APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY
___________________________
CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION NO. ______________ C.M.S.
INTRODUCED BY COUNCILMEMBER ROWENA BROWN
RESOLUTION:
(1) AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADM INISTRATOR TO EXTEND THE
TERM OF THE GRANT AGREEMENT WITH CENTRO LEGAL DE LA
RAZA, INC. FOR EVICTION PREVENTION SERVICES BY TWO YEARS TO JUNE 30, 2027;
(2) ACCEPTING AND APPROPRIATING ANY ADDITIONAL COUNTY,
STATE, FEDERAL AND/OR PRIV ATE FUNDING THAT BECOMES
AVAILABLE FOR EVICTION PREV ENTION SERVICES DURING THE
EXTENDED TERM OF THE GRANT AGREEMENT;
(3) AUTHORIZING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO AMEND THE
GRANT AGREEMENT TO INCREASE THE GRANT BY THE AMOUNT
OF SUCH ADDITIONAL FUNDS OR BY ANY ADDITIONAL CITY
FUNDS THAT CITY COUNCIL APPR OPRIATES SPECIFICALLY FOR
THIS PURPOSE; AND
(4) DIRECTING THE CITY ADMINISTRATOR TO PRESENT AN
ANNUAL INFORMATIONAL REPORT ON EVICTION PREVENTION
SERVICES NO LATER THAN MARCH 31 OF EACH CALENDAR YEAR,
BEGINNING IN 2026
WHEREAS, Centro Legal de la Raza, Inc. (Centro) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to working with vulnerable populations in Oakland with housing insecurity by providing eviction defense and other legal services, financial assistance, education, and counseling; and WHEREAS, evictions are a direct means of displacement; when Oaklanders are evicted from their homes, particularly low-income and long time residents, they are left to contend with finding housing in a rental market that is una ffordable, often moving far from their workplaces and social/cultural/faith networks, and into a situation with even more severe housing problems, such as overcrowding, unsafe conditions, and se vere rent burden; and housing loss through eviction can have a direct and long-lasting detrim ental impact on the health and wellbeing of the people who experience it; and the impacts of evictions, like the impacts of displacement more broadly, are racialized and disproportionate; and
2 WHEREAS, most Oakland evictions were paused by the City of Oakland’s emergency eviction moratorium during the COVID-19 pandemic; once the moratorium was lifted on July 14, 2023, tenants faced a deluge of evictions; and according to data from the Superior Court of Alameda County, filings in Oakland averaged 206 per month between March 2024 and April 2025, a 47% increase over the pre-pandemic monthly average of 140 filings per month between March 2019 and April 2020; and
WHEREAS, on March 4, 2025, the City Council awarded to Centro a grant agreement for an amount not to exceed one million dollars ($1,000,000) to provide eviction prevention services and eviction protection through June 30, 2025 (Resolution No. 90654 C.M.S.); and WHEREAS, on June 11, 2025, the City Council adopted the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025-2027 Biennial budget (Resolution No. 90827 C.M.S.), that appropriated fund s for the expenditures proposed by said budget; and
WHEREAS, the funding is included in the FY 2025-27 adopted Biennial budget for the specific purpose of eviction prevention servic es: one million one hundred thousand dollars ($1,100,000) available and appropriated in FY 2025-2026 and one million three hundred ninety thousand dollars ($1,390,000) in FY 2026-2027, in the Affordable Housing Trust Fund (1870), Tenant Legal Services Project (1007111), per Attachment A, page 309 of 787; and
WHEREAS, Centro was selected through a February 28, 2020, Request for Proposal and COVID-19 pandemic-era rolling Request for Qual ifications to administer eviction prevention services; and
WHEREAS, Centro’s agreement ended June 30, 2025, and the total amount of $1,000,000 was fully expended; and
WHEREAS, the eviction prevention services are administered effectively by Centro and they have established they are successfully able to prevent evictions by providing legal representation, consultation, advice and other services to 503 households under the FY 2024-2025 grant agreement, and of the 179 client households who receive d legal representation, Centro achieved favorable outcomes for 90% of cases; and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to extend these highly effective services through FY 26-27 using funding already appropriated and future funding that becomes available, however this action shall not appropriate funding sources th at are currently used for ongoing homelessness programming by Community Homelessness Division (CHS) of the Oakland Department of Human Services, such as State Homeless, Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) funding or United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Continuum of Care funding; and WHEREAS, the City may receive new county, stat e or federal funds and/or private donations for eviction prevention services that can contribute towards the ongoing operation of these services, and the City Council may act to appropriate additional local funds to these services in the future; and
WHEREAS, the City Council wishes to expedite th e issuance of future grant funding to improve the lives of Oakland community members; and
3 RESOLVED: That the City Council authorizes the City Administrator to amend the grant agreement and extend the term of the grant to Centro Legal de la Raza, Inc. to administer eviction prevention services to June 30, 2027; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council hereby accepts and appropriates, county, state, federal and/or private f unding, to a Grant Fund To Be De termined (TBD), Project To Be Determined (TBD), that becomes available during the term of the extended grant agreement for the specific purpose of preventing homelessness and evictions; however, this action shall not appropriate funding sources that are currently used for ongoi ng homelessness programming by Community Homelessness Division (CHS) of the Oa kland Department of Human Services, such as State Homeless, Housing, A ssistance and Prevention ( HHAP) funding or United States Department of Housing and Urban Development Continuum of Care funding; and be it FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Council authorizes the City Administrator to amend the grant agreement with Centro for evicti on prevention services to increase the not to exceed amount of the grant by an amount corresponding to (1) any additional county, state, federal and/or private funding that beco mes available for eviction prev ention services for the same purposes as the original grant agreement and (2) any additional local funding that the City Council has appropriated for the same pu rposes as the original grant ag reement, during the term of the grant agreement, without return to Council; and be it
FURTHER RESOLVED: That the City Administrator is hereby directed to prepare and present an annual informational report on the out comes and effectiveness of eviction prevention services, to be scheduled fo r consideration by the City Council Community and Economic Development Committee no later than March 31 of each calendar year, beginning in 2026.
IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA,
PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES - BROWN, FIFE, GALLO,
HOUSTON, RAMACHANDRAN, UNGER, WANG, AND
PRESIDENT JENKINS
NOES –
ABSENT –
ABSTENTION –
ATTEST:
ASHA REED
City Clerk and Clerk of the Council of the
City of Oakland, California