A flood of Eviction Cases Looms as States Fight Back Against Moratorium
The federal moratorium on evictions is set to expire at the end of June, leaving many wondering what will happen to tenants who have been struggling or have not paid their rent since the start of the pandemic. The alarm on a "tsunami" of eviction court cases began sounding soon after moratoriums at the state and federal levels were implemented. And as the pandemic continued, housing officials have continued voicing their concerns over kicking the can down the road with rent payments owed by tenants.
Evictions Cases During the Pandemic
While the data on evictions and eviction claim filings by landlords during the pandemic is continuing to develop, some organizations, including the Government Accountability Office, have been studying how the moratoriums have impacted eviction filings and whether the moratoriums have actually worked the way they were intended. A study that looked at 63 jurisdictions around the nation found that at the end of July 2020 when the first CARES Act eviction moratorium was set to expire, eviction filings were 74 percent lower than the same time in 2019. Eviction filings were also lower through 2020 as compared to 2019, but they slowly did increase as the year went on as state and federal moratoriums began to offer more clarity in their execution.
The GAO’s study also highlights the possible confusion tenants may have faced when it comes to the federal moratorium. In jurisdictions that were not offered protection by state and local moratoriums, there were greater numbers of eviction filings.
The federal moratorium that went into effect in September 2020 and was extended through December 27, 2020, may have helped prevent some of the stress landlords faced because of non-payment. Under the CDC moratorium, tenants had to meet certain criteria in order to qualify for the eviction moratorium. And unlike the previous blanket eviction moratorium at the federal and state levels, tenants had to fill out a declaration form in which they explained their inability to pay rent because of impacts due to the coronavirus.
States Push Back against CDC Moratorium
Many tenants who face eviction work in the hospitality and food industries, a sector that was hit hardest by the pandemic. While there is clearly a need for supporting these tenants, especially as many will begin entering the workforce as these sectors begin to grow again, some states are putting an end to enforcing evictions moratoriums.
Earlier this month, Texas pushed forward in giving landlords the ability to pursue evictions. The state has allowed an emergency order that enforced the federal eviction moratorium from the CDC to expire, setting the stage for what many fear will be a slew of evictions.
Ohio has also followed a similar path as Ohio landlords have sued against the ban. There, Judge Philip Calabrese ruled against the moratorium last month explaining, “the CDC’s orders exceeded the statutory authority Congress gave the agency.” In Tennessee, District Judge Mark Norris followed a similar path, ruling that the ban on evictions was “unenforceable in the Western District of Tennessee.”
Some housing experts worry that if other states allow emergency orders protecting tenants to expire, tenants may miss out on federal aid that was put in place to protect them. Under the Biden administration's latest coronavirus relief package, the treasury department has nearly $50 billion in aid to offer tenants before eviction protections expire. One Treasury department official shared with the Washington Post, “We are running the Emergency Rental Assistance Program every day like we’re going to lose the moratorium tomorrow.”
While the money is there, many tenants are still likely to face an uphill battle obtaining that money to pay their rent with. Inadequate access to information, difficulty navigating state and local guidelines, and other factors will all play a role in whether or not tenants will be able to pay their rent.
In late March, the CDC extended the federal eviction moratorium to protect tenants until June 2020, marking one year of protection.
