Eviction ban extension comes with push to get federal relief money to landlords

Photo / Maureen Milliken The federal eviction ban has been extended to July 31, which housing advocates say will give the state time to get federal relief money to landlords.

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By Maureen Milliken

The Centers for Disease Control has extended the national eviction moratorium until July 31, which also comes with a push for states to get emergency rent reimbursements to landlords faster.

The CDC moratorium was due to expire last Wednesday, but the federal government extended it, along with support for states that are trying to put federal rent relief money to use.

First enacted by the CDC as a public health measure in September, the ban does does not mean rent is forgiven, but that tenants can't be evicted because of nonpayment. They can be evicted for other reasons, including criminal activity. It also doesn't preclude a landlord from charging late fees or other penalties for nonpayment.

In Maine, the extension will help get rent payments into landlords' hands, said Greg Payne, director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition. "We believe it is best to ensure that more landlords are made whole before eviction processing goes back to normal," Payne said.

Maine has received $200 million in rent relief money through federal COVID-19 legislation, with another $150 million pending. Rent payments go directly to landlords and administered by MaineHousing through local Community Action Programs. But the program, from the federal level down, has been slow to gain traction.

When the additional $150 million arrives, the program will change to increase the number of people who qualify. It will also make it easier to apply, through new U.S. Treasury Department guidance streamlining the process issued the same day the extension was announced.

U.S. Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta also asked state courts to pursue alternatives to eviction that would protect both tenants and landlords.

"Our recent conversations with tenants suggest that for most renters, the issue at this point is less about needing help paying the rent prospectively as much as it is needing help paying the back rent that accumulated during the pandemic, when they lost so much income," Payne told Mainebiz.

A chance to get caught up

Hard numbers on how many people will be affected when the ban expires at the end of next month aren't available, Payne said, because "it is impossible to know how many people will have caught up with the past due balances by then."

He said the coalition will monitor monthly eviction filings, including what areas of the state are most affected. A recent study by the coalition found that Maine eviction filings disproportionately affect neighborhoods with higher numbers of renters who are people of color.

The same day the ban was extended, Mills signed into law a bill that will make sure tenants facing eviction know their rights and have legal help, which advocates said is a big step toward keeping people in their homes. Advocates stressed that an eviction can cause a downward financial spiral for a person or family, frequently leaving them homeless. The situation has been made more acute by the state's skyrocketing housing costs and lack of both rental inventory and affordable buying options.

In testimony before the bill was enacted, landlords said the eviction process costs them money, and has other negatives, and they'd like to avoid it.

MaineHousing is also providing funding to Pine Tree Legal Assistance to get tenants resources and education that will help them remain stably housed. The $1.5 million is coming from federal Emergency Rental Assistance granted to Maine.

Supporters, including the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition, say that legal representation is one of the most effective ways for tenants to avoid eviction and the negative impact, including losing belongings and often becoming homeless.

Several national real estate and landlord groups filed suit seeking the moratorium be overturned, claiming it it's a financial hit to landlords and that the CDC overstepped its authority in issuing it. The ban was overturned in May by a U.S. District Court judge, but that decision was immediately appealed, and the ban will likely end before the appeal is ruled on.