Partial Halt in Residential Evictions Continues for Those Impacted by Coronavirus
CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky signed an extension to the eviction moratorium further preventing the eviction of tenants who are unable to make rental payments. The moratorium was scheduled to expire in July, and now is extended provisionally through Oct. 3.
The CDC’s partial extension of the eviction moratorium is for “counties with heightened levels of community transmission in order to respond to recent, unexpected developments in the trajectory of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the rise of the Delta variant. It is intended to target specific areas of the country where cases are rapidly increasing, which likely would be exacerbated by mass evictions.”
COVID-19 has presented a historic threat to the nation’s public health. Keeping people in their homes and out of crowded or congregate settings — like homeless shelters — by preventing evictions is a key step in helping to stop the spread of COVID-19. With vaccines in circulation for several months, nearly 60% of eligible Americans have been vaccinated.
A statement from the White House on housing stability includes language that the “CDC’s decision to extend the eviction moratorium for one final month” would set up a long list of proposed changes in housing and housing services.
The Order prohibits residential landlords nationwide from evicting tenants who:
• have used their best efforts to obtain government assistance for housing
• are unable to pay their full rent due to a substantial loss of income
• are making their best efforts to make timely partial payments of rent, and
• would become homeless or have to move into a shared living setting if they were to be evicted.
In addition to the above requirements, one of the following financial criteria must apply. To qualify for protection, tenants must:
• expect to earn no more than $99,000 (individuals) or $198,000 (filing joint tax return) in 2020
• not have been required to report any income to the IRS in 2020, or
• have received an Economic Impact Payment (stimulus check) pursuant to Section 2201 of the CARES Act, Section 9601 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, or to any other similar federally-authorized payments made to individuals in 2021 and 2021.
Tenants must complete a declaration under penalty of perjury that they meet the criteria listed in the Order.
The CDC announced its initial eviction moratorium order in September and has extended it three times. There also are myriad state orders related to housing relief for renters that also place a considerable burden upon property owners and housing providers. Multiple attemps to overturn the decision have failed, and the decision likely will rest on the U.S. Supreme Court.
