In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States federal government and several U.S. states implemented moratoriums on eviction.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States federal government and several U.S. states implemented moratoriums on eviction.
In March 2020, the United States Congress passed the CARES Act, which included a moratorium on the evictions of tenants in rental properties that receive federal funding or have federal government-backed mortgages until July 2020. [1]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced an additional eviction moratorium on September 1, 2020, expected to last until December 31 of that year. [2] The order cited Section 361 of the Public Health Service Act, [lower-alpha 1] [3] which gives the agency authority to:
[...] provide for such inspection, fumigation, disinfection, sanitation, pest extermination, destruction of animals or articles found to be so infected or contaminated as to be sources of dangerous infection to human beings, and other measures, as in [the Surgeon General's] judgment may be necessary.
A challenge to the moratorium was filed in November by the Alabama Association of Realtors. In the District Court for D.C., Judge Dabney L. Friedrich ruled that the Public Health Service act did not give the CDC authority to enact moratoria on evictions. [4] Friedrich cited the rule of eiusdem generis , writing that evictions were too dissimilar from the other items listed in Section 361 to be covered under the phrase "and other measures." [5] On appeal, the Supreme Court voted 5–4, to maintain the moratorium. [6]
The Biden administration issued a new eviction moratorium on August 3, 2021, intended to last until October 3. [lower-alpha 2] [7] It was applicable to counties with substantial or high transmission rates of COVID-19. On August 26, the Supreme Court struck down the moratorium. [lower-alpha 3] [8]
43 U.S. states have implemented some form of an eviction moratorium during the COVID-19 pandemic; 27 of these states lifted their eviction moratoriums between May and September 2020. [9]
On June 28, 2021, Governor Newsom signed a bill passed by the California State Legislature extending eviction protections until September 30. [10]
In December 2020, the New York State Legislature passed a state moratorium on evictions. [11] In May 2021, the legislature extended the moratorium until August 31. [12]
The Supreme Court struck down a provision of the state moratorium that protected people who filed a form declaring economic hardship, rather than providing evidence in court. [13]
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Tara Kristen Lipinski is an American former competitive figure skater, actress, sports commentator, and documentary film producer. A former competitor in women's singles, she is the 1998 Olympic champion, the 1997 World champion, a two-time Champions Series Final champion (1997–1998) and the 1997 U.S. national champion. Until 2019, she was the youngest single skater to win a U.S. Nationals and the youngest to become an Olympic and World champion in figure skating history. She is the first woman to complete a triple loop-triple loop combination, her signature jump element, in competition. Starting in 1997, Lipinski had a rivalry with fellow skater Michelle Kwan, which was played up by the American press, and culminated when Lipinski won the gold medal at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano.
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A debt moratorium is a delay in the payment of debts or obligations. The term is generally used to refer to acts by national governments. Moratory laws are usually passed at times of special political or commercial stress: for instance, on several occasions during the Franco-Prussian War, the French government passed moratory laws. Their international validity was discussed at length, and was upheld in the English law case Rouquette v Overman (1875) LR 10 QB. Debt moratoriums are generally opposed by creditors.
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Dabney Langhorne Friedrich is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States district court judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. She previously served as a member of the United States Sentencing Commission.
Eviction in the United States refers to the pattern of tenant removal by landlords in the United States. In an eviction process, landlords forcibly remove tenants from their place of residence and reclaim the property. Landlords may decide to evict tenants who have failed to pay rent, violated lease terms, or possess an expired lease. Landlords may also choose not to renew a tenant's lease, however, this does not constitute an eviction. In the United States, eviction procedures, landlord rights, and tenant protections vary by state and locality. Historically, the United States has seen changes in domestic eviction rates during periods of major socio-political and economic turmoil—including the Great Depression, the 2008 Recession, and the COVID-19 pandemic. High eviction rates are driven by affordable housing shortages and rising housing costs. Across the United States, low-income and disadvantaged neighborhoods have disproportionately higher eviction rates. Certain demographics—including low income renters, Black and Hispanic renters, women, and people with children—are also at a greater risk of eviction. Additionally, eviction filings remain on renters' public records. This can make it more difficult for renters to access future housing, since most landlords will not rent to a tenant with a history of eviction. Eviction and housing instability are also linked to many negative health and life outcomes, including homelessness, poverty, and poor mental and physical health.
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