A. "Adverse Action" means to take one of the following actions based on a person’s Criminal or Conviction History:

B. "Affordable Housing" shall mean any Housing that (1) has received or is receiving City, County, State, or Federal funding, tax credits, or other subsidies connected in whole or in part to developing, rehabilitating, restricting rents, subsidizing ownership, or otherwise providing rental housing for extremely low income, very low income, low income, and moderate income households (collectively, "Public Funding"), with the exception of Housing where the only Public Funding received is in the form of a Local, State or Federal tenant-based voucher, such as through the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f); or (2) is subject to affordability and related requirements pursuant to the City’s Below Market-Rate Rental Housing Program, including but not limited to the Affordable Housing Mitigation Fee Ordinance (Section 22.20.065), the State Density Bonus law (California Government Code Sections 65915-65918 and Chapter 23C.14), and the Low Income Inclusionary Live/Work Units Ordinance (Section 23E.20.080).

C. "Affordable Housing Provider" shall mean any Housing Provider that owns, master leases, manages, or develops Affordable Housing in the City. Any agent, such as a property management company, that makes tenancy decisions on behalf of the above-described Housing Providers, and any government agency, including but not limited to the Berkeley Housing Authority, that makes eligibility decisions for tenant-based rental assistance programs, including but not limited to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f), shall also be considered an "Affordable Housing Provider."

D. "Aggrieved Person" means an Applicant who believes they were subject to an Adverse Action; a tenant who believes they or their Close Family Member was subject to an Adverse Action based on the application of an Applicant to reside in such family member’s rental unit; or a tenant who believes they were subject to an Adverse Action based on the failure or refusal to permit a person to reside in such tenant’s rental unit to replace an existing tenant, add a new tenant, or to sublet to a subtenant.

E. "Applicant" means a person who seeks information about, visits, or applies to rent or lease Housing; who applies for a tenant-based rental assistance program, including but not limited to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f); who seeks to be added as a household member to an existing lease for Housing; or, with respect to any Criminal History that occurred prior to the beginning of the person’s tenancy, who currently rents or has a lease for Housing.

F. "Arrest" means a record from any jurisdiction that does not result in a Conviction and includes information indicating that a person has been questioned, apprehended, taken into custody or detained, or held for investigation by a law enforcement, police, or prosecutorial agency and/or charged with, indicted, or tried and acquitted for any felony, misdemeanor, or other criminal offense.

G. "Background Check Report" means any report regarding an Applicant’s Criminal History, including but not limited to those produced by the California Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, other law enforcement agencies, courts, or any consumer reporting or tenant screening agency.

H. "Close Family Member" means a spouse, registered domestic partner, child, sibling, parent, grandparent, or grandchild.

I. "Conviction" means a record from any jurisdiction that includes information indicating that a person has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor or other criminal offense and for which the person was placed on probation, fined, imprisoned and/or paroled.

J. "Criminal History" means information transmitted orally or in writing or by any other means, and obtained from any source, including but not limited to the person to whom the information pertains, a government agency, or a Background Check Report, regarding one or more Convictions or Arrests; a Conviction that has been sealed, dismissed, vacated, expunged, voided, invalidated, or otherwise rendered inoperative by judicial action or by statute (for example, under California Penal Code Sections 1203.1 or 1203.4); a determination or adjudication in the juvenile justice system; a matter considered in or processed through the juvenile justice system; or participation in or completion of a diversion or a deferral of judgment program.

K. "Housing" means any residential rental housing, building, or unit in the City of Berkeley, with the exception of the following:

L. "Housing Provider" shall mean any Person that owns, master leases, manages, or develops Housing in the City. For the purpose of this definition, "Person" includes one or more individuals, partnerships, organizations, trade or professional associations, corporations, legal representatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers, and any political or civil subdivision or agency or instrumentality of the City. In addition, any agent, such as a property management company, that makes tenancy decisions on behalf of the above-described Persons, and any government agency, including but not limited to the Berkeley Housing Authority, that makes eligibility decisions for tenant-based rental assistance programs, including but not limited to the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f), shall also be considered a "Housing Provider." (Ord. 7692-NS § 1 (part), 2020)