Anyone who lives in the city can tell you - it’s not a cheap place to live. Surprising no one, most Chicagoans want rent control. In the state’s primary elections on Tuesday, a majority of voters in a select nearly 80 precincts in the city voted “yes” to an advisory referendum asking if they supported lifting Illinois’ ban on rent control. In 1997, the state passed the Illinois Rent Control Preemption Act, effectively prohibiting municipalities in Illinois from enacting laws controlling or regulating rent prices of residential and commercial properties. While the referendum to lift the ban is nonbinding, it does show lawmakers a significant support for rent control among voters — lawmakers who may soon be voting on a bill from State Rep. Will Guzzardi to repeal the ban. Morning Shift discusses why Chicago, after 20 years of no rent control, needs it now, and what’s needed to get the bill passed in Springfield. 

GUESTS:

State Rep. Will Guzzardi

Brian Bernardoni, senior director of government affairs and public policy for the Chicago Association of Realtors