Orange County Rent Stabilization

Orange County Rent Stabilization

Background and Timeline of the Rent Stabilization Proposal

• Tuesday, April 5, 2022 - The idea of rent stabilization is brought forth for discussion by Commissioner Bonilla. The Commission decided that the idea required additional evaluation and instructed staff to contract a consultant to study and bring back findings at the June 7 Board of County Commissioners Meeting.
• Tuesday, June 7, 2022 - The Orange County Commission was presented with the findings of the rent stabilization study produced by the County's consultant. Despite lengthy discussion, the Commission failed to reach consensus and decided to table the issue for further deliberation at a special session on June 23, 2022.
• Thursday, June 23, 2022 - The Orange County Commission convened in special session to discuss whether to move forward with rent stabilization (control), a notice requirement for rent increases, and a tenants bill of rights. In our joint advocacy efforts with the Florida Apartment Association (FAA), FAA retained Shutts & Bowen to prepare and distribute a legal analysis (memo) on Orange County's rent stabilization discussions to highlight the extraordinary legal hurdles the Florida Legislature put in place with respect to rent control. The legal memo was sent to the County Attorney and shared with the Commission prior to the special session. The Commission directed staff to move forward with the following: 
  • Increased Notice Requirement for Rent Increases - Draft an ordinance requiring a 60-day notice requirement for rent increases exceeding 5%. Public Hearing set for July 26.
  • Rent Stabilization (Control) - Directed staff to begin drafting an ordinance for additional policy decisions to be made on July 26.
  • Tenants Bill of Rights - Will not be brought forth until some time in September.
• Tuesday, July 26, 2022 - The Orange County Commission voted unanimously in favor of the increased Notice Requirement for Rent Increases and reached consensus on the remaining policy considerations needed to create a full draft of its Rent Stabilization Ordinance. (Note - The linked draft ordinance does not reflect the policy considerations and decisions made at the July 26 meeting. County staff is currently working on the updated draft.)
• Tuesday, August 9, 2022 - The Orange County Commission voted 4-3 to place a rent control referendum on the November ballot. As of August 10, 2022, the FAA and AAGO Government Affairs Teams are evaluating next steps and will keep FAA and AAGO membership apprised of developments moving forward.
  • If you are interested in reviewing a copy of Orange County staff's PowerPoint presentation from the August 9 meeting, click here.
  • For a copy of the final draft ordinance, click here.

Advocacy Efforts

The FAA and AAGO Government Affairs Teams are monitoring this issue closely and remain engaged with Commissioners and County staff.

How can I help/engage on this issue? 

• Key Contacts - Are you close with an Orange County Commissioner? We encourage you to engage with them on this issue. We are happy to help brainstorm and establish the best way to do this. Connect with the AAGO Government Affairs Team.

We will continue to keep the AAGO membership apprised and update this page as ongoing developments occur. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Trinity Kutschinski, Public Affairs Director, or Lee Steinhauer, Government Affairs and Legal Counsel.