Eviction ban extended & toughened
ALBANY — Gov. Cuomo signed a law late Tuesday that will strengthen and extend protections for renters who face financial hardship due to the coronavirus crisis.
The measure, known as the “Tenant Safe Harbor Act,” builds upon the eviction moratorium Cuomo enacted as New York became the epicenter of the epidemic by ensuring that no tenants struggling to make ends meet amid the pandemic face eviction.
“There’s tidal wave of evictions looming over New York,” said bill sponsor Sen. Brad Hoylman (D-Manhattan). “No one should be forced onto the street during a pandemic. We have a moral obligation to do everything possible to keep New Yorkers in their homes.”
The new law prohibits courts from evicting residential tenants for nonpayment of rent if they experienced financial hardship because of the the outbreak. Landlords can seek a money judgment from tenants, but not evict them.
“We’re not saying that people will never have to pay rent,” sponsor Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz (D-Bronx) said during a virtual press conference a day before the bill was signed. “That’s not what this bill is about. We’re saying that people will never be evicted for rent accrued during the crisis.”
The measure applies to any unpaid rent accrued between March 7 and the yet-to-be determined date when the state lifts all COVID-related restrictions on nonessential gatherings and businesses.
While the law goes further than Cuomo’s current moratorium, which expires Aug. 20, some advocates have argued it is still not enough to protect the most vulnerable of renters.
“There should be no rent until the pandemic is over,” said Nathylin Adesegun Flowers, VOCAL-NY during a Zoom call in which community groups called for a national eviction blockade and pushed for corporate landlords to “cancel rent” and allow tenants who can’t pay rent to stay in their homes.
“I’ve been evicted and know how horrible it is,” Flowers added. “Landlords lie, and judges believe them. They must stop squandering our wealth just to abuse us.”