LA considers mandatory air conditioning in rental units to combat rising heat

Facing the oncoming heat of summer, Los Angeles officials are moving forward with a plan to explore making air conditioning mandatory in all LA rental units.

Earlier this month, the Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to pass a motion to direct city staff to study the costs and feasibility of installing AC units in all rental units citywide. Council member Eunisses Hernandez, who proposed the motion, hopes that “requiring cooling apparati for all residential rental units could be a life-saving measure for countless Angelenos during extreme heat events.”

The motion comes a year after California was hit by a 10-day heat wave that broke temperature records across the state and pushed the California energy grid to its limits. Emergency crews saw an alarming increase in heat-related emergency calls as residents struggled with the extremely high temperatures.

Rising temperatures and heat are a growing concern in Southern California as a recent prediction from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported that this summer will likely be hotter than normal.

This could pose health and safety concerns for many residents of the city living without air conditioning, especially the elderly and people with disabilities.

“At this point in the climate emergency, the ability to cool one's home cannot be considered a luxury and rather must be treated as a necessity. Heat-related deaths are avoidable and it is incumbent upon the City to do everything possible to prevent them,” Hernandez said.

Access to AC and the ability to cover the costs of electricity during the summer could now mean the difference between life and death in an extreme heat wave. And for many of the city’s low-income residents, both are often out of reach. One in four households in California have no AC at all.

“I think that would be amazing for everybody,” said Brenda Vasquez, a resident of Pacoima living without air conditioning, in response to the city’s motion.

The study being conducted by city staff will explore potential amendments to building codes, subsidy support for low and middle-income tenants to offset cooling costs, and an assessment of how the AC mandate would impact the city power grid.

While supporters of the motion are hopeful the requirement will bring relief to many of LA’s residents, some are concerned the proposed policy would put financial pressure on landlords and building owners installing air conditioning units.

Currently, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power runs a program providing eligible residents with rebates on air conditioner purchases and repairs.

There is currently no official information regarding how long the motion’s study will take or when the AC requirement could be turned into a city ordinance. Once the study is completed, city officials will need to introduce and vote on a new motion to create an ordinance.