Ban on renter evictions during COVID-19 pandemic is extended
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is extending a federal moratorium on evictions of tenants who have fallen behind on rent during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday moved to continue the pandemic- related protection, which had been scheduled to expire on Wednesday. The moratorium is now extended through the end of June.
The ban, initially put in place last year, provides protection for renters out of concern that having families lose their homes and move into shelters or share crowded conditions with relatives or friends during the pandemic would further spread the highly contagious virus, which has killed more than 545,000 people in the United States.
To be eligible for the housing protection, renters must earn $ 198,000 annually or less for couples filing jointly, or $ 99,000 for single filers; demonstrate that they’ve sought government help to pay the rent; declare that they can’t pay because of COVID- 19 hardships; and affirm they are likely to become homeless if evicted.
In February, President Joe Biden extended a ban on housing foreclosures to June 30 to help homeowners struggling during the pandemic.
Housing advocates had thing, but it’s disappointrights or don’t understand generally expected the exing that the moratorium the process. tension of the tenant evicwasn’t also strengthened to Also, some jurisdictions tion moratorium and had keep families from falling have allowed landlords to been lobbying the Biden through the cracks, such as initiate the eviction process administration, saying it families with no- fault evicin court, a tactic that scared was too early in the countions or whose landlords many families into leavtry’s economic recovery to won’t accept rent relief.” ing rather than having the let the ban lapse. Diane Yentel, president eviction proceedings, even
John Pollock, coordinaof the National Low Income unfinished ones, on their tor of the National Coalition Housing Coalition, said she records. for a Civil Right to Counsel, and others had pushed to “While the Biden adsaid that the moratorium “is make the ban’s protections ministration is well aware vital for ensuring there is automatic and universal. of the shortcomings in the enough time for Congress’s Currently, tenants have to moratorium order that alemergency rental assistance actively take steps to invoke low some evictions to proto reach the millions of
the ban’s protections, which ceed during the pandemic, renters in need who would
can lead to exploitation of the CDC director did not otherwise be evicted.”
those who don’t know their correct them,” Yentel said. Pollack said current sur
NewMANAGEMENT!! veys show that 18.4% of all tenants owe back rent.
That number also revealed significant racial disparity:
The percentage of Black tenants behind on their rent was 32.9%.
But Pollock and other housing advocates were disappointed that Biden merely extended the ban without addressing several issues that put many tenants at risk of eviction.
“In Massachusetts, judges have green- lighted over
1,700 evictions under the federal eviction moratorium. While it is protecting some families, it’s clearly not protecting all,” said Denise Matthews- Turner, the interim executive director of City Life/ Vida Urbana, a grassroots housing justice organization in Boston.
“The extension is a good