Many California tenants are waiting for rent relief. Will lawmakers extend eviction protections?
California tenants waiting on COVID-19 rent relief money could face eviction at the end of the month. Now lawmakers are considering extending protections for those who have submitted applications.
Nearly 490,000 tenants have applied for relief funds from the state’s program, which helps people financially impacted by the pandemic pay their rent, including missed payments dating back to 2020. But a large chunk of those seeking rental assistance have yet to receive their money.
With the program due to end on March 31, lawmakers are looking to extend eviction protections through June 30 for those who have applied for funds and are waiting to receive them.
Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, announced Thursday they would fast-track Assembly Bill 2179, which would give tenants another three months to get their relief money.
The Assembly will hear the bill on Monday, Atkins and Rendon said.
“We need to protect eligible renters who have applied for relief funds, but haven’t received them yet, or who will apply before the March 31 deadline,” Atkins and Rendon said in a statement. “We made a commitment to those who are in line and they shouldn’t be harmed because of how long the process is taking. That’s why AB 2179 will receive quick action in both the Assembly and Senate.”
How many tenants have received relief money?
The state has distributed nearly $2.5 billion to 214,247 households as of March 22, according to a California Department of Housing and Community Development dashboard. That’s only about 44% of the 489,879 renters who submitted applications.
On average, households have received $11,488 in assistance, and more than 60% of funds have gone to very low income tenants earning 30% or less of their area median income.
Income-eligible tenants facing COVID-related financial struggles can apply for money to pay past and upcoming rent and utility bills dating back to April 2020.
The state is slowly removing layers of pandemic eviction protections. During spring and summer 2020, landlords could not evict tenants for not paying their rent, as long as they provided a hardship declaration.
From September 2020 through the end of September 2021, tenants had to pay at least 25% of their rent. The state opened applications for its rental assistance program in March 2021.
Starting October 1, 2021, tenants needed to make full payments, although they were protected from eviction if they owed rent from before September 30 and had applied for state relief funds.
However, renters’ rights group Tenants Together conducted a survey from November 2021 through February 2022 that indicated many tenants have struggled to access the state’s rental assistance program.
This is especially true for renters who primarily speak a language other than English, seniors and people with disabilities, tenants with informal rental situations and very low income households.
The California Apartment Association on Thursday released a statement saying AB 2179 would stop “a hodgepodge of local rules” regarding evictions.
“The California Apartment Association is hopeful that the state will have worked through all pending ERAP applications and made the appropriate payments before June 30, making AB 2179 the final extension of the moratorium and eliminating any argument for local eviction moratoria to take its place,” said Tom Bannon, CEO at CAA.
This story was originally published March 28, 2022 at 5:00 AM.