Deal would extend ban on evictions
Extension through June 30 would give renters, small landlords some stability
Heading off a potential wave of housing disruption, Gov. Gavin Newsom and lawmakers on Monday announced a deal to extend the state’s ban on evictions through June.
The agreement would give breathing room to struggling renters and allow the state to distribute $2.6 billion in federal aid to landlords impacted by the economic upheaval of the coronavirus pandemic. The compromise comes days before the scheduled Jan. 31 expiration of California’s eviction moratorium.
Newsom said in a statement that an extension through June 30 would give renters and small landlords some stability and protect community health as the state continues to battle the pandemic and rush vaccines to vulnerable residents and front-line workers. Lawmakers expect to vote on the proposal this week as part of the state budget package.
“This eviction moratorium and rapid deployment of funds to the most at-risk are among our top priorities,” Newsom said. “But we have more work to do, together, to tackle the structural housing cost crisis in California.”
Housing experts estimate hundreds of thousands of California renters could be at risk of losing their homes if the health crisis deepens.
Sam Tepperman-Gelfant, managing attorney at Public Advocates, said the measure is “a very important step to prevent the eviction cliff” looming on Feb. 1. But he added that tenant groups were shut out of negotiations, creating loopholes that could be exploited by property owners.
The compromise announced Monday lays out a broad road map for distributing federal relief funds
arriving this month. The state will pay landlords 80% of back rent owed between April 2020 and March 2021. Landlords must agree to waive the remaining 20% of debt and not pursue evictions.
Alternately, landlords can choose to receive payment of just 25% of back rent, while keeping their rights to sue for unpaid rent and to remove a tenant.
Tenants may be eligible for partial help for up to three months of future rent as well. The federal funds are targeted at landlords serving low-income tenants, with most aid helping families making less than half of the median household income in a region.
Property owners must notify tenants about the availability of rental assistance and cannot go forward with an eviction without first providing that notification.
Tenants must meet certain criteria to be protected. They must declare they have lost income because of the pandemic. They will also be protected from eviction if they pay at least 25% of their rent owed since September 2020.
The state plans to distribute the federal aid through block grants. Large cities and counties, such as San Jose, Oakland and San Francisco, will also receive some funds directly from the federal government.
Municipalities are banned from enacting new restrictions on evictions.
Assemblymember David Chiu, D-San Francisco, said the proposal provides important, short-term relief for struggling renters and small landlords. But Chiu, chair of the housing and community development committee who proposed extending the ban through the end of 2021, said more needs to be done.
Chiu said he will continue to focus on bolstering renter protections and ensuring relief quickly gets into the right hands. “We will be monitoring closely the speed at which the money is going out,” he said.
The compromise struck between Newsom and legislative leaders comes amid mounting concerns for millions of unemployed workers and their landlords. State budget officials estimate renters owe $400 million; a recent federal analysis put the total California COVID-related debt at around $1.7 billion.
Bay Area advocates say low-income renters are desperate for relief.
Alicia Rios lost her job as a hotel housekeeper shortly after the COVID-19 pandemic struck.
The single mother has struggled to pay bills, owes about $8,000 in back rent and relies on food banks and aid to feed her three daughters. Rios, 37, worries her family could be forced from their twobedroom apartment in Oakland.
“I’m afraid and really scared,” Rios said through an interpreter. “I could end up on the streets with my girls.”
Rios, a member the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, wants to get back to work and hopes government or private aid will settle her unpaid debt.
In the meantime, her family is just trying to survive. “I’ve been doing miracles,” she said, “with the little money I get.”