FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Friday, April 7, 2023
MEDIA CONTACT:
Bethany Khan: bkhan@culinaryunion226.org ▪ (702) 387-7088
VIDEO: Hearing on SB426 Neighborhood Stability
STATEMENT by Culinary Union Secretary-Treasurer Ted Pappageorge regarding Neighborhood Stability (SB426):
The COVID-19 pandemic was a very difficult time for all of us. For Culinary Union members, it meant that 95% were laid off during the shutdowns and many were out of work for up to 2 years as the hospitality industry slowly recovered and conventions/business travel resumed.
With tens of thousands of hospitality workers out of work, the Culinary Union immediately responded to:
*Implement the Helping Hand program to provide over 430,000 packages of food to furloughed workers and Nevadans.
*Helped thousands of workers sign up for unemployment benefits.
*Secured workers’ right to return to their jobs (SB386 Right to Return Law) when business resumed.
*Advocated for and won several eviction moratoria.
*Passed the first and only-in-the-nation COVID-19 worker safety statewide law (SB4 Adolfo Fernandez Law) during a special session of the Nevada Legislature.
Workers went through a lot together as a union, but we stayed united and we are still here today.
One thing we saw first hand during the pandemic and the ensuing recovery was how working families were being pushed out of their homes by landlords who were price-gouging and raising the rent, even though no new improvements were being made or new amenities weren’t offered.
Working families cannot afford $500-$600 rent increases, especially with the high levels of inflation that has been happening. Neighborhood Stability is the solution to protect working families and keep Nevadans in their homes.
The Culinary Union asks the Nevada Legislature to think about workers as this bill is considered. Behind every worker in this state, there is family. It’s now in the hands of the Nevada Legislature to protect Nevadans with Neighborhood Stability.
Culinary Union has a long history of fighting and winning for working families in Carson City. We have taken on Big Pharma to win diabetes and asthma drug transparency and worked for over 25-years to end surprise medical bills for ALL Nevadans. This year is no different. We continue to fiercely advocate for workers and Nevadans to have quality health care and Neighborhood Stability.
One job should be enough to have a roof over our heads and ensure Nevada’s youth have quality mental health care access and education. Just like we have throughout our 88 year history in Nevada, the Culinary Union will stand together and win a future where we all thrive.
The Culinary Union urges the Nevada Legislature to support and pass SB426.
NEIGHBORHOOD STABILITY & TENANT JUSTICE -
Neighborhood Stability is essential because:
*Long-time residents are being pushed out of their homes.
*Senior citizens (whose rent increases exceed monthly Social Security payments) are forced to rely on taxpayer-funded assistance or are evicted.
*Saving up for a down-payment can be an impossible hurdle for first-time homebuyers when their rents go up faster than the cost of living.
*The loss of stable families in a community results in student turnover in our public schools and increased pressure on a student’s mental health.
*Local business suffer when customers need to move or cut back on spending when rent goes up.
FACTS:
*There is not a single state, metro area or county in the United States where a typical minimum-wage worker can afford a two-bedroom rental, according to a 2021 study “Out of Reach: The High Cost of Housing” by the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
*An apartment complex (Tides at Spring Mountain) owned by Los Angeles, CA-based Tides Equities raised monthly rent for a one-bedroom from $709 to $1,359, a 92% increase over a 3-year period (from 2020-2023 in Las Vegas). Source: Yardi Matrix.
*An apartment complex (Amber Ridge) owned by Westland Real Estate Group of Long Beach, CA, went from charging $830 a month for a two-bedroom went to $1,300 a month, up 57%; and the rent for a three-bedroom at the same complex went from $973 a month to $1,800 a month, up 85% over a 3-year period (from 2020-2023 in Las Vegas). Source: Yardi Matrix.
*An apartment complex (Vintage Pointe) owned by private equity firm Blackstone raised rent for a two-bedroom from $1,079 to $1,614, a 50% increase over a 3-year period (from 2020-2023 in Las Vegas). Source: Yardi Matrix.
*An apartment (Positano) owned by Ovation Development of Las Vegas, which received a 3.86% fixed-rate HUD loan for Positano in 2019, increased rent for some two-bedroom units from $1,222 a month to $1,434 a month, a 17% increase over a 3-year period (from 2020-2023 in Las Vegas). Source: US Department of Housing and Urban Development / Ovation.
*In a 2022 survey of Culinary Union members, 28% of respondents said that they pay a monthly rental assurance fee on their home or apartment, 21% said that their rent had gone up $500, 21% said that they are charged monthly fees in addition to rent, and 15% said that they pay more than $100 in fees each month.
“I have two adult-children and my grandson is living with me because it is impossible to find somewhere affordable right now. I currently pay $3,000 for a 3-bedroom house. I recently moved into a rental, but they are only willing to extend a longer lease term if they charge me a couple more hundred dollars. I’ve been only living here for one month and now they want to increase the rent already? I can’t afford that. I can’t even afford what I’m currently paying right now,” said Kimberly Ireland, a Culinary Union member for 14 years. “The landlord is claiming that because of the new events that are coming to Las Vegas, he needs to raise it and right now he can because tenants have no protections against that. Is that what rental properties are going to be like now? Only short term leases and constant rent increases until we are homeless? Las Vegas is my home and I’d like to continue to live and raise my family here, but right now the rent is just too damn high. I ask the Nevada Legislature to support SB426 Neighborhood Stability and protect Nevadans.”
Neighborhood Stability (SB426): Would tie rent increases to the cost of living with a 5% cap, exempting small business mom/pop and new construction. The bill would also require a 90-day notice for rent increases given to existing tenants. This bill is not rent control because it only applies during a tenancy and allows for reasonable rent increases. It would be administered by the Nevada Housing Division and enforced through the Nevada Courts. Landlords who violate the law will be liable for 3-months rent (plus actual damages suffered by the tenant). Bill is carried by: Senator Pat Spearman (SD1).
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ABOUT CULINARY UNION:
Culinary Workers Union Local 226 and Bartenders Union Local 165, Nevada affiliates of UNITE HERE, represent 60,000 workers in Las Vegas and Reno, including at most of the casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip and in Downtown Las Vegas. UNITE HERE represents 300,000 workers in gaming, hotel, and food service industries in North America.
The Culinary Union, through the Culinary Health Fund, is one of the largest healthcare consumers in the state. The Culinary Health Fund is sponsored by the Culinary Union and Las Vegas-area employers. It provides health insurance coverage for over 145,000 Nevadans, the Culinary Union’s members and their dependents.
The Culinary Union is Nevada’s largest Latinx/Black/AAPI/immigrant organization with members who come from 178 countries and speak over 40 different languages. We are proud to have helped over 18,000 immigrants become American citizens and new voters since 2001 through our affiliate, The Citizenship Project.
The Culinary Union has a diverse membership which is 55% women and 45% immigrants. The demographics of Culinary Union members are approximately: 54% Latinx, 18% white, 15% Asian, 12% Black, and less than 1% Indigenous Peoples.
Culinary Union members work as: Guest room attendants, cocktail and food servers, porters, bellmen, cooks, bartenders, laundry and kitchen workers. The Culinary Union has been fighting and winning for working families in Nevada for 88 years.
CulinaryUnion226.org / @Culinary226
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