Rent Referendum Petition Submitted in Santa Barbara

Help Save Santa Barbara Housing Committee turned in more than 9,100 signatures to the city clerk to qualify a referendum on rent stabilization.

Updated on Nov. 7, 2026 in Civic Engagement

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a stucco civic building with a terracotta roof and arched doorway, with a stack of paper on a stone step. — Help Save Santa Barbara Housing Committee submitted more than 9,100 signatures to the city clerk to qualify a referendum on the city's rent stabilization policy. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Should Santa Barbara limit how much landlords can raise rents?

The Help Save Santa Barbara Housing Committee submitted more than 9,100 signatures to the Santa Barbara city clerk, well above the roughly 5,500 needed to qualify a referendum on the city's rent stabilization policy. The signatures will now be verified to determine whether the referendum qualifies.

Why it matters

If the signatures are verified as belonging to registered voters, the city council could repeal its rent stabilization decision or call a special election, directly affecting renters and landlords in Santa Barbara. Supporters say the policy will control excessive rent increases, while opponents argue it harms landlords, especially the smallest ones in the city.

The petition exceeded the qualifying threshold by more than 3,600 signatures, with a notable margin for invalid entries during verification. Whether enough signatures are valid to qualify the referendum remains unknown until the clerk completes its review.

The players

Help Save Santa Barbara Housing Committee

A local advocacy group that organized the petition drive to place the city's rent stabilization policy before voters.

Santa Barbara City Clerk

The city office responsible for receiving and verifying petition signatures and administering local elections.

The details

Volunteers and paid workers gathered signatures on sheets over the last month before the committee delivered them to the city clerk. The city council previously adopted the rent stabilization policy, which the referendum petition seeks to put before voters.

Last month (October 2026): Volunteers and paid workers began gathering signatures.
Week of November 6, 2026: Committee submitted more than 9,100 signatures to the city clerk.
First part of 2027: A special election on the rent stabilization referendum could take place if the petition qualifies.

Legal Context

Santa Barbara's rent stabilization policy operates within the constraints of the Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act, which limits how California cities can regulate rents on certain units. The referendum petition reflects ongoing local efforts to test how much rent regulation cities can adopt under that state framework.

If the referendum qualifies, Santa Barbara voters could decide whether the city's rent stabilization policy stays in place, which would affect rent increases for tenants and operating costs for landlords. Renters and property owners alike may see changes depending on the outcome of verification and any resulting election.

The takeaway

Petition signature verification is the decisive step that determines whether Santa Barbara residents get a direct vote on rent stabilization. Residents interested in the outcome can follow updates from the city clerk as verification proceeds.

What happens next

The Santa Barbara city clerk will verify the submitted signatures to determine whether the referendum qualifies, and a special election could follow in the first part of 2027.