April 1, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — APRIL 1, 2025
Coalition members gathered at a ULA-funded affordable housing site to celebrate the second anniversary of United to House LA (ULA), the voter-approved “mansion tax” that has raised $632M+ to build housing, protect tenants, and create jobs.
LOS ANGELES, CA — In only two years, L.A.’s voter-passed “mansion tax” has changed thousands of lives — and it’s just getting started.
Supporters of the landmark housing program gathered at the construction site for Enlightenment Plaza — a 177-unit affordable housing complex funded by Measure ULA — to celebrate ULA’s second anniversary and highlight its track record of building affordable housing, protecting tenants, and creating jobs.
“Los Angeles has such a powerful tool to combat our housing and homelessness crisis with ULA and the $632 million in revenue, and counting, that it has provided,” said Councilmember Ysabel Jurado, 14th District, and member of the Housing & Homelessness committee. “At a time when the federal government is being stripped bare and our city is facing sharp budget deficits, ULA is an indispensable force for protecting Angelenos and improving their lives.”
Passed by an overwhelming 58% of voters in November 2022, ULA has, as of February 2025, kept 11,000 Angelenos in their homes through rental assistance, funded the start of construction on 795 affordable homes, and created 10,000 union construction jobs. Its revenues are raised via a real estate transfer tax on the top 4% of real estate sales in the city of Los Angeles and are expected to total roughly $4 billion over ULA’s first decade.
“I had to live six years without housing, and Measure ULA changed my life,” said Phoebe Valencia, a tenant in the ULA-funded Santa Monica-Vermont apartments. “My building is beautiful. My apartment is beautiful and clean. I can close my door and feel safe. I don’t have to worry about if I’m going to have to move again in a week, or a month, or a year. I have peace of mind, and that’s given me back my life.”
ULA has accomplished all of these feats even as it has withstood multiple attempts by billionaires and millionaires to block, overturn, or weaken the measure through failed lawsuits and a withdrawn ballot measure. However, as threats to federal housing dollars grow clearer, the voter-supported, locally funded measure promises to become more critical to maintaining Los Angeles’s spending on affordable housing and tenant protections to address the housing crisis.
“Los Angeles has never before had a permanent funding stream for affordable housing production, and it’s already funding hundreds of new apartments that wouldn’t exist without ULA dollars,” said Joe Donlin, Director of United to House LA. “Even before the cuts proposed by DOGE and HUD, Measure ULA was bigger than any single source of affordable housing L.A. has ever had, and in the current moment, it’s absolutely vital.”
“After the fires that took so much from so many people, thank God we have Measure ULA to help get us back on track,” said Zella Knight, a member of the Citizens Oversight Committee who herself has lived experience of homelessness. “ULA is funding eviction prevention and tenant outreach and education. It’s helping people learn their rights and navigate the city, all through Stay Housed LA. It’s helping prevent harassment and push back against rent gouging, and soon, its income support resources will come on line, especially for seniors and people with disabilities.”
ULA’s funds are being disbursed according to the program guidelines formulated by ULA’s unique Citizens Oversight Committee of experts and advocates and passed unanimously by City Council, which ensure that funds will only go to the 11 designated ULA program categories that voters approved.
These funds are opening new housing options for Los Angeles. ULA provides 100% of the enforcement dollars for LA’s Tenant Anti-Harassment Ordinance to stop landlords from forcing out tenants so they can raise rent. The Los Angeles City Council is working to pass a ULA-funded comprehensive Right to Counsel, which will give tenants facing eviction a fair chance in court. And ULA will soon help launch new housing and ownership models, including social housing. In a city where opportunities to rent or own have shrunk, this will allow for community ownership, a mix of income levels, and permanent affordability.
“Passing Measure ULA sent a clear message by Angelenos that we need a powerful tool to help us navigate the housing crisis,” said Tiena Johnson Hall, General Manager of the Los Angeles Housing Department. “Right now, we’re building affordable homes, protecting renters, and creating good jobs. As the Citizens Oversight Committee-approved program rolls out, we’ll see Los Angeles as a true leader in creating a City that works for all of us.”
“I’m one of 11,000 people who have gotten rental assistance,” said Ve’ona Rogers, a South LA resident who organized to put Measure ULA on the ballot. “I’m one of 100,000 people who have gotten outreach or legal help. Los Angeles, that is a powerful gift that we gave ourselves. I don’t care if you’re a renter or an owner, professional or working class—someday, you’re going to need help.”
“A pre-apprenticeship training program through a homeless shelter led me to a great union job,” said Tania Dolinger, a construction worker at the Enlightenment Plaza affordable housing complex. “I picked this jobsite because when I’m old and think back to all the projects that I’ve done and all the things that I’ve built, I would rather say I worked on a place where people are being helped, their lives are improving, and that I made that happen.”
“Enlightenment Plaza Partners is excited to build many of the first generation of new, affordable homes built with support from Measure ULA,” said Dalila Sotelo, Partner and Acting COO of Flexible PSH Solutions, Inc.. “Our goal is to ensure the long-term stability and dignity of people experiencing chronic homelessness who need permanent supportive housing, and Measure ULA is critical funding that leverages conventional financing with public dollars, making the development of housing replicable and cost-effective for the direct benefit of the people whom we serve.”
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About United to House LA
United to House LA brings together a unique coalition from the labor movement, affordable housing developers, and social justice and community-based organizations to work on the common goals of affordable housing, homelessness prevention, tenant protection, and good-paying jobs in the city of Los Angeles. The Coalition consists of over 240 organizations that worked to pass Measure ULA on the November 2022 ballot and which continue to advocate for the implementation of one of the most progressive and transformative affordable housing measures in the United States.