Newsom, lawmakers agree to extend eviction ban
Proposal includes state fully paying off tenants’ pandemic rent debt
Gov. Gavin Newsom and legislative leaders announced a plan Friday to extend California’s eviction moratorium through September and streamline an aid program to pay landlords 100% of unpaid rent.
The proposal — funded by $7.2 billion in federal and state money — would fully reimburse landlords for debt accrued by tenants during the pandemic and cover missed utility bills, making it among the most generous packages in the country. It also directs money toward city and county relief programs overwhelmed with demand, and it allows renters to directly receive relief payments even if their landlords refuse to apply.
The bill extends an eviction ban to Sept. 30, the third extension of renter protections since Newsom’s executive order in March 2020. The emergency bill needs approval of the legislature by Wednesday.
Newsom touted the package, backed by $5.2 billion in federal aid, during a Friday morning news conference in Mountain View as the strongest relief for renters and landlords in the country. “Anybody that has been impacted by COVID that owes rent going back to last April — not just this April, last April — we will pay 100% of that rent,” Newsom said.
Landlord groups criticized the extended ban on evictions, while tenant advocates said the protections and promise of additional funds will stave off a rise in homelessness.
State and local relief efforts have been hampered by a complex
set of requirements and applications, with widespread complaints from property owners and tenants that the initial $2.6 billion in federal aid is not getting to landlords quickly enough. An additional $2.6 billion in federal funds is expected. An estimated $2 billion in state funds will cover missed utility bills for lowincome residents harmed by the pandemic.
Newsom said the state expects to see more applications and is working to more efficiently distribute funds.
A nationwide eviction ban was extended Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention through July, protecting renters only in certain government-financed housing
found more commonly in other states.
Despite easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the California economy has not rebounded to pre-pandemic levels, with the unemployment rate at 7.9% in May. Estimates for unpaid rent range from $400 million to more than $2 billion.
The rent relief bill, AB 832, arrives with a tight deadline, with lawmakers voting as early as Monday.
The proposal allows renters to apply for full reimbursement. Landlords will be notified when a tenant receives the funds, and tenants have 15 days to settle back debt or face legal consequences for misappropriating funds.
The state will be able to reallocate unspent funds to needier counties and cities. The state also plans to fully reimburse applicants who have already received partial checks for missed rent.
Once the eviction moratorium expires, limited protections will apply between Oct. 1 and March 31, 2022. An eviction summons cannot be issued to low-income tenants who are eligible and have applied for rent relief.
Lawmakers stressed that vulnerable tenants still need support.
“Removing eviction protections now, while billions of rent relief dollars are still available, would be a disaster and exacerbate our homelessness crisis,” said Assemblymember David Chiu, D-San Francisco. “This proposal avoids a massive eviction cliff, allowing us to keep tenants in their homes and get landlords the financial support they need.”
Jennifer Loving, CEO of Destination: Home in San Jose, said the state and relief agencies need more time to get checks into the hands of landlords. “The landlords absolutely need the money. The families absolutely need a place to live,” she said.
But not everyone likes the deal.
The state’s leading voice for landlords, the California Apartment Association, panned the extension and pushed for a faster, better distribution of relief funds.
“It is frustrating that the state of California and numerous local governments have not quickly disbursed funds to those in need, especially to mom-and-pop rental housing providers who have not seen any rent payments. They yet must still pay the mortgage, insurance, taxes, maintenance and other expenses,” said CAA executive Tom Bannon.
The Bay Area has received nearly $500 million in federal funds, provided through a network of state, city and county programs.
Local aid programs in Oakland, San Francisco, Fremont, Santa Clara and Alameda counties have targeted renters making less than 30% of the community’s median wages. The state allows applications from renters making up to 80% of their community’s median wage.
Under the current law, tenants generally cannot be evicted for failing to pay their rent during the pandemic if they acknowledge they were hurt financially and paid at least 25% of their back rent. Assistance payments under the state and local programs now cover between 80% and 100% of rent debt. Renters applying without their landlord’s cooperation are eligible for 25% reimbursement of their debt.
The state this month simplified the application process. About 90,000 applications have been received for a total of $700 million, although
only $61.6 million in claims have been paid.
San Pablo renter Sara Kelley, a member of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment, lost her job as a social outreach worker early in the pandemic. She applied for $13,800 in assistance soon after the state program opened in March, she said.
Although she qualified for aid, she said her landlord refused to fill out an application. Instead of getting 80% of her back rent paid and the rest forgiven, Kelley, 25, could receive a much smaller amount and runs the risk of being evicted and sued for the remaining amount.
The property owner did not return phone messages.
Kelley is perplexed: “I’m literally fighting a corporation to take money.”