L.A. may require landlords to keep their rentals cool

City Council will weigh limiting indoor temperatures to 82 degrees or below.

- ALEX WIGGLESWORTH

GENARO MOLINA Los Angeles Times KYLION LOPEZ cools off in a bin filled with water as temperatures rose to 96 degrees in Pacoima in 2021.

Los Angeles landlords may soon be required to keep rental units cool—or at least make it possible for tenants to do so.

County supervisors last month passed a law requiring landlords in unincorporated areas to provide a way to keep their rental units at 82 degrees or below. A measure introduced Wednesday in the Los Angeles City Council directs officials to draft language conforming to the same standards.

That comes as climate change ratchets up the frequency and intensity of heat waves. Extreme heat already kills more people in the United States each year than any other weather-related event, according to the National Weather Service.

Sustained indoor heat above 82 degrees has been linked to increased emergency-room visits, hospitalizations and deaths, according to a news release from Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Eunisses Hernandez, who introduced the measure along with Councilmember Adrin Nazarian.

“It’s a health issue, first and foremost,” said Nazarian, who pointed out that the effects of extreme heat fall disproportionately on vulnerable populations such as those who are chronically ill. Older residents are much more susceptible to dying from heat or related complications, he said. And poorer people are more likely to live in aging buildings without duct systems or air conditioning units. “It’s critical for us to take steps so that we're protecting our residents.”