A referendum effort means Salinas residents could vote on rent stabilization.

On June 3, the Salinas City Council voted 5-2 to rescind four housing-related ordinances approved by their predecessors, including a 2.75-percent cap on annual rent increases. The vote was met with cheers by property owners, and dissatisfaction by renters. The latter fueled a referendum effort seeking to overturn the decision.

Two days after the vote, Mayor Dennis Donohue announced a four-step plan to address the housing crisis: creating a multi-year rental assistance program for renters in need, hosting a housing summit in the fall, expanding tenant-mediation services and a tenant rights and resources communication campaign.

Meanwhile, Protect Salinas Renters, a coalition of doctors, teachers, students and others, had already started gathering signatures for a referendum. In 30 days, they say they obtained more than 10,000 signatures, exceeding the 6,998 needed.

More than 200 volunteers worked against the clock to gather signatures. They knocked on doors and tabled outside of businesses like the Cherry Bean Coffee Roasting Co. and Las Palmas Furniture and at farmers markets.

Among the volunteers were councilmembers Tony Barrera and Andrew Sandoval, the two opposing votes, as well as former councilmember Orlando Osornio, who voted in favor of the prior ordinances.

On July 3, the group submitted the signatures to the City Clerk, which referred them to the Monterey County Elections Department. Elections officials have 30 business days (until Aug. 15) to verify the signatures are from nonduplicative registered voters in the city.

If the signatures are verified, the council would have three options: revoke their previous decision, call for a special election or include a referendum on the 2026 ballot.

According to County Elections, a standalone election would cost the city between $16-$24 per registered voter, about $1.1 to $1.7 million; adding the referendum to the 2026 ballot would cost between $489,895 to $699,850.