Anaheim’s City Attorney’s Office plans to take renter reports about rent increases and termination notices. For rental owners and buyers, the practical point is straightforward: the office may contact an owner or property manager. The planned intake program gives renters a way to submit information about potential violations of California’s Tenant Protection Act.
Voice of OC reported on the City Attorney’s Office program for tenants to report illegal rent increases and no-fault evictions.
It isn’t a new rent control ordinance. The Council item was an update on how the office would collect and review information concerning state protections.
This is general information and not legal advice.
What did Anaheim’s Council receive?
The Council received an update on a Tenant Protection Act information intake program for Anaheim renters.
The September 22, 2026 City Council Agenda Report, Item #17, came from the Office of the City Attorney. Its requested action was to receive an update on implementation.
The report traces the work to a February 24, 2026 request by a council member to discuss enforcement of state rent control laws and no-cause evictions. Meetings followed with the Housing and Community Development Department and the City Attorney’s Office. A June 23 request sought an enforcement update.
Carson’s council took up a renters item of its own; that article explains what it did and did not change.
What protections will the program focus on?
The program will focus on the Tenant Protection Act’s rent-increase limitations and just-cause eviction or termination protections.
The report describes the TPA as providing statewide protections for certain residential tenants. Those include limits on rent increases for covered rental properties and just-cause requirements for certain tenancy terminations. Coverage matters. The report says exemptions may apply, but it does not provide a property-by-property answer for your rental.
It also describes enforcement authority. According to the report, Senate Bill 567, adopted in 2023, strengthened the TPA and expressly authorized enforcement by local public attorneys. The report cites Civil Code section 1946.2 for City Attorney actions seeking injunctive relief concerning just-cause termination requirements, and section 1947.12 for actions concerning rent-increase limitations.
For an owner, the useful next step is to confirm with a qualified advisor whether the property is covered or exempt. Don’t use the existence of an intake program as the answer to that separate question.
How will the intake process work?
The report says the office will launch a Tenant Protection webpage and online intake form for Anaheim renters to report potential violations.
The planned webpage will explain the TPA’s rent-increase and just-cause protections in plain language, explain that exemptions may apply, identify tenant resources and provide access to the Tenant Protection Inquiry form.
There are two purposes. One is to collect information about the number and types of potential violations reported. The other is to let the office review reported matters and decide whether City action may be appropriate.
The report does not give a launch date and uses future language: the office “will launch” the webpage and form. You can check the current status with the City Attorney’s Office.
For an owner preparing a sale, keep rent-increase and termination-notice records available. Those are the subjects the planned form is intended to address.
What might happen after a renter submits information?
The office may seek more information, contact a landlord or property manager, pursue voluntary compliance, make a referral or initiate enforcement, depending on the circumstances.
Those are possible responses, not a promised sequence. The report says matters will be reviewed case by case, and the office retains discretion over whether to investigate or act.
Say a landlord plans a rent increase at an Anaheim rental and asks a qualified advisor whether the property is covered by the TPA. If a renter reports the increase through the planned intake program, the City Attorney’s Office could contact the landlord about a potential violation. The landlord would have the rent-increase records available to review. Depending on the circumstances, the office could seek voluntary compliance or take another authorized action; a report alone would not determine what happens next.
Where warranted, the office may bring an enforcement action in the City’s name seeking injunctive or other relief authorized by law. It may instead refer the renter to an appropriate outside resource.
The report does not set a landlord registration requirement, filing requirement or response deadline for this program. The Hemet rental registration article covers another city’s rental registration rule, since repealed.
The program will initially use existing City Attorney’s Office staff. Significant future resource needs would go to the Council. The Housing and Community Development Department may use the collected information to evaluate trends, and staff can return with an update after sufficient data is collected.
What falls outside the form’s purpose?
The form is not intended to handle every landlord-tenant dispute.
The report specifically excludes a general complaint role for habitability, repairs, security deposits, discrimination and ordinary lease disputes. Its focus remains rent-increase limitations and just-cause eviction or termination protections. If your question concerns another subject, ask the office which resource is appropriate.
There is another important boundary: the City Attorney’s Office represents Anaheim and the public interest, not individual tenants. Submitting an inquiry does not create an attorney-client relationship.
An inquiry also will not stop or extend any deadline applicable to an eviction, lawsuit or other legal proceeding. The report says the TPA provides private remedies in certain circumstances, and renters will be advised to protect their rights and consult a private attorney or tenant legal-services provider where appropriate. City review and an individual’s legal deadlines are separate matters.
What should you check before buying or selling a rental?
Confirm TPA coverage with a qualified advisor and keep the property’s rent-increase and notice records.
Start with the coverage question. The report acknowledges exemptions but does not identify which properties qualify. Ask your advisor how the law applies to the property you’re buying, holding or preparing to sell.
Then keep the program question separate. The City Attorney’s Office can address questions about its intake process and current webpage status. Its report lists the office at 200 S. Anaheim Blvd., Suite #356, Anaheim, with telephone number (714) 765-5169.
For financing a rental purchase, read the California DSCR loan guide.
The short version
Anaheim’s report describes a planned intake process for potential violations of state rent-increase and just-cause protections.
It was a Council update, not a new rent control ordinance. The office may contact an owner or manager and decides case by case whether action is appropriate. Confirm whether your property is covered, keep the relevant records and check program status with the City Attorney’s Office.
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Common questions
Did Anaheim adopt a rent control ordinance through this program?
The September 22, 2026 Council item was an update on an intake program concerning the state Tenant Protection Act, not an ordinance.
Can the City Attorney's Office contact a landlord?
Yes. The report says the office may contact a landlord or property manager about a potential violation, depending on the circumstances.
Does submitting an inquiry pause an eviction deadline?
No. The report says an inquiry will not stop or extend a deadline applicable to an eviction, lawsuit or other legal proceeding.
Does the intake program cover repairs and security deposits?
The report says the form is not intended as a general complaint process for habitability, repairs, security deposits, discrimination or ordinary lease disputes.
