What to know about the ‘anti-slumlord’ ordinance that may be coming to Merced
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- City attorney drafts anti-slumlord ordinance; council vote expected in May.
- Advocates push AB 838 compliance, rental registry, inspections, eviction aid.
- Council cites budget limits, plans enforcement 'top 10' list.
When the Merced City Council held public town halls last month, renter protection was one of the biggest issues brought up by residents.
At the Jan. 8 town hall, city officials confirmed that Merced is working on an ordinance that will help protect renters.
At the meeting, members of the Leadership Counsel for Justice & Accountability presented suggestions for protecting tenants.
Craig Cornwell, Merced’s city attorney, said he was in the process of drafting what he called an “anti-slumlord ordinance” and said, “I am encouraged that the framework has addressed all the comments that came up this evening.”
Councilmember Shane Smith said he hopes to have a “focus group” of tenant rights advocates and landlords to discuss an ordinance “before it gets to council, so we can build in feedback from everybody who has to make this thing work.”
However, he noted that there is a limit to “what the city can do … within its scope of powers.”
Housing advocate shares concerns
Ashley Marie Suarez, a policy advocate with Leadership Counsel, told the Merced Sun-Star that habitability issues are the most urgent concern for renters. Those include mold, malfunctioning locks, drafty windows, poorly maintained communal garbage areas and access to hot and running water.
According to Suarez, code enforcement under the current law is “dependent on if residents know that it exists and that that’s (a) tool that they can use.” She added that she regularly hears from residents who have left messages for the city’s code enforcement department and “never hear back.”
In some cases, residents allege that their landlords have lied to the code enforcement division about whether issues have been resolved.
Suarez said there are steps the City Council can take to address renter concerns. The first is, “making sure that … the city is complying with AB 838,” she said.
AB 838 is a state law that is meant to make sure cities and counties actually respond to housing complaints.
Under the law, municipalities are required to investigate complaints, enforce housing codes, and track and report this process. Enforcement could be ordering repairs or citing the landlord if code violations are not corrected.
In addition, Suarez and other advocates have urged the city to establish programs to support renters, including a rent and utility assistance program, an eviction protection program with legal resources, and a rental registry and inspection program.
Rental registries, such as Los Angeles County’s, are databases with detailed information about rental properties within a city or county. Typically, these include the name and contact information of the property owner, information about the size and number of rental units owned, the current and past rent prices, and maintenance and inspection reports.
What to watch as process unfolds
Already, a gap is forming between what advocates like Suarez have recommended and what the City Council may do. The perspective of landlords was absent in the town hall meetings but will likely play a role in the final version of the ordinance.
Responding to the suggestion to provide legal resources to residents facing eviction, Smith acknowledged a gap in resources but said, “We probably disagree that this is something the city should take on, providing a right to counsel,” noting that would require a “seven-figure solution” the city can’t afford.
However, Smith indicated there may be other ways the city could incentivize local attorneys to donate their time to tenants in Merced.
Smith also said he envisions “having a top 10 list of our ‘most wanted properties’ that need to be abated to focus code enforcement … resources on that.”
Suarez expressed concern that “it doesn't really seem like there's a bite to it. … It's a public shame list, but where is the actual accountability? What if people don't look at that list online? How do you know that landlords are actually going to be impacted by this list?”
She said the difference between a rental registry and a top 10 list is that “the rental registry would have had a public database of all the rental properties, while the (proposed) anti-slumlord ordinance would … just have the list of the top worst violators.”
According to Jennifer Flachman, public information officer for the city of Merced, the draft of the ordinance is being reviewed internally and is expected to return to the City Council for a vote in May.
This story was originally published February 19, 2026 at 12:36 PM.
