| Hi folks, Back on September 5, the first scheduled day of the state legislative session, we came together for the largest demonstration of renters that Michigan has seen in decades. Since then, dozens of Rent Is too Damn High members have been keeping a close eye on things as the Democratic-controlled legislature has gone about its business. It’s been an educational experience. What we’ve learned about the legislature this fall:We have a handful of renters’ rights champions who are ready to sponsor bills and fight for them in the legislature. A bill to enable rent control, and another 8 bills strengthening renters’ rights, have been introduced to the house and are ready for passage. Landlords are paying attention to us. The Rental Property Owners Association, the Property Management Association, and other lobbyists have been attending housing committee meetings and testifying against renters’ rights. After our 9/5 demonstration, one of them even said they had “never been more nervous” about being held accountable. Democratic House leadership, starting with Speaker Joe Tate, haven’t shown any interest in advancing renters’ rights. Instead they are siding with landlords by leaving important bills to languish in committee. Renters aren’t the only constituents being sidelined. House leadership has concluded that doing less of everything will help them get re-elected next year. This is an obviously self-defeating strategy, but it’s the one they’re going with. Don’t take my word for it…read this article published Monday in capitol news service Gongwer: Whether To Upend Status Quo Driving Dem Divide In House. The House is likely to adjourn for the year on November 9 — over a month earlier than usual. When they do, they’ll be leaving vulnerable renters and unhoused people without any more rights or relief, as we head into another cold winter. Whatever renters win, we’ll have to fight for. We already knew this, but this fall has confirmed it — The people at the top are not looking out for us. They don’t go to sleep worrying about the rent. They go to sleep comfortable, in homes that they own. It’s up to us to build more power and change the political equation. |
| Call to Action: Winter is Coming, and the Rent Is STILL Too Damn High! We’re returning to the Capitol next Wednesday, November 8. Renter delegations from Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids, Detroit, and Lansing are confirmed to be there. We’ll express our frustration with House leadership, express the urgency and human toll of this housing crisis, and insist to the whole legislature that they stand up for renters before next year’s reelection campaign. What: Demonstrate at the state capitol for renters’ rightsWhen: Wednesday, November 8, 10:30am – 2:30pmRSVP via the Facebook event: https://fb.me/e/e2CkUfAVHSchedule of the day10:30am – 11:00am – Gather on east Capitol lawn11:00am – 1:00pm – Lobby visits and drop-ins with state lawmakers1:00pm – 1:30pm – Re-gather on east Capitol lawn1:30pm – 2:30pm – Visit proceedings in House chamber |
| The good news section We’ve sent 109 letters to House lawmakers via our letter-writing tool: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/ritdh-oct23. That’s nearly 50 more since last week. Let’s keep it up — if you haven’t already used this tool and shared it with your networks, now is the time! As expected, six new renters’ rights bills were officially introduced to the House last week. Here they are:Tenants’ Right To Counsel (lead sponsor: Emily Dievendorf)Expungement of Eviction Records (Jimmie Wilson Jr)Displaced Tenant Relocation Assistance (Rachel Hood)Tenant Opportunity to Purchase (Kimberly Edwards)First-Come-First-Serve Tenant Acceptance (Brenda Carter)Mandatory Rights Disclosure To Tenants (Carrie Rheingans) We’ll have more analysis on these topics coming out in early 2024 and we can look forward to fighting for these bills then. |
| Upcoming RITDH events & meetings House housing subcommittee hearing: Wednesday, Nov 1, 2:00pm, Anderson House Office Building room 326. Rescheduled from its ordinary time on Thursday. This may be the last housing subcommittee of the session, and it looks likely to be a short meeting. Endorsing groups call: Monday, Nov 6, 4:00pm, Zoom. If you are an endorsing organization and not receiving notice of these calls, let me know. Winter Is Coming demonstration: Wednesday, Nov 8, 10:30am – 2:30pm, state capitol. See above. Lansing RITDH general meeting: Wednesday, Nov 8, 6:00pm – 7:30pm at the Fledge. This meeting may be rescheduled/postponed owing to the demonstration earlier in the same day. Stay tuned and I’ll have an update on this early next week. |
| Solidarity calendar Coalition partner and ally events Chipotle Union Picket: Support the first and only Chipotle union in the United States. Picket at 5805 W Saginaw Hwy, 10:30am – 1:00pm, Friday Nov 3 Pullover Prevention Clinic hosted by Lansing GDC: Sunday November 5, 12:00-4:00pm, the Village Lansing. Get your brake lights fixed to avoid getting pulled over. A Place for Us: Organizing for safe shelter for the LGBTQ+ community. This new group will be having its second meeting at the Fledge on Tuesday November 14 from 7:00 – 9:00pm. That’s all for now. Hope to see you next Wednesday at the Capitol! For good housing for all, Will P.S. Please remember to RSVP via the Facebook event so we can get approximately the right amount of food for next Wednesday. |
