Los Angeles is one of more than a dozen California cities with rent-control laws, and by no coincidence, is one of the most unaffordable places to live. The City Council recently approved a proposal that gives owners more leeway to raise rents. It’s by no means a bold plan. It nibbles around the edges and won’t increase housing supply in any perceptible way.

In updating the municipal Rent Stabilization Ordinance, the city will allow owners to increase rent by 4 percent yearly on housing regulated by the law, a single percentage point higher than the previous ceiling, which expires at the end of next June. The formula was based on the consumer price index. In the past, owners have been allowed to raise rent by 100 percent of the CPI, but now can increase it by 90 percent of CPI.

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