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Orozco, Norma From: Steven Hurtado < Sent: Tuesday, August 29, 2023 1:53 PM To: eComment Subject: Santa Ana City Council Comment 8/29 Item 21 Hello, I wish the following to be read during the Item 21 proceedings regarding the rent stabilization, thank you. Hello Council Members, My name is Steven, a resident in Orange County, and I am writing this message to express my very strong support for Item 21, otherwise known as the requirement of a supermajority vote to alter rent stabilization. I don't have to go into detail about the negative side -effects of rent increases. I'm sure many in the room understand what that would mean, just as I'm sure many in the room have first-hand experience with it. For too long have tenants suffered under financial burden, and how this further affects us socially and mentally. It shapes every aspect of our lives. With the rising costs of living (including but not limited to bills, groceries, gas, etc.) paired with stagnating wages, it is not only foolish, but reckless and irresponsible to believe that tenants, working-class people, can keep up with rising rents. The only reason rents go up is because the housing market is not regulated. I want to stress this: housing, which is a human right, does not fall under government oversight or protection. Instead, it is a private commodity which landlords have exploited to make a profit. Landlords are not in the business of real estate, they are in the business of human suffering. Their profit means another family has to struggle to get buy, their profit means another family kicked to the curb and forced to live on the streets, their profit is blood money. Homelessness and poverty are a policy choice, a choice you all have the power to change for the better, to help working-class families, your constituents, and guarantee we can all live with dignity and respect. Rent stabilization is not the solution to end these crises, but it is an important step that must be taken in order to ensure the safety and well-being of the residents of Santa Ana. Thank you.