BIDEN ADMINISTRATION EXTENDS CDC FEDERAL EVICTION MORATORIUM FOR THE LAST TIME

Today, the Biden Administration announced a one-month extension of the CDC’s federal eviction moratorium through July 31 (White House Fact Sheet).  Importantly, the White House announcement confirms their intention that this will be the last extension.

It was also announced, as NMHC has advocated, that the Administration will undertake a government-wide effort to expedite the distribution of the $46 billion in emergency rental assistance (ERAP) appropriated by Congress to residents and housing providers. Chief among these measures are:

• Bulk Payments. Treasury will clarify how grantees can collect bulk data from housing providers covering multiple residents and then bundle payments for multiple eligible residents into a single disbursement.

• Reduce Confusion, Burdens and Delays. Recognizing that differences in locally imposed requirements operating in the same region are slowing the flow of rental aid, urging grantees in neighboring areas to collaborate to develop consistent or complementary policies to avoid unnecessary confusion or burdens for families or housing providers seeking aid.

• Identifying Grantee Best Practices. Treasury will highlight programs that are reducing documentation barriers that keep eligible families from benefiting from ERA. This could include automating application processing and approaches for verifying income to simplify and speed eligibility determinations, such as leveraging fact-specific proxies like area median incomes.

As NMHC noted in our statement today in response to the extension, the continuation of a nationwide, one-size-fits-all, federal eviction moratorium is out of step with the significant progress made in controlling COVID-19 and restoring the economy. Instead of this blanket federal policy, this pandemic has already shown that targeted, efficient relief works.

Following suit with a recent NMHC industry principles effort, the extension announcement has been paired with a number of eviction mitigation measures intended to keep renters stably housed.  NMHC looks forward to working with policymakers to implement workable solutions for both renters and housing providers.  Importantly, we will work to ensure eviction mitigation efforts are practical and economically viable, while making certain that rental assistance funds remain focused on direct payments to those in need. And although this transition away from unstainable moratoriums is a step in the right direction in terms of ensuring the long-term health of the apartment industry and our renters, NMHC’s advocacy work is not yet done.

As our country emerges from the financial distress brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the stability of our sector has never been more critical. How our nation recovers will undoubtedly impact the country’s further exacerbated housing affordability crisis and overarching housing equity and opportunity goals.

We remain committed to working with officials to ensure the historic, $46 billion investment in ERAP makes it into the hands of those in need. Just as we successfully advocated for full funding of this program, we will continue to advocate for its timely disbursement.

Key Resources:

• CDC Order: Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions to Prevent the Further Spread of COVID-19

• White House Fact Sheet: Biden-Harris Administration Announces Initiatives to Promote Housing Stability By Supporting Vulnerable Tenants and Preventing Foreclosures

• CDC Fact Sheet: Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions to Prevent the Further Spread of COVID-19

• NMHC Resource: Apartment Industry Issues Principles to Work with Residents as Eviction Moratorium Set to End

• NMHC Resource: Emergency Rental Assistance Program FAQ

Original Post: National Multifamily Housing Council