Coalition promotes housing assistance
A coalition of community leaders on Friday urged Oklahomans to take advantage of the millions of dollars available to those who have struggled financially because of COVID-19 and may face evictions.
Led by state Rep. Jason Lowe, D-Oklahoma City, the group gathered at the state Capitol and promoted several organizations providing legal services or direct rent and utility assistance.
“In the midst of a public health crisis, no Oklahoman should be worried about being evicted from their home,” Lowe said. “My hope is that we can avoid a homelessness crisis by educating the public about their legal rights as tenants.”
The coalition includes lawyers from Legal Aid Services of Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Disability Law Center, as well as the director of the North East Resource Center and the di rector of Community CARES Partners, which is distributing state and Oklahoma City funds for eviction relief.
Financial assistance to deal with evictions or provide rent and utility assistance is available because of funding through the CARES Act, the federal COVID-19 relief package passed by Congress in March.
In Oklahoma, the exact resources available to a person depends on where they live.
All Oklahomans who meet certain criteria have access to a portion of a $10 million state allocation for eviction mitigation. Those in Oklahoma City have an additional $12.5 million to access. And Oklahoma County residents may soon see an additional $1.5 million available to help pay rent.
For months, many have worried about a flood of
evictions due to hardships caused by the COVID- 19 pandemic.
So far, eviction filings in Oklahoma County have been lower than expected. That could quickly change, though, now that a federal eviction moratorium has lifted for some landlords, allowing them to begin filing evictions at the end of the month.
Advocates pointed to Oklahoma's high rates of evictions before the pandemic, noting that when tenants have access to legal representation, they are much less likely to be evicted.
“Eighty percent of tenants who have an attorney do not get evicted,” said Michael Figgins, director of Legal Aid, which provides free legal representation.
Figgins said anyone who is struggling should call his agency.
Ginny Carl, who runs Community CARES Partners, said evictions area“long-term, syste mic issue” that affect communities of color disproportionately.
Since opening the CARES call center in recent weeks, hundreds of applications have flooded in, Carl said. The call center, which can provide rental and utility assistance, employment help and more, can be reached by dialing 2-1-1.
Oklahomans with disabilities are also a high-risk group for evictions and for contracting the virus.
“We' re thereto help you,” said Brian Wilkerson, director of legal services at t he Oklahoma Disability Law Center .“I' d ask all Oklahomans to come together right now and treat this issue seriously. Now is not the time to place our vulnerable citizens outside of their homes. There are solutions we can come up with.”
For those who find themselves at the county courthouse to deal with an eviction proceeding before they've been able to connect with resources, representatives from Legal Aid and Community CARES partners routinely have tables set up inside and can assist individuals immediately.
The coalition said it would push for changes to the housing system overall, as well as continued CARES Act funding from state and local governments to provide relief.