With community members cheering them on, a majority of the Pomona City Council adopted a long-awaited rent-control ordinance that takes effect immediately.

The ordinance limits annual rent increases to no more than 4% or the change in the consumer price index, whichever is less.

Following the council’s 5-2 vote Monday to approve the temporary urgency ordinance, some in the standing-room-only council chambers shouted “thank you” while others applauded.

The vote was closely watched by rent control advocates who for the past five years have urged the city to curb steep increases in rents.

That includes Pomona United for Stable Housing, formed in 2017 to advocate for policies to protect renters. The council’s decision Monday brought a “sense of relief” after years of fighting for rent control, PUSH member Benjamin Wood said by phone Tuesday afternoon.

“It all means more security and less evictions in Pomona,” Wood said. “This was a big win for renters, who overcame fears of speaking out.”

Before the meeting Monday, PUSH members rallied outside the council chambers in anticipation of the decision.

“Rent increases have made life difficult for my family,” Juliana Pena, a PUSH member, said at the meeting. “We seem to have no other option than to leave Pomona.”

NAACP Pomona Valley President Jeanette Ellis-Royston called the council’s action a “sign of justice” for renters.

The ordinance also received support from local leaders, such as Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis and state Sen. Connie Leyva, D-Chino.

A slew of landlords spoke against the measure. Mathew Buck, vice president of local public affairs for the California Apartment Association, told the council Monday there was “no justification” for an urgency ordinance in Pomona.

In June, Pomona saw a 1.1% increase in average rents over the previous month. In the past 12 months, average rents are up 16.7% in the city, according to ApartmentList.

According to a 2020 study by the Southern California Association of Governments, of the city’s 18,650 renter households, 61% devote at least a third of their gross incomes to housing costs. Meanwhile, nearly 17,000 Pomona households have incomes that are less than 80% of the area median income of $62,407, according to a report prepared by city staff in advance of Monday’s meeting.

Council members Elizabeth Ontiveros-Cole and Robert Torres voted against the measure after expressing concern that the process was rushed without full community input.

The city was up against a deadline. Without a local ordinance in place, the state’s Tenant Protection Act starting this month would have allowed landlords in Pomona to increase rents by up to 10% over current rates.

The city’s ordinance takes effect immediately, and will be in place until a permanent ordinance is adopted by the council.

Mayor Tim Sandoval said the council aims to adopt a permanent ordinance within the next 90 days. A task force made up of housing advocates, landlords and other community stakeholders will be established, Sandoval said.

PUSH is expected to be part of that working group, Wood confirmed Tuesday.

Under the temporary ordinance, Pomona will provide renters with legal resources and enforcement options to protect them from bad landlords.

The ordinance’s provisions will not apply to units constructed after Feb. 1, 1995. This includes single-family residences and condos or town homes, unless they are corporately owned.

Rent control advocates have for years urged the city to adopt policies that they say protect against displacement and evictions in the city.

Council member John Nolte rejected claims the ordinance was hastily advanced. At risk, he said, are hundreds of Pomona families who may be displaced by rent hikes.

“We are doing something that really matters,” Nolte said with tears in his eyes. “This is something that’s gonna lead to changing peoples lives.”