Social Security Tenant Protection Act of 2025.

Assembly Member Bryan, working with his coauthors, ties housing stability to Social Security policy by introducing a temporary affirmative defense in unlawful detainer proceedings that base nonpayment on a Social Security hardship, allowing tenants facing interrupted benefits to pause eviction actions while benefits are restored.

The central change adds a new Civil Code provision defining residential real property to include dwellings intended for human habitation (including units in mobilehome parks) and defining “Social Security hardship” as a loss of income caused by action or inaction of the federal government. A tenant may raise this hardship as an affirmative defense in UD actions predicated on nonpayment of rent. To prevail, the tenant must show that Social Security benefits typically received by the household have been terminated, delayed, or reduced due to no fault of the tenant and that the hardship prevented payment of the rent. If successful, the court must stay the UD action until the earlier of 14 days after benefits are restored or six months after the stay is issued. Within 14 days after restoration, the tenant must either pay all past‑due rent or enter into a mutually agreed payment plan; if the tenant complies, the court must dismiss the UD with prejudice or set aside the judgment against all named and unnamed defendants. The defense applies only to UD actions based on nonpayment and does not preempt Governor emergency powers.

Implementation and scope are tightly circumscribed: the new provision is temporary, remaining in effect through January 20, 2029, with implementation forms to be adopted or revised by the Judicial Council by January 1, 2027. When applicable, the stay follows evidentiary requirements, and post-stay compliance resolves the action in favor of the tenant, provided payment or a plan is completed within the 14‑day window after benefits restoration. The act does not relieve a tenant of past-due rent, and it does not alter other grounds for unlawful detainer. It also states that the Governor’s emergency powers related to moratoria remain available, and there are no new appropriations tied to the measure.

Taken together, the proposal creates a time‑limited procedure that coordinates court intervention, benefits restoration, and post-stay payment obligations to address rent nonpayment tied to Social Security disruption. The framework places primary relevance on courts’ application of the stay and dismissal or vacatur remedies, while requiring form development and providing a structured timeline for implementation, all within a defined sunset and without broad changes to the overall eviction regime. Stakeholders include tenants facing Social Security interruptions, landlords awaiting rent recovery, and the judiciary, which would administer the new defense and associated forms and timelines.