold landlords accountable. The lack of proactive and reactive enforcement allows some landlords to exploit loopholes and disregard rent stabilization provisions, resulting in illegal rent increases, tenant harassment, and evictions.
 Rental units could be removed from the market all together due to the high cost to upgrade, or redevelop them by invoking the Ellis Act.
9 Ruthy Gourevitch. Decarbonization without Displacement: Tenant advocacy in the context of Inflation Reduction Act Implementation. Climate + Community Project (January 2024):
https://www.climateandcommunity.org/decarbonization-without-displacement

15  Landlords could use “construction-as-harassment", or projects that are undertaken to make tenants so uncomfortable in their homes that they voluntarily leave, as a way to force renters out of their home.

Renter protections are complex, and require an ecosystem of partners, supports, and resources to be effective. The City is working with partners to develop innovative and comprehensive ways to develop and implement meaningful renter protections that can be enforced and therefore lead to the desired outcome of keeping renters in their homes affordably.

Impacts to Consumers
One of the ways that businesses can adapt to increased costs, especially in the short run, when relocation isn’t an option and new business models are still being explored, is to pass those costs along to their customers. Grocery stores and health care providers, for example, represent eight of the twenty Berkeley properties with the highest estimated first year tax payments under this initiative (see Figure 4).

In addition, consumers may experience a reduction in services and quality as businesses and non-profits make short term adjustments to the impact of the unexpected tax by reducing their staffing (and/or the benefits offered to employees), reducing the quality of their service offerings to customers, and reducing or eliminating the services and benefits that they offer to the community such as non-profit programming and business sponsorship of community activities.

Social Cost of Carbon
The social cost of carbon is an estimate that is used to value, in dollars, the long-term damage done by a ton of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in a given year, which also represents the value of damages of avoided, or benefit of, an emissions reduction. The social cost of carbon is used to quantify extra costs associated with carbon emissions, and the value of acting on climate mitigation. Its intent in this initiative, and other policy and programmatic uses, is to create production and consumption decisions that address climate change.

However, estimates of the social cost of carbon vary. The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax is a carbon tax. Specifically, the initiative directs that the value of $382/metric ton for carbon dioxide (MT CO2) and $10,044/metric ton for methane (MT CH4) be used for the base year (2025) tax.

It is unclear where the sources for these dollar amounts came from and the basis for their use. These values are higher than the highest estimates provided by the US EPA’s most recent report on the social cost of greenhouse gases, including nearly 4 times the highest rate in the case of methane. The US EPA’s most recent estimates of the social cost of carbon for emissions in 2025 range from $130-$360/MT CO2 and from $1,590-$2,737/MT CH4, depending on the discount rate (1.5%-2.5%) used for each gas.10 In addition, it is unclear how the annual escalation rate for the tax, of the local CPI plus 6%, was determined. The 2023 US EPA Report on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases: Estimates Incorporating 10 Report on the Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases: Estimates Incorporating Recent Scientific Advances. US EPA (Nov 2023), Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2021-0317, Appendix A.5: https://www.epa.gov/system/files/documents/2023- 12/epa_scghg_2023_report_final.pdf

16 Recent Scientific Advances shows annual increases in the social cost of CO2 after 2025 in the 1-2% range and CH4 in the 3-4% range.

Mitigation of Safety Risk and Natural Gas Use Trajectory Reducing natural gas can mitigate safety risks. Natural gas line rupture is one of the chief causes of post- earthquake fires. Additionally, natural gas line rupture has climate implications. The main component of natural gas is methane, which is a potent greenhouse gas that is 25 times more harmful to the atmosphere over a 100-year period than carbon dioxide.11 If successful in its intended purpose, this initiative would reduce or eliminate natural gas use in existing buildings throughout Berkeley, thereby reducing the greenhouse gas emissions associated with buildings. Such reductions would help achieve Berkeley’s goal of becoming a Fossil Fuel Free City and mitigate climate change impacts. Buildings contributed to 43% of Berkeley’s total greenhouse gas emissions in 2021.

Since 2000, natural gas usage in Berkeley’s building sector has decreased by 26%. Natural gas usage in buildings will continue to decrease in Berkeley though current local policies, like BESO, as well as regional policies, and the rate would likely be accelerated by this initiative.

At the regional level, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District has established zero NOx appliance standards to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides from residential and commercial furnaces and water heaters in buildings in the Bay Area. The zero NOx standard would prevent the sale and installation of new NOx emitting furnaces and water heaters starting in 2027. Currently, only electric systems, such as heat pumps, can achieve the zero NOx requirements. These new regional standards will contribute to decreasing natural gas usage in the Bay Area and in Berkeley.

Other Benefits
According to an analysis12 of the funding needed to decarbonize residential buildings in Berkeley, as of July 2022 there was an estimated $20,000 - $40,000 funding gap per housing unit in Berkeley, with low- income housing consistently facing larger funding gaps of almost $4,000/unit more on average. The initiative would create and provide annual revenues for the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, which could be used to address this gap in funding. The initiative may also increase employment opportunities for contractors working in the electrification retrofit market (commercial and residential).

It would likely spur new construction projects in Berkeley of buildings 15,000 sqft or greater to be built all-electric, in order to avoid future payment of the proposed Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax.

Impacts on Businesses and Employment
To fully gauge the economic development impacts, a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis or economic impact analysis would need to be undertaken. This type of analysis could not be commissioned within 11 City of Berkeley. First Draft 2024 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan - Element B Risk Assessment (June 4, 2024):
https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2024%20LHMP%20First%20Draft%20- %20Element%20B%20Risk%20Assessment.pdf
12 Firefly Consulting, Building Electrification Institute, and Association for Energy Affordability. Berkeley Funding Gap Analysis for Residential Building Decarbonization (July 2022, updated February 2023):
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5b6a482db27e39e8fcf65bbf/t/63e289ba89fc513fb919d2e4/16757907810 61/BEI-Berkeley_Residential+Funding+Gap+Analysis_Feb+2023.pdf

17 the allotted timeline and budget available to produce this report. However, staff found that such analysis could be produced by a private firm, real estate research group, academic study center, or urban consulting practice for $20,000-$75,000 in 4 to 8 weeks and recommend such a study be undertaken.

In the meantime, consulted stakeholders - primarily owners and tenants of properties in Berkeley that are 15,000 sqft or larger and other local business and non-profit leaders - hypothesized that the long- term economic impact of this initiative could include businesses leaving Berkeley, thereby resulting in fewer companies, fewer jobs, a smaller city tax base (corresponding with lower city service levels), higher costs of food and services, and decreased quality of life for Berkeley residents. Others noted that the adoption of an initiative that so dramatically increases costs over such a short period of time further “adds to the stigma of Berkeley...as a tough place to start a business.” Impacts to Citywide Economic Development
Economic development can be measured in many ways with jobs, productivity/wages, sales tax revenues, wealth creation, vacancy rates, new housing starts, home sale prices and rents, and building values, among the many indicators. The City of Berkeley Office of Economic Development (OED) publishes an economic dashboard including a variety of these data points annually, with the last comprehensive report produced in Q4 2023. At that time, OED reported a mixed bag with regard to Berkeley’s rebound since the COVID-19 pandemic: on some measures, such as the number of innovation industry startups or sales tax revenues, the city had returned to (or even surpassed) pre-pandemic levels, while on others, such as commercial vacancy rates and unemployment rates, the data showed poorer performance than before the pandemic. As of June 2024, the unemployment rate in Berkeley was 4.5%, higher than the US unemployment rate of 4.3% and lower than the rates for CA (5.3%) and Alameda County (4.6%)13. Meanwhile, in the first two quarters of 2024, office and lab vacancy rates rose to 14.4%and 43.2%14, respectively.

While there was insufficient time for a formal quantitative study of economic impact based on this proposed tax measure, OED conducted outreach to dozens of business and non-profit organization leaders, representing the many sectors that fuel the Berkeley economy for their feedback on the proposed tax.

The vast majority of stakeholders consulted expected that, should it pass, the large buildings natural gas tax would negatively impact the competitiveness of Berkeley, and have unintended economic consequences on citywide economic development. This is, in large part, because:
1) Berkeley competes with other locations in the Bay Area and globally for business activity; when the costs of doing business in Berkeley increase, other locations look more appealing for a business deciding where to locate or grow. And, in the case that a business does not have location flexibility in the short run and has thin (or no) margins, the business would offset the increased cost of doing business due to the tax burden by reducing services or variable costs (e.g., labor), raising prices, or going out of business. 13 State of California Employment Development Department, Labor Market Information Division. Accessed July 23, 2024 from https://labormarketinfo.edd.ca.gov/data/unemployment-and-labor-force.html. 14 Greater Oakland Office Market Overview 2Q24 and San Francisco Bay Area Life Science Market Overview 2Q24.

Newmark, (Second Quarter 2024).

18 2) Businesses in many sectors critical to the Berkeley economy (e.g., arts and culture, retail, restaurants, manufacturing) already face higher-than-average costs of doing business locally, making it challenging for them achieve profitability or even break even.

With regard to the former, the proposed tax would result in a significant and increasing differential in the cost of being a Berkeley tenant or building owner compared to competitive local cities such as Emeryville, Albany, Oakland, San Leandro, or Richmond. In the short term, companies with multiple-year leases or high costs of relocation anticipate responding by reducing variable costs such as payroll. In the long term, many anticipate relocating to another nearby city where they can still access target markets or customers.

Some stakeholders perceive that the passage of this tax would compound the problem that existing taxes are already higher in Berkeley than most other Bay Area locations. In 2023, the Bay Area Council analyzed the 20 largest job centers across Alameda, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, and Santa Clara counties and estimated the annual business tax burdens for three hypothetical companies for 15 Bay Area cities using tax rates for the 2022 tax year. The published report revealed that Berkeley’s current tax burden was the third highest of all cities for 3 example businesses of various sizes based on annual revenues and employees: a professional services company, a financial services company, and an information company.15
More broadly, in recent years, the costs for Berkeley and other Bay Area businesses have increased due to increased minimum wage (labor costs) and sharp increases in operating costs, including but not limited to electricity. In addition, the cost of construction materials in 2024 has increased 82.5% since 2020 and it is likely that increasing demand for construction projects and the labor needed to produce them will sustain higher materials and labor pricing through the remainder of this year and into 2025.16 When large employers choose to relocate from Berkeley or close their doors, the city’s tax base, which relies on business and property tax revenues to support its general fund, is impacted. While it is difficult to project the extent to which the higher tax burden proposed by this initiative would impact the locational, hiring, and other decisions of large employers, it is safe to assume that it will have some impact. It will increase the cost of operating in Berkeley and will factor into business investment strategies for both property owners and tenants. In addition, the initiative could put businesses and nonprofit organizations operating with low profit margins out of business completely, adversely impacting the diversity of the local economy and the vitality of Berkeley’s diverse arts, entertainment, recreation and cultural organizations.

Impacts to specific sectors
Not all industry sectors rely on natural gas in the same way or for the same reasons. The following section provides an overview of key financial considerations facing some of the industry sectors in Berkeley. This does not include a full sector analysis, which would require more time than provided to develop this report.
15 Business Taxes in the Bay Area: A City Level Analysis. Bay Area Council Economic Institute (February 2023):
https://www.bayareaeconomy.org/files/pdf/BACEI-SF-Business-Tax-Feb2023.pdf 16 Sebastian Obando. Higher Material Prices Here to Stay. Construction Dive (June 1, 2023):
https://www.constructiondive.com/news/falling-material-prices-expected-reverse-course/651744/

19 Grocery Stores
Grocery stores are two to three times more energy intensive than other types of commercial buildings, primarily due to the electricity needed for refrigeration.17 In addition, grocery stores typically use natural gas for space and water heating, cooking, and for air handlers to remove humidity from the air to prevent fogging on refrigerated display case doors, condensation on refrigeration equipment, buildup of frost on frozen food packaging, and humidity in the air of the sales floor. Because electricity requirements of grocery stores are already very high, electrification of existing natural gas systems will trigger upgrades to electrical service as well as to wiring, outlets, and electrical panels throughout the building.

Grocery stores in California are currently being required to reduce their use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFC) for refrigeration, due to the high global warming impact of HFCs. California regulations require grocery stores with High GWP (Global Warming Potential) refrigerants to attain a company-wide average weighted GWP of less than 1400 or a 55% or greater reduction in GHGp (Greenhouse Gas Emission Potential) below 2019 levels by 2030. For the typical grocery store to retrofit refrigeration systems to “natural” refrigerants, such as CO2, ammonia, and hydrocarbons, an option for compliance with the State requirements, the cost is about $2 million. The State provided a 10-year timeline for compliance, coupled with technical guidance, information sharing, workforce development activities, and financial support.

HelpAdvisor, a company focused on finance and health, recently conducted a study based on U.S.

Census Household Pulse Survey data. It determined that Californians spend more money on groceries every week than residents of any other state.18 As supermarkets have faced many cost increases in recent years due to rising minimum wages, real estate and regulatory compliance with local and state laws, additional costs to switch out necessary HVAC and air handling equipment could further impact the cost of food in Berkeley or drive supermarkets out of Berkeley to neighboring communities.

Restaurants
Restaurants use gas for cooking, heating and cooling their spaces, and heating hot water. Restaurant profit margins typically span from 0-15%, but the average restaurant profit margin usually falls between 3-5%.19 In recent years, restaurants have faced rising costs which threaten margins further: costs of food, staff, and regulatory compliance (e.g., utilizing compostable or reusable takeout containers to eliminate single use disposables) have all risen in recent years in Berkeley.

Increasing the cost of doing business in Berkeley would be especially challenging for an already low- margin, highly competitive industry and is likely to contribute further to food price increases. 17 Nall, Daniel H. Integration of Refrigeration and HVAC in Grocery Stores. ASHRAE Journal (January 2017), pp. 48- 54: https://syska.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/2017Jan-048-055_Engineers-Notebook_Nall1.pdf. 18 The Average American Household Spends More Than $1,000 a Month on Groceries. HelpAdvisor (HelpAdvisor, 2024): https://www.helpadvisor.com/community-health/cost-of-groceries-report 19 Justin Guinn. What is the Average Restaurant Profit Margin? Tips for Benchmarking and Optimizing. Toast.com (accessed July 2024): https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/on-the-line/average-restaurant-profit-margin

20 The initiative states that restaurants, along with low-rise residential housing, would be prioritized for distribution of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund that would be generated by the tax revenue generated by this initiative.

Healthcare
Berkeley has several healthcare facilities that would be subject to this tax, including hospital facilities, mental health care facilities, labs, and others. Natural gas is used in all the basic functions of a hospital building, including space and water heating, sterilization processes, and emergency backup generators.

Heated water is needed for laundry, cooking (patient meals, staff and visitor dining areas), and bathrooms for patients, staff and the public. For purposes of infection control, patient privacy, and comfort, patient rooms in hospitals are now single beds with their own bathrooms. Gas usage is high because hospitals operate 24/7 every day of the year.20 There are currently no all-electric hospitals nationally, though the University of California, Irvine is building an all-electric hospital which is expected to open in 2025.21
Hospitals face financial challenges, as shown in a May 2024 report, Current State of California Hospital Finances, commissioned by the California Hospital Association, which reports five key findings on the financial state of California hospitals through 202322:
1) Hospital finances remain at risk. Growing operating losses fueled by sicker patients, combined with declining cash balances and debt loads, are still placing many hospitals in unsustainable financial positions.
2) Profit margins remain depressed relative to pre-pandemic levels (approximately 1.1% in 2023 compared to 5.2% in 2019). 70% of hospitals experience have margins at or below 3%, whereby the cash flow generated is usually insufficient to fully support capital needs, invest strategically, and grow reserves.
3) Hospitals are still experiencing major financial challenges, with no further relief in sight. Since 2020, hospitals have lost a combined $25.3 billion of operating income. 4) Expenses are still significantly elevated from pre-pandemic levels. Total expenses in 2023 for California hospitals were $28.9 billion higher than pre-pandemic levels, outpacing increases in revenue. Rising expenses for salaries, contract labor, medical supplies, drugs and purchased services have contributed to the increase.
5) Hospitals are treating patients with more severe health needs, which is driving higher expenses. More severe patient health needs have led to a significant rise in length of hospital stays compared to before the pandemic. Meanwhile, labor shortages in post-acute settings and prior authorization policies have prevented timely patient discharge from hospitals, leading to increased hospital expenses without commensurate revenue increases. 20 Information provided by the Hospital Council-Northern and Central California. 21 All-electric hospital will be the country’s first when it opens in 2025. UCI Health (April 24, 2023):
https://www.ucihealth.org/news/2023/04/electric-carbon-neutral-hospital 22 Current State of California Hospital Finances. Kaufman Hall (May 2024): https://calhospital.org/file/kaufman- hall-report-2024/

21 These financial pressures impact hospitals and healthcare providers in Berkeley and have contributed to the announcement by Berkeley’s only full-service hospital, Alta Bates Summit Medical Center (run by Sutter Health), that it plans to close its Berkeley site by 2030.

While City of Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín has said the City is “willing to pass bonds and taxes, we’re willing to look at permitting, we’re willing to do anything in partnership with Sutter Health to find a path to keep Alta Bates open”23, additional costs to comply with this tax would further exacerbate the financial challenges and ability for healthcare services to be provided in Berkeley.

Arts & Culture
The City of Berkeley is nationally recognized for its cultural vitality. It is home to over 150 active arts and culture non-profits offering a diverse array of theater, music, festivals, dance, visual arts, and more. The city is also home to a wide range of artists and artisans, who operate as small businesses producing fine arts such as painting, sculpture, music, and crafts like textiles, stained glass, and metalwork.

The City of Berkeley has long recognized the importance of the arts to local economic health and livability. Arts organizations generate revenue, create jobs, and improve quality of life, which helps attract businesses and tourism to Berkeley. According to the City of Berkeley’s Economic Impact Report of 201724, the arts and culture industry in Berkeley generated nearly $165 million in total economic activity, including both direct and indirect impacts.

However, Berkeley’s arts sector is struggling in the aftermath of the pandemic and many of the non- profits are operating at a loss. Berkeley’s arts sector is not alone in this post-pandemic plight. According to a National Endowment for the Arts analysis: “After adjusting for inflation, the value added by performing arts presenters (including festivals) fell by nearly 73 percent between 2019 and 2020.”13 Current threats to the arts sector include additional post-pandemic challenges such as: inflation impacting costs for labor, materials, and talent; huge reductions in season subscriptions sales14 and audience reluctance to return to arts venues due to ongoing COVID concerns.

Some arts sector stakeholders expressed concern that the addition of this proposed tax, on top of post- pandemic challenges, would require them, in the short-term, to lay off employees and reduce their offerings to the community. They cited that reductions in their programming would have downstream effects on local arts educators, theater professionals, musicians, and others who they employ.

As event-related spending by arts audiences creates valuable economic impacts for local merchants such as restaurants, bars, retail stores, hotels, and parking garages, should the several Berkeley arts organizations housed in buildings that would be impacted by this initiative go out of business, there would likely be resulting negative effects to the local economy, especially in certain areas of the city that depend upon a vibrant arts ecosystem to keep other business afloat – such as Downtown Berkeley. 23 Amanda Hari. Alta Bates/ scheduled closure raises concerns about East Bay becoming a hospital desert. KRON 4 (Berkeley, February 27, 2024): https://www.kron4.com/news/bay-area/alta-bates-scheduled-closure-raises- concerns-about-east-bay-becoming-a-hospital-desert/
24 City of Berkeley. 2017 Economic Impact Report: https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/2022- 02/Berkeley%20Arts%20Economic%20Impact%20Report.pdf

22 Non-profits and Community Based Organizations
As written, the initiative allows City Council (by a two-thirds vote, with annual renewals) to exempt non- profit organizations with total annual revenues under $1,000,000. However, based on staff’s review of available data, none of the non-profit properties subject to this tax would qualify for this exemption.

Life Sciences
West Berkeley contains many life science and research & development (R&D) facilities including the 46- acre Bayer Campus, the Wareham Development Aquatic Park Campus, Bonneville Labs, theLAB Berkeley, Foundry 31, and Berkeley Commons, among others. Apart from the electrified Foundry 31 and Berkeley Commons facilities, the majority25 of these buildings use natural gas for space heating and to ventilate occupied spaces to protect the health and safety of workers in the building. Due to building health and safety requirements, the air flow rate in laboratories is significantly higher (up to 25 times higher) than other building types26. The gas (or electricity) consumption per square foot is therefore significantly higher for labs than other commercial uses, such as an office building, where air is typically changed only once or twice per hour.

In many of Berkeley’s existing life science facilities, it would take significant time and resources to replace the existing gas-powered HVAC technologies due to constraints on grid capacity and building infrastructure. These constraints are discussed in further detail below. Further, policies that penalize current energy consumption used for air ventilation could have the perverse impact of threatening worker health and safety.

Additionally, many stakeholders commented that if this tax was to pass, it would be counteractive to the many policy changes made by City Council in recent years to retain startups and R&D companies as they grow27, including many that are developing renewable energy technologies and other environmental or climate solutions28.Hotels & Lodging A February 2023 report by the Bay Area Council described how the recovery of the country’s leisure, hospitality, and tourism industries has lagged behind other sectors: “While the U.S. economy had fully recovered its pandemic job losses by mid-2022, the Bay Area entered 2023 still down approximately 50,000 jobs from its pre-pandemic employment peak. Much of the region’s jobs deficit is associated 25 Wareham Development estimates at least 90%.
26 In “Laboratories for the 21st Century: An Introduction to Low-Energy Design” published by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Energy, it states “The basic energy challenge confronting laboratory designers is the high cost of conditioning the large volume of ventilation air needed to meet safety requirements and building codes. Unlike office buildings, which are typically designed around a ventilation standard of 20 cubic feet per minute (cfm) per person of outside air — equal to about one air change per hour (ACH) or less — lab modules normally require 100% outside air — often at exchange rates between 6 and 10 ACH — to meet the aggressive exhaust requirements of fume hoods. And in some laboratory designs, ventilation rates are arbitrarily set at levels from 15 to 25 ACH, whether or not there is a need for such a high rate.” 27 The City of Berkeley authorized early-stage startups to exempt the first $1 million of government-issued R&D grants from local gross receipts taxes in 2019, updated its definition of “Research and Development” in 2022, and is currently developing a package of zoning changes to “Keep Innovation in Berkeley” (presented to the Planning Commission on July 17, 2024).
28 In 2023, approximately 14% of Berkeley’s innovation industries were classified as “Clean Tech,” which includes technologies for climate adaptation and carbon mitigation:
https://berkeleystartupcluster.com/startups/?tx_startup_industry=cleantech

23 with the leisure, hospitality, and tourism industries.”29 Lower hotel revenues, combined with increased labor costs (due to rising minimum wages and medical benefit prices) and higher food costs, have forced hotels to accept lower margins and seek additional sources of income (e.g., as event venues, eating and drinking establishments, lodging for the unhoused). Since the pandemic, hotels in Berkeley have struggled to get occupancy rates up to pre-pandemic levels of at least 80%. Berkeley has seen a 7.6% loss of room inventory since June 2023, along with a slower paced occupancy and a 7.3% decrease in revenue.

Gas use in Berkeley hotels varies by facility size and the amenities offered on site. Gas is used to heat water for drinking, showering, and pools; washing and drying laundry on-site in industrial machines; heating rooms and public spaces; and for cooking at on-site food & beverage facilities.

For some of the larger hotels, retrofits to electrify could cost millions of dollars and, for those designated as historic buildings (such as the Berkeley City Club and Hotel Shattuck Plaza), the costs and issues associated with electrification are expected to be more even challenging. Even smaller properties estimated their costs would be tens of thousands of dollars to electrify.

The general managers of Berkeley hotels consulted for this analysis expressed that, unlike other industries where business leaders have the flexibility to move locations, their long-term leases and place-specific investments make it unlikely they would relocate. Instead, they would be required to choose between several undesirable options: decrease benefits for workers (if not unionized), increase rates for customers (which they expect would negatively impact occupancy due to rate resistance, and thus decrease hotel revenues and the city’s collection of transient occupancy tax revenues), or lower margins (if not already operating at a loss or breakeven point).

Manufacturers
Many manufacturers use technologies that rely on natural gas for the production process and would be subject to this tax. For example, many small, local food production companies utilize expensive gas-fired equipment for heating at scale and speculated that this tax could threaten their survival in Berkeley. And owners of buildings with manufacturing tenants anticipated that if they had to pay to this tax, they would pass the cost along to the tenants since lease terms dictate that government-imposed taxes get passed along to the lessor. As commercial tenants have multi-year leases and are unable to exit these leases on the grounds that new taxes have been imposed, they would have no choice other than to pay the taxes until their lease expires. In the long term, the building owner might switch to electrification, but given the large investment and long-time horizon required to make these switches, this might not happen within the current lease term, especially if there were only a few years left on the lease or the gas-powered system had been installed recently.

On the other hand, Berkeley manufacturers of electric alternatives like Bellwether Coffee30 and Channing St Copper31 might see an uptick in local sales of their electric coffee roasters and induction cookstoves if this initiative were to pass. In the case of Bellwether, the amount of local uptake (and thus 29 Business Taxes in the Bay Area: A City Level Analysis. Bay Area Council Economic Institute (February 2023):
https://www.bayareaeconomy.org/files/pdf/BACEI-SF-Business-Tax-Feb2023.pdf 30Grayson Caldwell. The future of the coffee industry: The electrification revolution. Fast Company (February 16, 2024): https://www.fastcompany.com/91028564/the-future-of-the-coffee-industry-the-electrification-revolution. 31 Also known as Channing Copper, or Copper: https://copperhome.com/

24 economic and environmental impact) would depend on whether commercial customers could absorb the cost of purchasing, installing, and training workers on the new technology while bearing the additional cost of the natural gas tax while phasing out their gas-powered machines. In the case of Channing St Copper, the company is currently only undertaking limited-batch production but expects to scale in coming months and would certainly stand to gain from more local residential customers, for whom funds raised from this initiative would be prioritized for electrification support.

Workforce
Decarbonization will require significant shifts and investment in the workforce, specifically to develop high-road jobs in the transition to a fossil-fuel free economy. The Bay Area needs to further increase its capacity in this workforce. Properties subject to this initiative will be competing for the same assessors, designers, and installers. Buildings that house industries such as healthcare, R&D, manufacturing, and grocery stores, will need specialized expertise and customized equipment for electrification retrofits; workforce options will be limited.

The City has been working in partnership with regional and national leaders to advance high-road jobs in decarbonization, particularly for low-rise residential retrofits through the High Road Training Partnership.32 The Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax initiative states that the City prioritize the use and support of labor satisfying the definition of 7.77.030.C (“Minimum Labor Standards”). These labor standards should be reviewed and developed in partnership with workforce and labor experts to ensure they are aligned with the definitions of High-Road jobs currently being developed as part of the HRTP process. These standards are also written prescriptively and should be adaptable to best practices and lessons learned over time.

The Bay Area Housing Finance Authority (BAHFA) will be placing a general obligation bond measure on the November 5 general election ballot in each of the nine Bay Area counties to raise and distribute $20 billion for the production of new affordable housing and the preservation of existing affordable housing throughout the region. This Bay Area-wide initiative, if passed, is the culmination of many years of work to address housing affordability, and would provide $2 billion to Alameda County, 15% of which must be spent to preserve existing affordable housing. This regionwide initiative would have a program to administer the funds and would require the same stretched workforce to conduct the work.

There is a need to build up the high-road workforce for building electrification in the Bay Area to meet the City and State’s ambitious climate and decarbonization goals. Progress is being made, but the current constraints will be an impediment to the properties subject to this initiative.

Constraints for building owners to transition off natural gas The City shares the goal of decarbonizing Berkeley’s building stock and has been a leader in building electrification policy. Staff has a deep understanding of the potential benefits as well as the existing current challenges in large scale building electrification for larger buildings. City staff also conducted interviews with communities that would be impacted by this initiative to understand potential impacts, as well as technical experts and PG&E.
32 High Road Training Partnership: https://risingsunopp.org/policy/

25 Existing Building Retrofits and Costs
This initiative would impact more than 600 existing Berkeley building owners, many of whom already made large capital investments and building design decisions that cannot be modified quickly. Existing buildings electrification projects tend to be complex and time-consuming, particularly for commercial properties. Berkeley building owners and business managers expressed interest in building electrification, but also relayed the challenges including physical space constraints, significant lead times, and costs.

Most studies and assessments on the time and resources required for electrification retrofits have focused on residential retrofits; a few include mid-sized office buildings. A 2022 literature review by Berkeley’s Rosen Consulting Group estimated that overall costs to retrofit a typical gas-powered office building in New York ranged from $12-$24/sqft.33 Other types of commercial buildings are more complex. The lead time for equipment to enable electrification retrofits in commercial buildings is significant. Earlier this year an NREL team found that lead times for distribution transformers has increased by 4 times in the last 3 years, with prices increases of 4-9 times over the same period; some transformer orders are now taking 2 years.34 Realistically, if properties subject to this initiative began aggressively pursuing electrification now, they would still be likely to be subject to this tax for at least 3 years, if not longer.

When electrical service upgrades are required for a building to electrify, as would be expected for buildings of 15,000 sqft or greater, costs are shared by PG&E and the property owner. The property owner must cover all of the behind-the-meter upgrades; PG&E uses a customized formula to determine their allowance for front-of-the-meter wiring and infrastructure; the remainder of those costs fall to the property owner.

In the case of electrical service upgrades being needed for a home electrification retrofit, PG&E will cover $3,225 worth of expenses per meter to enable an electrification project. In a study35 conducted by NV5 and Redwood Energy in 2022, the total cost for service upgrades for home electrification projects was reported to range between approximately $2,000 to $30,000 for the property owner.

Existing Building Retrofit Timelines
In many cases it will take building owners several years before equipment and facilities can be transitioned to electric alternatives. Given the initiative's January 1, 2025 implementation timeline, even building owners who could make the large capital investments required to electrify their buildings would likely require multiple years for the process to be completed, and thus would still have to pay the tax during the transition period.
33 New York Building Electrification and Decarbonization Costs. Rosen Consulting Group (June 2022):
https://www.nyserda.ny.gov/-/media/Project/Climate/Files/2022-Comments/NY-Building-Electrification-Cost-Full- Report-June2022
34 Major Drivers of Long-Term Distribution Transformer Demand. NREL (February 2024):
https://www.nrel.gov/docs/fy24osti/87653.pdf
35Service Upgrades for Electrification Retrofits Study Final Report. NV5 (May 27, 2022):
https://pda.energydataweb.com/api/view/2635/Service%20Upgrades%20for%20Electrification%20Retrofits%20St udy%20FINAL.pdf

26 There are also timeline constraints outside of the control of the property owner and City. PG&E has an estimated timeline of 6-18 months to complete service upgrade requests. However, in recent years, local projects have experienced timeframes beyond this estimate, including significant delays in energization once projects are complete. PG&E’s timeline is influenced by many factors including the amount of additional service capacity needed at a site to accommodate additional electrical load, transformer and other equipment supply shortages, as well as their shifting of resources and staffing, beginning in 2016, to address wildfire risk reduction. Some projects have been delayed due to both PG&E’s investment in wildfire threat and extreme weather, as well as a significant growth in electric demand after flat demand36.

Grid Constraints to Electrification
Grid capacity and readiness is pertinent to the timeframe building electrification retrofit project will require. Ultimately the grid, and distribution system, can be altered and upgraded, if needed, to supply additional service, but the timeline and expense may be high. Specific details for any given project or property are, however, not known until service request is initiated and PG&E conducts the technical assessment.

PG&E forecasts its annual budget based on anticipated electrical demand, and this budget forecast cost is spread across all ratepayers of the PG&E territory – the budget is not regionalized to local jurisdictions. Ultimately, PG&E has an obligation to serve, and will do so as required, but it may impact PG&E territory budget and timeline. As such, a large increase in projects in one jurisdiction such as Berkeley could impact the budget forecast and potentially the rates of the entire PG&E territory, as well as the timelines of all projects needing service upgrades in a territory. Generally, larger upgrade projects take longer than smaller ones, which could impact wait times for other projects also needing upgrades.

Impacts to the City of Berkeley
Fiscal & Staffing Impacts for collecting the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax This section outlines the staffing impacts to the City for administering and collecting the tax from subject buildings. The initiative allocates 3% of tax proceeds for administration for the tax (for the Finance Department and other City departments) and then 10% of the remaining 97% of total tax revenues to cover staffing for the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund. Under current estimates, 3% of the first-year tax revenue would be approximately $800,000.

In order to implement the tax, the Finance Department would require additional staffing for at least the following positions, budget estimates are based on Fiscal Year 2024 hourly rates:
 1/3 FTE Administrative Office Assistant III (1 FTE = $150,874; 1/3 FTE = $50,291)  1/2 FTE Assistant Management Analyst (1 FTE = $166,895; 1/2 FTE = $83,447.50)  1/10 FTE Revenue Collection Manager (1 FTE = $265,963; 1/10 FTE = $26,596.30) The Office of Energy and Sustainable Development (OESD) would require staffing for at least the following new position:
36 Jeff Quackenbush. Bills aim to fix California’s long delays in connecting construction projects to the grid. North Bay Business Journal (March 10, 2023): https://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/article/article/bills-aim-to-fix- californias-long-delays-in-connecting-construction-projec/

27  1 FTE Senior Management Analyst (1 FTE = $234,606) In addition to staffing to implement the tax, the Rent Stabilization Board estimates that $40,000 would be needed to conduct outreach and educate tenants on the tax.

The 3% revenue allocation for the tax administration should cover the staffing and outreach costs needed based on the current first year tax revenue estimate. However, the City would need to frontload the budget, and grant authority to hire, in Fiscal Year 2025 in order to allow for tax collection. The initiative requires the program to begin collecting the tax in February 2026.

Complexities of tax administration will include obtaining accurate building size and natural gas use information; the latter will need to be self-reported because California Data Privacy Laws prohibit the utility (PG&E) from providing that data directly, without permission from the property owner/account holder.

Fiscal & Staffing Impacts for implementing the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund
Funds from the Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax and resulting Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund would more than double the City’s current staffing for climate action programs. The current Fiscal Year 2025 personnel budget for OESD is approximately $1.7M; the initiative is estimated to provide over $2.5M for staffing to implement the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund in its first year.

The Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, receiving annual tax revenues estimated at $26.7M to start, is many times larger than the City’s existing programs for low to moderate income electrification retrofits. The City’s currently operating Climate Equity Fund Home Electrification Pilot and Just Transition Residential Electrification Pilot are using a total of $1.75M in funds. The Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund would allow for a significant increase the number of existing home electrification retrofit projects that could be supported each year.

The initiative provides that 10% of the revenues, after the initial 3% is removed for administration of the tax, be used to “fund permanent, career, City positions in an employee bargaining unit subject to a collective bargaining agreement to administer and facilitate a citywide program of Natural Gas Conversion and Building Decarbonization Retrofits and administrative expenses connected therewith.” In comparison to staffing examples from other municipal clean energy and home decarbonization programs, this allocation is low:
 City of Madison Efficiency Navigator Program: 34% of program budget for program administration37
 Philadelphia’s Built to Last Program: 23% of budget for program administration38 37Community-Driven Building Retrofit Programs – City of Madison Case Study: Efficiency Navigator. C40 Cities (Accessed July 2024):
https://c40.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/36000001Enhz/a/Vo000000455x/Y0BeqqQQQJuQn_NosGfeH9CUNzxVLqpI3 mroJRNZ0ds
38 Community-Driven Building Retrofit Programs – City of Philadelphia Case Study: Built to Last. C40 Cities (Accessed July 2024):

28  Denver’s Climate Protection Fund: 15% of budget for program administration39  Denver’s Healthy Homes Pilot: 17% of budget for program administration40 As another comparison, the City’s Just Transition Residential Electrification Pilot, with a budget of $1.5M, has $400,000 (27%) dedicated to program administration.

The initiative allows for flexibility in how the funds are distributed, stating that 90% of the revenues, after the initial 3% is removed for tax administration, is to be used to “to fund expenses associated with Natural Gas Conversion of existing buildings, prioritizing Building Decarbonization Retrofits. The City shall prioritize funding for Natural Gas Conversion and Building Decarbonization Retrofits in low-rise residential buildings and restaurants, including low- or no-interest loans to assist property owners in retrofitting properties or otherwise to achieve the purposes of this Chapter.” As such, the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund could be used to both fund and expand existing City programs such as the Climate Equity Fund and Just Transition Residential Electrification Pilot programs that include, in part, direct install of home electrification measures in low to moderate income households through work with contracted non-profit partners. It could also be used for a variety of other grant, loan, or potentially other types of programs to further natural gas conversions of existing buildings.

Given the broad opportunities in program design, which will also be influenced and assessed by the Berkeley Environment and Climate Commission as the Oversite Committee named by this initiative, it is difficult to make accurate assumptions about what positions would be needed and how much budget would be required.

It is unclear whether the initiative specified funding for hiring to support the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund (approximately 10% of tax revenues) will be sufficient. Although the 10% assigned for administration of this Fund appears low, it may be adequate given the expected amount of the tax revenue. Under current estimates, there would be over $2.5M for program administration in the first year. For example, Berkeley's Rental Housing Safety Program, within the Planning Department, has a similar annual budget, and employees about 12 full-time employees including inspectors, analysts, and office specialists. If the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund is used primarily to distribute grants and loans, it is possible that fewer staff positions would be needed.

The City could also frontload funding and hiring for the design of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund programs to enable implementation in the beginning of Fiscal Year 2027 (shortly after the first revenue collection). Alternatively, utilizing the resources of the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund for all hiring, program design, and implementation would likely result in Fund distribution beginning in Fiscal Year 2028. Initially staff would be needed to develop the design of the https://c40.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/36000001Enhz/a/Vo000000454L/qAb4qXLVdeM7IabjqR.4tHlPFC3iyCcWzFu8 ZQfS674
39Community-Driven Building Retrofit Programs – City of Denver Case Study: Building Electrification Incentive Program and Healthy Homes Pilot Program. C40 Cities (Accessed July 2024):
https://c40.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/36000001Enhz/a/Vo000000452j/2XSB4VJed78tHJsTOCMzcBwcKMbnt.swFAp 7C_Bxp2o
40Community-Driven Building Retrofit Programs – City of Denver Case Study: Building Electrification Incentive Program and Healthy Homes Pilot Program. C40 Cities (Accessed July 2024):
https://c40.my.salesforce.com/sfc/p/36000001Enhz/a/Vo000000452j/2XSB4VJed78tHJsTOCMzcBwcKMbnt.swFAp 7C_Bxp2o

29 Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund program, in partnership with the Oversight Committee, Council, and the community. As that is developed, staffing would be needed to implement the program, including its administration and assessment.

Impacts to the City’s General Fund & Tax Revenues
The estimated tax revenue for the initiative, currently estimated at $26,700,000 for the first year, is significant in comparison to other annual city revenue sources budgeted in the FY2024 budget41:
 Soda Tax: $1,147,387
 Utility Users Tax: $17,454,320
 Sales Tax: $19,654,225
 Property Transfer Taxes: $22,873,786
 Secured Property Tax: $84,725,717
Impacts on Other Tax Revenues
Business license taxes make up 8% of the City’s General Fund revenue. A large portion of business license taxes comes from rental of real property, including tax on owners of five or more residential rental units. If the tax becomes overly burdensome to property owners, they may remove the property from the market and reduce overall business license revenue. Additionally, there is a potential loss in sales tax, transient occupancy tax, and short-term rentals if a building becomes or remains vacant. The Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax only would only fund the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, unlike the business license, sales, and other taxes that generate General Fund revenue that can be applied to a varied of community needs.

Impacts to the Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO) BESO is a City ordinance aimed at reducing emissions in existing buildings. BESO operates as two distinct programs, a Time of Listing program for buildings less than 25,000 sqft and the Large Building program for buildings 25,000 sqft or greater.

The Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax does not align with BESO’s definition of large buildings.

While the BESO program requires medium-sized buildings between 15,000-25,000 sqft to submit annual energy benchmarks, these buildings are not classified as large buildings and are not part of BESO’s Large Building Program. Instead, these properties are subject to BESO’s Time of Listing program requirements for small and medium sized buildings.

When BESO was first passed in 2015, benchmarking was only required for buildings 25,000 sqft and greater. The energy benchmarking threshold was lowered in 2020 to medium sized buildings (15,000 sqft or greater) to help the BESO team better assist medium sized buildings owners identify areas for improvement and to quantify or verify energy savings. BESO’s energy benchmarking requirement was not designed as an instrument for levying tax.
41 Revenue sources listed are for budgeted FY 2024 revenues:
https://berkeleyca.gov/sites/default/files/documents/FY-2025-2026-Proposed-Biennial-Budget.pdf

30 Additionally, recent amendments to BESO direct staff to develop energy upgrade requirements for all building sizes for Council’s consideration to reduce emissions from Berkeley’s building sector. For Berkeley’s large buildings, staff is working to develop Building Performance Standards (BPS) for City Council’s consideration which will require large buildings to transition off fossil fuels over time to achieve Berkeley's climate action goals. Building performance standards can accommodate the range of technical and financial constraints through interim emissions targets and various compliance pathways.

The creation of BPS and other local existing building requirements must be aligned with Berkeley’s equity guardrails and developed with the community to ensure equitable outcomes. If passed, the proposed tax would make it challenging for the BESO team to develop an equitable BPS policy with the community and would supersede the work staff and community have done to start the BPS development process.

Impacts to the Environment and Climate Commission
The initiative states that Berkeley’s Environment and Climate Commission will serve as the Oversight Committee for the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, to ensure that it is administered in a manner that is accountable to the community, consistent with the law, and to advice Council on appropriations for the Fund. This Commission has not had oversight authority to date; enabling this change would likely include amending the Commission’s enabling legislation, creating bylaws and a workplan, an enhanced Commissioner application and vetting process for appointment, and new training for Commissioners. Per the initiative the Commission would “conduct a needs assessment as to retrofitting existing buildings in the City and make annual recommendations about appropriations from the Fund to the Council informed by that needs assessment” on annual basis, beginning on December 31, 2025.

As referenced in the initiative, additional City staffing, paid for by the Fossil Fuel Free Buildings Just Transition Fund, will be required to support the Environment and Climate Commission as the Oversight Committee for this Fund.

Administrative & Operational Feasibility of Tax Implementation There are several administrative aspects of the initiative as written which will make it difficult to implement on the timeline prescribed in the initiative.

Timeline of the Tax
As written in the initiative, the annual tax is based on natural gas consumption in the previous calendar year. It is due annually by February 28, starting in 2026. To meet this deadline, building owners would need to immediately self-report their annual data to OESD who would then review and finalize a natural gas consumption report to provide to the Finance Department for billing purposes. Finance would then issue bills, accept payment, and apply penalties and interest as needed. However, PG&E’s Building Benchmarking Portal, the main system that allows building owners to obtain whole building energy data, does not provide complete annual data until mid-February of the subsequent year. There is not sufficient time to collect natural gas data from building owners, issue tax bills, and provide at least 30 days for payment before the annual deadline of February 28.

Additionally, the OESD deadline for buildings subject to BESO benchmarking requirements to report natural gas consumption is July 1, though many users report months later. To facilitate administration,

31 the billing should be delayed until September and the penalty should be enforced the following month or thereafter.

The timeline of collecting the tax starting in 2026 also does not provide any budget ahead of time for the City to hire staff and develop for the program before the tax is expected to be fully implemented.

Availability of Natural Gas Usage Data
Due to California data privacy laws, the City is unable to obtain natural gas usage for individual buildings directly from the utility and would rely on building owners to self-report their building’s natural gas usage. A local ordinance cannot supersede California privacy laws, and PG&E is not able to share energy usage information.42
While some natural gas usage data is available for individual buildings through BESO, which requires commercial and residential buildings over 15,000 square feet to self-report their annual energy usage to OESD through annual energy benchmarks, industrial buildings are not subject to BESO. Currently, natural gas usage data is only available for 47% of the buildings subject to the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax. New City processes would be needed to require subject building owners to disclose their natural gas usage data, which is considered private, in order to collect the tax.

Additionally, the initiative does not provide instructions or a methodology to estimate gas usage in order to tax building owners who choose not to self-report their data.

Conflicting Definitions
Some definitions set forth in the initiative are not aligned with other definitions and processes utilized by the City, which adds complication to verification and implementation. For example, the City of Berkeley’s Finance Department maintains a taxable square footage dataset to implement special taxes based on a calculation of the specific tax rate multiplied by the square footage of a property. The initiative as written utilizes a specific definition for “Gross Floor Area” which differs from the City's definition of taxable square footage as well as the County’s building square footage definition. Further, in 7.77.030J & M, there are more exceptions to taxable buildings, including that the interior must be actively heated or cooled and should exclude affordable housing units. This will require staff to cull information from several different sources and will become difficult to verify and administer. Another example is the definition of “owner” in the initiative is not aligned with the Alameda County Assessor’s ownership data used by the City.

Limited Ability to Amend
Section 7.77.120 of the draft ordinance provides limited opportunities for City Council or staff to address adverse impacts of the initative, implement best practices not included in the draft language, and to address any lessons learned along the way. Council cannot amend the ordinance, without going back to the community for a vote, to address the impacts listed in this report. Council amendments also are specifically not allowed to:
 Increase the tax,
42 Notice of Accessing, Collecting, Storing, Using & Disclosing Energy Usage Information (PG&E, last updated July 1, 2022): https://www.pge.com/en/privacy-center/notice-of-accessing-collecting-storing-using-and-disclosing- energy-usage-information.html

32  Reduce the inflation-adjusted tax rates or reduce tax unless there is substantial evidence a temporary reduction is needed to address unusual circumstances, or  Provide additional exemptions outside what the ordinance states.

Because this is a citizen-developed measure, it must be presented on the ballot exactly as drafted and can pass with a majority (greater than 50%) vote. Any changes to the initiative, beyond the authorized amendments would require going back to the community for a vote.

Conclusion
This initiative strives to address a very important concern for the Berkeley community: the catastrophic effects of global climate change, to which natural gas contributes. City staff researched the potential economic impacts and benefits on local businesses and city tax revenues, feasibility of implementing the proposed initiative ordinances, City staffing implications, and other expected costs or benefits of potential interest to the City or the public, within the time and resource constraints given to write this report. Staff’s analysis, including potential unintended consequences that may limit the initiative in having its desired positive impacts on our community and the environment, are detailed in the report.

Attachments:

Attachment 1: “Initiative Ordinance to Adopt a Special Tax on Natural Gas Consumption in Buildings 15,000 Sq. Ft. or Larger” (also known as the “Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax” Ordinance) Attachment 2: Estimated first year Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax for buildings with at least 15,000 square feet

Attachment 1, part 2

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
054 177300304 Bayer Main Campus 2550 7TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 6,460,081$ CARB 052 157308707 Alta Bates Summit Medical Center - Ashby 2450 ASHBY AVE 94705 250k+ Health Care 2,531,583$ BESO 055 189700501 Alta Bates Herrick Hospital Campus 2001 DWIGHT WAY 94704 250k+ Health Care 909,863$ BESO 052 157405908 Alta Bates Medical Campus 3001 COLBY ST 94705 250k+ Health Care 858,254$ CBECS 056 195600100 Takara Sake USA 719 ALLSTON WAY 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 566,388$ BESO 057 211000101 Kaiser Permanente Berkeley Lab 1740 SECOND ST 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 397,353$ BESO 054 174800201 2700 SEVENTH ST 94710 250k+ Industrial 303,213$ CBECS 052 151200103 Foundry 31 (Former Marchant Bldg) 3100 SAN PABLO AVE 94710 250k+ Industrial 244,161$ CBECS 053 165100101 Berkeley Bowl West 920 HEINZ AVE 94710 100k-249,999k Food Sales 231,596$ BESO 060 252800701 Doubletree Hotel & Meeting Center 200 MARINA BLVD 94710 100k-249,999k Hotel/Lodging 190,386$ BESO 057 202800300 Former United Artists Theater 2274 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 100k-249,999k Public Assembly 182,202$ CBECS 057 202601500 Downtown Berkeley YMCA 2001 ALLSTON WAY 94704 100k-249,999k Public Assembly 178,417$ BESO 053 165801801 901 HEINZ AVE 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 166,633$ BESO 060 235700100 901 GILMAN ST 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 163,590$ BESO 052 157305102 Regent Street Medical Office Building and Care Center 2999 REGENT ST 94705 50k-99,999k Health Care 152,654$ BESO 057 203202100 Residence Inn Hotel Downtown 2129 CENTER ST 94704 250k+ Retail 143,755$ CBECS 060 235500802 Gilman District North (Whole Foods) 1011 GILMAN ST 94710 25k-49,999k Food Sales 133,670$ BESO 057 202600201 Great Western Bldg (Sky Deck Building) 2150 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 100k-249,999k Office 131,633$ BESO 055 188500202 Berkeley City Club 2315 DURANT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Hotel/Lodging 121,559$ BESO 055 189504100 Logan Park Apartments 2352 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 100k-249,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 119,344$ CBECS 059 226202102 Safeway (North Shattuck) 1425 HENRY ST 94709 25k-49,999k Food Sales 116,830$ BESO 052 157700101 Whole Foods Ashby 3000 TELEGRAPH AVE 94705 15k-24,999k Food Sales 109,649$ BESO 055 187201400 The Graduate Berkeley Hotel 2600 DURANT AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Hotel/Lodging 108,819$ BESO 057 202601203 2052 CENTER ST 94704 100k-249,999k Office 108,435$ CBECS 059 231000900 1500 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 100k-249,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 107,540$ CBECS 057 202701200 Hotel Shattuck Plaza 2086 ALLSTON WAY 94704 100k-249,999k Hotel/Lodging 97,864$ BESO 058 218900104 Pacific School of Religion Student Housing 1798 SCENIC AVE 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 94,655$ BESO Multiple APNs Fourth & U Apartments 700 UNIVERSITY AVE 94710 100k-249,999k Residential 92,846$ BESO 054 177000402 Former H. C. Macaulay Foundry 811 CARLETON ST 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 79,264$ CBECS 057 212000100 David Brower Center 2150 ALLSTON WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Office 78,952$ BESO 056 196001500 Aquatic I and III 2001 4TH ST 94710 100k-249,999k Residential 76,435$ BESO 057 206000100 New Californian 1988 M L KING JR WAY 94704 100k-249,999k Residential 76,147$ BESO 057 202300400 Wells Fargo Building 2140 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Office 75,089$ BESO 059 226301001 Andronico's North Berkeley 1550 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 25k-49,999k Food Sales 74,227$ BESO 053 165200105 Berkeley Business Center 1099 ASHBY AVE 94710 250k+ Other 70,674$ BESO 056 196701601 La Quinta Inn by Wyndham Berkeley 900 UNIVERSITY AVE 94710 50k-99,999k Hotel/Lodging 70,460$ BESO 055 189401403 Berkeley Park Apartments 2025 DURANT AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 70,252$ BESO 056 199601203 1417 ADDISON ST 94702 25k-49,999k Food Sales 68,432$ CBECS 056 195400900 Avalon Berkeley 2020 3RD ST 94710 50k-99,999k Residential 68,294$ BESO Attachment 2: Estimated first year Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax for buildings with at least 15,000 square feet.

The following list provides the estimated first year Large Building Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax for buildings with at least 15,000 square feet. This estimate assumes these buildings would be subject to the tax. A case by case assessment as to whether the tax applies to a particular building will be made at a later time. Annual natural gas data is available for some buildings that reported their usage through the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) mandatory reporting of greenhouse gas emissions or through Berkeley's Building Emissions Saving Ordinance (BESO). Natural gas usage data for the remaining buildings is estimated by using a therms/square foot value provided by the US Energy Information Administration's Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS). The estimated tax amount will change as annual usage data is provided.

Attachment 1, part 3

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
056 199404901 Chaparral House 1299 ALLSTON WAY 94702 15k-24,999k Health Care 67,832$ BESO 057 211100306 1795 2ND ST 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 67,327$ CBECS 057 202401002 The Promenade 1936 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Office 64,281$ BESO 054 177000801 2600 7TH ST 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 63,528$ CBECS 053 164401101 740 HEINZ AVE 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 62,195$ CBECS 057 202302600 Berkeley Central 2055 CENTER ST 94704 100k-249,999k Residential 61,957$ BESO 060 236300106 1255 EASTSHORE FWY 94710 25k-49,999k Service 60,334$ CBECS 054 176401205 Saul Zaentz Media Center 2600 10TH ST 94710 100k-249,999k Office 59,803$ BESO 053 170300800 Ed Roberts Campus 3075 ADELINE ST 94703 50k-99,999k Office 59,163$ BESO 056 194700101 701 DWIGHT WAY 94710 100k-249,999k Industrial 58,350$ CBECS 057 202400102 Stonefire Berkeley 1974 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 57,951$ CBECS 055 187504500 2503 HASTE ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 57,709$ CBECS 054 171101400 Hashemi - Stuart 2525 STUART ST 94705 15k-24,999k Residential 56,237$ BESO 055 187701300 The Granada at Sather Gate 2301 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 54,835$ BESO 054 173701900 Oregon Park Apartments 1425 OREGON ST 94702 25k-49,999k Residential 54,490$ BESO 055 187601302 2500 DURANT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 54,159$ BESO 055 182200901 2035 BLAKE ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 53,632$ CBECS 054 176401204 2657 9TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Office 53,430$ CBECS 054 174600205 2701 EIGHTH ST 94710 15k-24,999k Industrial 51,674$ BESO 053 162703701 Higby 3015 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 50k-99,999k Residential 51,626$ CBECS 056 199902001 2235 SACRAMENTO ST 94702 25k-49,999k Hotel/Lodging 51,245$ BESO 060 253500102 Golden Gate Fields 1100 EASTSHORE HWY 94710 50k-99,999k Public Assembly 50,901$ CBECS 053 164700202 Weatherford BMW 735 ASHBY AVE 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 49,293$ CBECS 057 202600702 Berkeley Center Bldg 2175 MILVIA ST 94704 25k-49,999k Office 49,235$ BESO 055 188002201 2414 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 48,842$ BESO 054 176301001 Kaiser Medical Office Building 2621 10TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Health Care 48,572$ CBECS 057 204600804 Modera Berkeley 2125 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 100k-249,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 48,487$ BESO 055 188201000 Picardo Arms Apartments 2491 ELLSWORTH ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 48,326$ BESO 055 189401704 2300 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 100k-249,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 47,919$ BESO 055 187001000 The Berk on College 2700 BANCROFT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 47,882$ BESO 053 168300100 Berkeley Bowl 2020 OREGON ST 94703 25k-49,999k Food Sales 47,760$ BESO 056 195700301 Former Wine.com Building 1 747 BANCROFT WAY 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 47,690$ CBECS 056 195700203 Former Wine.com Building 2 2200 4TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 47,690$ CBECS 055 182201902 2000 DWIGHT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Other 47,593$ CBECS 053 169101601 CalFarm Bldg 2855 TELEGRAPH AVE 94705 50k-99,999k Office 46,880$ CBECS 055 189501901 Varsity Berkeley 2024 DURANT AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 46,816$ BESO 059 234700100 750 GILMAN ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 46,781$ CBECS 055 188001502 2407 DANA ST 94704 25k-49,999k Religious Worship 46,609$ BESO 063 312005000 Zaytuna College 2770 MARIN AVE 94708 25k-49,999k Education 46,353$ BESO 053 164401403 Wareham Development Aquatic Park Research Campus 700 HEINZ AVE 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 46,231$ CBECS 055 187700100 2590 BANCROFT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Other 46,007$ CBECS 055 182000101 Parker Apartments 2600 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 45,942$ BESO Multiple APNs 2550 DANA ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 45,368$ BESO 055 183902000 The Panoramic Berkeley 2539 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 44,826$ CBECS 057 202701000 2060 ALLSTON WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Retail 44,736$ CBECS 053 164300102 929 POTTER ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 44,323$ CBECS

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
060 235200201 Camelia Outlet Center 1001 CAMELIA ST 94710 50k-99,999k Other 42,728$ CBECS 058 219900800 Treehaven 2523 RIDGE RD 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 42,701$ BESO 056 195800603 2229 4TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Office 42,398$ CBECS 056 197701001 2120 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 50k-99,999k Other 42,382$ CBECS 057 202500800 Berkeley Repertory Theatre 2025 ADDISON ST 94704 50k-99,999k Public Assembly 42,361$ BESO 048H769000300 Redwood Gardens Apartments 2951 DERBY ST 94705 100k-249,999k Residential 42,091$ BESO 058 217700100 University Park Apartments 1709 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 50k-99,999k Residential 41,840$ BESO 055 184302603 2511 HILLEGASS AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Education 41,684$ CBECS 053 168200100 Harriet Tubman Terrace Apartments 2870 ADELINE ST 94703 50k-99,999k Residential 41,397$ BESO 059 234000802 1421 2ND ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 41,316$ CBECS 060 235200100 Gilman District South 1000 GILMAN ST 94710 25k-49,999k Enclosed and strip malls 40,633$ BESO 053 164400703 Wareham Development Aquatic Park Research Campus 725 POTTER ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 40,396$ CBECS 056 200402400 1632 UNIVERSITY AVE 94703 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 40,288$ BESO 053 164400100 Aquatic Park Center 2910 SEVENTH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 40,241$ CBECS 055 188802700 Channing Apartments 2236 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 40,094$ BESO 055 188901400 Garden Village 2201 DWIGHT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 39,828$ CBECS 057 211000102 Kaiser Lab 1725 EASTSHORE HWY 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 38,776$ CBECS 058 220300401 1771 HIGHLAND PL 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 38,776$ BESO 059 226100102 1451 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Food Sales 38,640$ CBECS 057 204601101 1987 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Other 37,904$ CBECS 052 157401404 3000 COLBY ST 94705 25k-49,999k Health Care 37,811$ CBECS 061 261102801 915 COLUSA AVE 94707 15k-24,999k Food Sales 37,500$ BESO 057 203401000 The WeWork Building 2015 KALA BAGAI WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Office 37,473$ BESO 058 219901001 1799 EUCLID AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 36,731$ BESO 057 203000200 Gaia Apartments 2116 ALLSTON WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 36,646$ BESO 055 183800201 Glenn Building Apartment 2430 DWIGHT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 36,547$ BESO 055 189300503 Stadium Place 2310 FULTON ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 36,524$ CBECS 055 186701100 Bishop Berkeley Apartments 2709 DWIGHT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 36,296$ BESO 057 201602101 The Overture at 1812 1812 UNIVERSITY AVE 94703 50k-99,999k Residential 36,135$ CBECS 057 205602300 MB Apartments 1912 MILVIA ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 35,844$ CBECS 058 219101201 Ridge House 2424 RIDGE RD 94709 25k-49,999k Hotel/Lodging 35,843$ CBECS 055 188501000 The Metropolitan 2301 DURANT AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 35,585$ BESO 055 188200800 Evans Manor 2315 DWIGHT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Hotel/Lodging 35,292$ BESO 053 166102701 2821 TENTH ST 94710 15k-24,999k Industrial 34,978$ BESO 055 186501300 Warring Street Apartments 2461 WARRING ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 34,882$ BESO 057 205300700 Nash Hotel 2041 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 34,801$ BESO 056 199502801 Berkeley Apartments - Acton Courtyard 2002 ACTON ST 94702 50k-99,999k Residential 34,576$ BESO 057 202302500 2072 ADDISON ST 94704 50k-99,999k Other 34,477$ CBECS 057 202201701 2100 MILVIA ST 94704 50k-99,999k Office 34,315$ BESO 056 196101700 The Aquatic 800 UNIVERSITY AVE 94710 50k-99,999k Residential 34,151$ CBECS 055 189600701 Haste Park Apartments 2033 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 33,951$ BESO 057 211602003 1609 4TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 33,704$ CBECS 053 170400102 700 GRAYSON ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 33,664$ CBECS 054 177800101 The Sawtooth Bldg 2547 8TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 33,663$ CBECS 056 196301506 2240 SIXTH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 33,526$ CBECS 057 202400701 Addison Arts Apartments 1933 ADDISON ST 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 33,132$ BESO

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
055 188201700 2322 HASTE ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 32,755$ BESO 057 202502100 2066 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 32,457$ BESO 057 209701401 811 UNIVERSITY AVE 94710 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 32,112$ BESO 057 210900103 Extra Space Storage 600 CEDAR ST 94710 50k-99,999k Warehouse and Storage 31,904$ CBECS 058 219400600 2477 VIRGINIA ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 31,754$ BESO 053 163300107 3000 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 50k-99,999k Other 31,461$ CBECS 054 174703300 2703 7TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 31,419$ CBECS 055 185000401 2514 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 31,132$ BESO 055 187301400 Casa Bonita Apartments 2605 HASTE ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 30,963$ BESO 057 202600405 2190 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 30,838$ CBECS 058 218103300 1717 OXFORD ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 30,694$ BESO 055 187800501 Sather Lane Shops 2433 DURANT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 30,504$ BESO 057 203100300 Allston Place 2161 ALLSTON WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 30,222$ CBECS 054 170701001 St. Johns Presbyterian Church 2717 GARBER ST 94705 25k-49,999k Religious Worship 30,008$ BESO 055 187800300 Spectra Southside 2328 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 29,781$ BESO 056 200401600 California Walk 2091 CALIFORNIA ST 94703 25k-49,999k Residential 29,634$ BESO 057 208501004 Holiday Inn Express 1175 UNIVERSITY AVE 94702 25k-49,999k Hotel/Lodging 29,436$ BESO 055 184200801 Everest Properties 2520 HILLEGASS AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 28,589$ BESO 054 172300200 Sports Basement 2727 MILVIA ST 94703 50k-99,999k Retail 28,452$ CBECS 055 189001302 Berkeley Apartments - Fine Arts Building 2451 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Residential 28,269$ BESO 057 211500101 1700 5TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Retail 28,232$ CBECS 055 183102801 Americana Apartments 2324 DWIGHT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 28,153$ BESO 057 202502300 2009 ADDISON ST 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 28,137$ CBECS Multiple APNs 2747 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 25k-49,999k Residential 28,086$ CBECS 055 183700100 2556 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 28,055$ CBECS 054 172201403 2000 WARD ST 94703 25k-49,999k Residential 27,851$ CBECS 052 157307400 Telegraph Gardens 3001 TELEGRAPH AVE 94705 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 27,520$ CBECS 055 188400100 First Congregational Church of Berkeley (Campus) 2345 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Religious Worship 27,474$ BESO 055 188000501 2441 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 26,980$ CBECS 055 189900100 1942 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 26,962$ BESO 055 187601500 2516 DURANT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 26,813$ BESO Multiple APNs 2601 COLLEGE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 26,771$ CBECS 057 210000108 1901 FOURTH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 26,553$ CBECS 052 151400701 708 FOLGER AVE 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 26,454$ CBECS 059 226500601 The Luxor Apartments 1406 HENRY ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 26,356$ BESO 055 184600901 2520 COLLEGE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 26,322$ BESO 055 189001201 The Dwight 2121 DWIGHT WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 25,894$ BESO 057 202701100 The Berkeley Center 2070 ALLSTON WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Retail 25,864$ CBECS 054 177700200 927 PARKER ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 25,420$ CBECS 053 164400900 822 ANTHONY ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 25,318$ CBECS 055 184201401 Hillegass Apartments 2530 HILLEGASS AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 25,105$ CBECS 059 234400401 1320 SECOND ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 24,879$ CBECS 062 287100702 1737 SOLANO AVE 94707 25k-49,999k Residential 24,737$ CBECS 057 202302300 ELS Bldg 2030 ADDISON ST 94704 25k-49,999k Office 24,686$ CBECS 058 218202400 2255 HEARST AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 24,312$ BESO 057 202400202 Tioga Bldg 2020 MILVIA ST 94704 25k-49,999k Office 24,276$ CBECS

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
057 203201000 2109 KALA BAGAI WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 24,093$ BESO 055 186500700 2430 PROSPECT ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 23,764$ BESO 055 187701902 2580 BANCROFT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 23,709$ CBECS 055 181501702 Sutter Health Clinic - Urgent Care 2500 MILVIA ST 94704 25k-49,999k Health Care 23,489$ BESO 059 231900502 601 CEDAR ST 94710 50k-99,999k Warehouse and Storage 23,402$ CBECS 058 211802400 1721 5TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Other 23,358$ CBECS 057 206402401 1812 DELAWARE ST 94703 25k-49,999k Residential 23,353$ CBECS 055 186801700 Delta Gamma House 2710 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 23,258$ BESO 055 187100103 Bancroft Hotel 2680 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 23,183$ BESO 060 235100106 950 GILMAN ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 23,182$ CBECS 058 218801104 1807 ARCH ST 94709 25k-49,999k Education 23,117$ CBECS Multiple APNs 1515 OXFORD ST 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 22,834$ CBECS 055 188802301 2405 FULTON ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 22,600$ CBECS 055 183902100 2593 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 22,596$ CBECS 060 236300104 Central Self Storage Berkeley 600 HARRISON ST 94710 50k-99,999k Warehouse and Storage 22,595$ CBECS 055 187801000 2419 DURANT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 22,592$ BESO 055 184600300 2644 DWIGHT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 22,553$ BESO 055 184600101 Riviera Apartments 2501 BENVENUE AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 22,485$ BESO 055 189700200 The Barker Bldg 2484 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Office 22,442$ CBECS 057 203001000 2231 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 22,406$ BESO 060 235301402 REI Walgreens Center 1050 GILMAN ST 94710 50k-99,999k Retail 22,157$ BESO 055 189101200 2429 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 21,820$ BESO 056 199000101 Strawberry Creek Design Center 2121 BONAR ST 94702 25k-49,999k Office 21,762$ CBECS 055 186800701 2721 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 21,626$ CBECS 056 195200201 Audubon Cellars 91 BOLIVAR DR 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 21,598$ CBECS 055 187201200 Royston Apartments 2601 CHANNING WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 21,563$ CBECS 060 243003201 1330 SACRAMENTO ST 94702 15k-24,999k Residential 21,385$ BESO 057 202900900 The Masonic 2105 BANCROFT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Office 21,211$ BESO 055 184300500 Thornhill Apartments 2524 BENVENUE AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 21,145$ BESO 057 204904000 1801 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 20,997$ CBECS 055 186300100 2830 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 20,884$ BESO 057 203100200 2171 ALLSTON WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 20,742$ CBECS 058 217700708 1740 WALNUT ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 20,702$ BESO 055 189800801 1927 DWIGHT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 20,423$ BESO 059 234600600 711 CAMELIA ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 20,416$ CBECS 057 208102900 Chestnut Apartments 1955 CHESTNUT ST 94702 15k-24,999k Residential 20,323$ BESO 053 165500800 Berkeley Arts Complex 729 HEINZ AVE 94710 50k-99,999k Warehouse and Storage 20,235$ CBECS 058 224500903 Former Hillside School 1581 LE ROY AVE 94708 25k-49,999k Other 20,198$ CBECS 055 184601501 2540 COLLEGE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 20,012$ BESO 055 187601700 2526 DURANT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 19,902$ BESO 055 186601200 2421 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 19,799$ BESO 055 187000701 2723 DURANT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 19,690$ CBECS 054 174600204 Berkeley Humane Society 2700 NINTH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Education 19,666$ CBECS 055 184402401 2627 HILLEGASS AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 19,664$ BESO 055 186400200 2300 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 19,623$ BESO 057 210900102 Gannett Outdoor 1695 EASTSHORE HWY 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 19,489$ CBECS

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
056 194301401 2448 6TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 19,356$ CBECS 057 208702200 The Delaware Apartments 1800 SAN PABLO AVE 94710 25k-49,999k Residential 19,326$ BESO 061 260204001 The Oaks - Touchstone Climbing Gym 1861 SOLANO AVE 94707 15k-24,999k Public Assembly 19,309$ CBECS 058 219200102 CDSP - Parsons Hall 2451 RIDGE RD 94709 25k-49,999k Education 19,305$ BESO 054 176600100 910 PARKER ST 94710 25k-49,999k Office 19,260$ CBECS 056 194500301 2324 FIFTH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 19,233$ CBECS 055 188201100 2431 ELLSWORTH ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 19,218$ BESO 057 211400105 1716 4TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Other 19,146$ BESO 055 186600103 2401 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 19,067$ BESO 055 184603101 2515 BENVENUE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 19,001$ BESO 058 220000900 1865 EUCLID AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 18,932$ BESO 057 211500901 1795 4TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Retail 18,825$ CBECS 055 189401501 2028 BANCROFT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Other 18,817$ CBECS 056 197902700 University Ave Apartments 1176 UNIVERSITY AVE 94702 25k-49,999k Residential 18,810$ CBECS 055 189201301 2399 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 18,729$ BESO 058 216902801 1920 FRANCISCO ST 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 18,626$ BESO 058 217600301 2083 DELAWARE ST 94709 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 18,530$ BESO 058 219800800 2535 LE CONTE AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 18,495$ BESO 059 232501803 Haws Drinking Fountain 1435 4TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 18,478$ CBECS 055 187101501 2600 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Public Assembly 18,440$ CBECS 056 194600101 2325 3RD ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 18,396$ CBECS 058 219001201 2340 LE CONTE AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 18,323$ BESO 055 182401500 2567 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 18,295$ BESO 055 188500103 Wesley House 2398 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 18,282$ CBECS 057 208800801 1966 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 18,276$ BESO 053 168602200 2829 SHATTUCK AVE 94705 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 18,250$ CBECS 055 186801100 College Avenue Apartments 2415 COLLEGE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 18,175$ BESO Multiple APNs University Terrace 2146 JEFFERSON AVE 94703 15k-24,999k Residential 18,121$ BESO 058 216800800 1835 DELAWARE ST 94703 15k-24,999k Residential 17,857$ BESO 055 189501501 2000 DURANT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 17,674$ CBECS 059 226100101 Jewish Community Center of the East Bay 1414 WALNUT ST 94709 15k-24,999k Public Assembly 17,667$ CBECS 055 187500800 The Den 2508 CHANNING WAY 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,639$ BESO 055 186401300 2325 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 17,609$ CBECS 055 186300301 2313 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 17,594$ BESO 055 188400305 2333 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 17,561$ BESO 055 188500104 2362 BANCROFT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Religious Worship 17,560$ CBECS 055 187700700 2525 DURANT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 17,551$ BESO 055 186900100 2328 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 17,532$ CBECS 055 188100400 2482 TELEGRAPH AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,476$ CBECS 059 234400700 1331 EASTSHORE HWY 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 17,444$ CBECS 055 182100500 2598 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 17,414$ CBECS 057 203400600 2037 KALA BAGAI WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Office 17,410$ BESO 057 208102600 1275 UNIVERSITY AVE 94702 15k-24,999k Residential 17,409$ BESO 058 216802901 1822 FRANCISCO ST 94703 15k-24,999k Residential 17,393$ BESO 056 194301901 2431 FIFTH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 17,343$ CBECS 060 235902306 1210 6TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 17,341$ CBECS

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
055 186800300 Chateau Apartments 2747 HASTE ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 17,249$ BESO 056 194600604 2390 FOURTH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,197$ CBECS 055 188000100 Telegraph Commons Apartments 2486 CHANNING WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,179$ CBECS 057 202901300 2110 KITTREDGE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,168$ CBECS 057 203000100 2108 ALLSTON WAY 94720 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,092$ CBECS 059 229300104 1260 HOPKINS ST 94702 25k-49,999k Residential 17,049$ CBECS 055 187802100 Bancroft Commons 2470 BANCROFT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 17,012$ CBECS 057 205300500 2067 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Other 16,814$ CBECS 055 184102200 2637 REGENT ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 16,753$ BESO 057 202800400 Pasand Courtyard 2276 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 16,738$ CBECS 055 184702101 2539 COLLEGE AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 16,688$ BESO 055 184400400 2606 BENVENUE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 16,649$ BESO 059 225602201 1541 OXFORD ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 16,638$ BESO 057 202301300 TRW Financial Systems 2001 CENTER ST 94704 25k-49,999k Office 16,600$ CBECS Multiple APNs 2029 CHANNING WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 16,527$ CBECS 055 186500201 2409 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 16,356$ CBECS 055 184501502 Berkeley Playhouse 2640 COLLEGE AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Public Assembly 16,347$ CBECS 058 217701501 Hillside Village 1797 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 50k-99,999k Residential 16,327$ BESO 057 207900101 1300 DELAWARE ST 94702 15k-24,999k Residential 16,298$ BESO 055 189102101 The Rapa-Nui 2150 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 16,246$ BESO 057 202501001 Merrill Lynch Bldg 2001 ADDISON ST 94704 25k-49,999k Office 16,161$ CBECS 055 184601401 2536 COLLEGE AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 16,038$ CBECS 057 210000810 Jamestown Premier Berkeley Grotto 1915 4TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Enclosed and strip malls 15,893$ BESO 055 186600300 2424 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,870$ CBECS 058 212800301 Golden Bear Hotel 1620 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,831$ CBECS 055 186802100 2732 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,797$ BESO 055 189602501 Channing Campus Apartments 2020 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 15,744$ BESO 053 165100104 2865 7TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 15,733$ CBECS 058 219100200 1820 EUCLID AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 15,656$ CBECS 055 183201301 2315 PARKER ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 15,612$ BESO 055 187001702 Zeta Psi Fraternity 2728 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,555$ CBECS 057 205300600 2057 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,513$ CBECS 055 186700801 2729 DWIGHT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 15,459$ CBECS 055 189301501 2323 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Other 15,446$ BESO 055 181900102 Aquatic Shattuck 2628 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 50k-99,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 15,430$ BESO 055 185300200 Delta Sigma Sorority 2311 PROSPECT ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,369$ CBECS 055 186300500 2327 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 15,351$ CBECS 058 218103200 1725 OXFORD ST 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 15,302$ BESO 057 202601300 Constitution Square 2168 SHATTUCK AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Office 15,266$ BESO 054 176500100 Willig Building 2603 8TH ST 94710 50k-99,999k Industrial 15,252$ BESO 054 171903700 Secure Space Storage 2721 SHATTUCK AVE 94705 25k-49,999k Warehouse and Storage 15,177$ CBECS 057 204600900 Bachenheimer 2119 UNIVERSITY AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 15,150$ BESO 055 186702301 2732 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 15,097$ BESO 055 182502401 Parker Villa Apartments 2124 PARKER ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 15,092$ CBECS 057 211400201 1760 4TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Retail 15,051$ CBECS 057 208502500 1931 SAN PABLO AVE 94702 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 15,001$ CBECS

APN Building Name (if available) Building Address Zip Code Sqft Group Property Type Category Natural Gas Tax
(First Year)
Estimation
Source
060 238800203 999 HARRISON ST 94710 50k-99,999k Office 14,998$ BESO 055 184302602 2508 BENVENUE AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 14,931$ CBECS 055 186600105 2400 WARRING ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 14,922$ CBECS 058 217300203 1600 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 25k-49,999k Retail 14,912$ CBECS 059 234500202 1310 THIRD ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,896$ CBECS 059 234100400 1401 EASTSHORE HWY 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,709$ CBECS 059 232200104 601 JONES ST 94710 25k-49,999k Other 14,664$ CBECS 060 238800500 1111 8TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,660$ CBECS 055 183800500 Blake Telegraph Apartments 2423 BLAKE ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 14,641$ BESO 059 233801603 1417 4TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,587$ CBECS 056 197201600 2023 8TH ST 94710 25k-49,999k Education 14,433$ CBECS 060 236102203 Terminal Manufacturing 707 GILMAN ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,416$ CBECS 055 183002301 2230 DWIGHT WAY 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 14,311$ BESO Multiple APNs 2700 LE CONTE AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 14,304$ CBECS 060 235001600 900 GILMAN ST 94710 25k-49,999k Warehouse and Storage 14,290$ CBECS 060 243502205 1619 HOPKINS ST 94707 15k-24,999k Residential 14,251$ BESO 056 195400301 650 UNIVERSITY AVE 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,195$ CBECS 056 200601907 2125 JEFFERSON AVE 94703 15k-24,999k Education 14,185$ BESO 053 170400201 800 GRAYSON ST 94710 25k-49,999k Industrial 14,171$ CBECS 053 169402200 2821 HILLEGASS AVE 94705 15k-24,999k Residential 14,149$ BESO 055 189100901 2117 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 14,143$ BESO 055 186601100 2425 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 14,141$ CBECS 055 185100101 2513 PIEDMONT AVE 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 14,135$ CBECS 054 172001802 2747 SHATTUCK AVE 94705 25k-49,999k Office 14,121$ CBECS 055 183002001 2216 DWIGHT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 14,120$ BESO 057 203100400 Magnes Museum 2121 ALLSTON WAY 94720 25k-49,999k Education 14,110$ CBECS 059 229300106 Hopkins Park Apartments 1290 HOPKINS ST 94702 15k-24,999k Residential 14,031$ CBECS 055 186802000 2728 CHANNING WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 14,011$ CBECS 057 210200901 715 HEARST AVE 94710 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 13,985$ CBECS 058 219900900 Hoyt Hall 2519 RIDGE RD 94709 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 13,978$ CBECS 057 208701200 Finnish Hall 1819 TENTH ST 94710 15k-24,999k Public Assembly 13,911$ CBECS 058 218900700 The Berk on Arch 2311 LE CONTE AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 13,904$ BESO 058 217001201 1921 FRANCISCO ST 94709 25k-49,999k Residential 13,879$ BESO 055 188902101 2230 HASTE ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 13,876$ BESO 057 207000705 Renaissance Villas 1631 UNIVERSITY AVE 94703 25k-49,999k Residential 13,867$ BESO 055 184201801 Parker House 2511 PARKER ST 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 13,858$ BESO 055 187100600 The Durant 2631 DURANT AVE 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 13,783$ BESO 052 152801702 3253 ADELINE ST 94703 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 13,758$ CBECS 055 185601300 2455 PROSPECT ST 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 13,737$ CBECS 056 194900700 Aquatic Labs 600 BANCROFT WAY 94710 15k-24,999k Industrial 13,718$ CBECS 055 189800501 2450 MILVIA ST 94704 25k-49,999k Residential 13,679$ BESO 060 245506000 1322 SHATTUCK AVE 94709 15k-24,999k Residential 13,668$ CBECS 057 202801100 2001 BANCROFT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Hotel/Lodging 13,582$ CBECS 060 245506401 2095 ROSE ST 94709 15k-24,999k Office 13,578$ CBECS 057 203101300 2142 CENTER ST 94704 15k-24,999k Mixed (Residential/Commercial) 13,543$ CBECS 055 186501200 2851 DWIGHT WAY 94704 15k-24,999k Residential 13,524$ CBECS