>> Even at half the original $ 1,200 stimulus, the payment will be “enormously helpful” for those out of a job or facing eviction.
The new COVID relief package passed by Congress includes $ 237 million for emergency rental assistance to avert evictions. The money is timely, as Gov. Ned Lamont’s moratorium on evictions is set to expire on Feb. 9.
Vin Tufo, chief executive officer of Charter Oak Communities, the Stamford- based housing authority, said the pandemic has been a struggle for low- income Americans, many of whom were furloughed from jobs.
The first round of $ 1,200 stimulus payments released under the federal CARES Act was “enormously” helpful to low- income workers, he said. But when that money dried up and a $ 600 federal supplement to unemployment checks ended, Tufo said he saw a significant decline in many residents’ ability to pay for rent, food and other basic living necessities.
“What really sustained their ability to continue to meet their obligations was at least, in part, the additional $ 600 supplemental payment that they received on a weekly basis,” he said.
Under the new stimulus plan, millions of Americans will receive a onetime $ 600 payment, and a new unemployment supplement will add $ 300 to payments through midMarch.
“I’m sure it’s going to be very, very helpful,” Tufo said of the next round. “I would imagine that it would have been much more helpful if the payments were on the scale of what people received under the CARES Act, but certainly, it’s going to be welcome.”
He said clients have been resilient during the COVID- 19 pandemic, but said they need hope, along with assistance, that they eventually will be able to restore their lost employment.
“They want to work, they need to work to support their families and no amount of stimulus payments is going to make up for their loss of employment,” Tufo said.