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WAILUKU--Numerous residents of all ages testified Monday night during the Maui County Housing and Land Use Committee meeting Tuesday discussing the possible effects of rent stabilization on the island.
Profound personal testimonies about being houseless, the struggle of finding affordable rentals, and families being evicted by landlords looking to capitalize off the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) wildfire aid, resonated throughout the council chambers as individuals cried out for help.
The Santiago ohana, Manuel J. Santiago, Samuel Santiago, and Desilee Santiago, described how the FEMA assistance program has personally impacted them.
"Though the FEMA direct leasing program did not intend to drive up the rental market, it did," Manuel Santiago said. "Our landlord, like many others, is finding ways to evict working class families in order to get some of that FEMA money."
His son, Samuel, 12, said "we need mandatory rent stabilization on Maui now."
"We were evicted from our childhood home that I have lived in since I was one," Samuel Santiago said in testimony. "It is the only home that I know. Our landlord wanted more money when he saw people getting $5,000 to $10,000 for their homes."
Krizhna Bayudan, who is part of the Maui Tenants and Workers Association, offered her perspective as a lifelong resident of Lahaina who was impacted by the Aug. 8 wildfire.
"Housing instability is more than just an economic issue. It's one of the major social determinants of health," Bayudan said. "I've seen the toll it's taken on my own family, after eight months of living under the Red Cross program, living out of suitcases, not knowing when our next move will be. How can we expect our community to thrive if we don't have the basic security of shelter?"
While council members heard hours of individual testimony in support of rent stabilization, a couple, mainly in relation to the realtor's association, did not fully support the concept of rent control.
Local realtor Leil Koch, speaking on behalf of the Realtors Association of Maui, said he does not support legislation related to rent control, referencing 33 states that prohibit rent control because of its negative effect on the housing market. These include Arizona, Florida, Massachusetts and Washington, he said.
"The impact – landlord reduced the supply of available rental housing by 15%," he said.
"What you're actually trying to achieve has a 180 degree wrong effect," he added, referencing economic-related articles on the subject.
Jason Economou, an attorney who said he has represented the Realtors' association, as well as worked on affordable housing programs, said he has concerns with the county's ability to achieve rent control.
"I'm not opposed to rent control. I have real concerns and real doubts that the County of Maui can pull off rent control at the level that people are talking about it today. The level that this legislation proposes. But that doesn't mean we should do nothing," Economou said.
The meeting, which lasted from 5:30 p.m. until almost 9 p.m., included presentations from the representatives of the Maui Tenants and Workers Association and Realtors Association of Maui. Committee Chair Tasha Kama, who represents the Kahului district, led the meeting, alongside committee vice-chair Tom Cook, of the South Maui district. Voting members included Gabe Johnson, who represents Lanai, Alice L. Lee, council chair and who represents Wailuku, Waihe'e, Waikapū area; Tamara Paltin, representing West Maui; Keani N.W. Rawlins-Fernandez, representing Moloka'i; Shane M. Sinenci, of the East Maui district; Yuki Lei K. Sugimura, county council vice chair and who represents the Upcountry district; and Nohelani U'u-Hodgins, representing the Makawao, Ha'ikū, Pā'ia area. However, no legislative action was taken.
Kama, in a county press release said, "The council has heard community concerns about rising rental costs, which are reaching historic levels."
The committee will discuss the issue again on Sept. 25.
n Maui News writer Megan Moseley may be reached at mmoseley@mauinews.com