Clara was in a very bad situation. Her partner always had a volatile temper, but in the weeks after he lost his job, he had become physically violent towards her after he drank. She was frantic to move out of the apartment with her child, but her name was on the one-year lease. Given skyrocketing rents, she didn’t have enough savings to break the lease and pay a new security deposit.
Unfortunately, this situation is all too common for many tenants experiencing domestic violence. To survive domestic violence, sexual assault, elder abuse, human trafficking or stalking, the ability to leave a dangerous situation can be the difference between life and death. In fact, more than half of all sexual assaults occur where a survivor lives.
Many survivors can’t leave life-threatening situations because of residential leases and rent obligations. A recent study found that more than three-quarters of sexual assault survivors living in public housing wanted to relocate because their assailant was nearby, but couldn’t due to a lack of funds and housing options.
This month, Governor Brown signed a law that I authored—Assembly Bill 418, the Safe Housing for Domestic Violence Survivors Act—affirming California’s commitment to protecting survivors of domestic violence. This law permanently grants domestic violence survivors the ability to terminate a residential lease in order to move to safer housing. It also decreases their rent obligation from 30 days to 14 days, allowing survivors to flee dangerous situations more quickly and with fewer economic ramifications.
Our law grants survivors the ability to terminate a lease with a statement from a domestic violence counselor, sexual assault counselor, human trafficking caseworker or a health professional. With this bill, a survivor no longer needs to file a police report or navigate a challenging, bureaucratic family court system to obtain a restraining order. AB 418 makes it much easier for immigrants experiencing family violence to find safety, through the network of domestic violence and health organizations with bilingual staff who can assist them in a confidential setting.
As legislators, we are entrusted to pass laws to protect the most vulnerable in our communities.
As a son of immigrants and as a former criminal prosecutor, I know that AB 418 is one of those laws. Allowing trusted counselors and advocates to aid a survivor in escaping a violent living situation could mean the difference between life and death. Breaking a lease or paying two extra weeks of rent should not be the difference between an abusive situation and a safe haven.
We thank Governor Brown for standing with domestic violence survivors and our broad coalition, which includes the California Partnership to End Domestic Violence, San Francisco Domestic Violence Consortium, Western Center on Law & Poverty, National Housing Law Project, and the California Catholic Conference of Bishops.
David Chiu is a Democratic Assemblymember representing eastern San Francisco.