Colleagues,

The House has passed the new Relief bill, the Senate is expected to do so, and the White House is expected to sign.

These are the links that might be of most immediate interest:

Be Safe,

Maureen

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: National Low Income Housing Coalition <acalabro@nlihc.org>
Date: Mon, Dec 21, 2020 at 3:06 PM
Subject: DHRC Update 12.21.2020
To: <maureenhowardconsulting@gmail.com>

National Low Income Housing Coalition

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Dear DHRC members and partners,

Thanks to your dedicated advocacy, Congressional leaders introduced an emergency COVID-19 relief bill that includes $25 billion in emergency rental assistance and a one-month extension of the CDC’s federal eviction moratorium. The bill also extends the spending deadline for the Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) to December 31, 2021. Read NLIHC’s analysis of the housing provisions in the relief package.

This relief bill will provide essential and desperately needed protections for renters, tens of millions of whom would otherwise be at risk of losing their homes this winter. This achievement was made possible by the extraordinary advocacy of NLIHC’s members, partners and allies throughout the country, and the leadership and tenacity of congressional champions Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Representatives Maxine Waters (D-CA) and Denny Heck (D-WA), bipartisan negotiators Senators Mark Warner (D-VA), Susan Collins (R-ME), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Rob Portman (R-OH), Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (DNY), and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).

While these provisions are vital, much work remains to be done! We are calling on advocates to continue pushing Congress in the new year for a coronavirus relief bill that adequately meets the needs of the lowest-income people and individuals experiencing homelessness.

Due to the holidays, our next disaster housing recovery update will be on January 4. We wish you a safe, healthy, and happy holiday!

Additional updates below.

Disaster Housing Recovery Update, Monday, December 21, 2020

The NLIHC-led Disaster Housing Recovery Coalition is convening and supporting disaster-impacted communities to ensure that federal disaster recovery efforts reach all impacted households, including the lowest-income and most marginalized people who are often the hardest-hit by disasters and have the fewest resources to recover.

Please note that NLIHC hosts weekly national calls on coronavirus, disaster, housing, and homelessness on Mondays at 2:30pm. Due to the holidays, the next national call will be Monday, January 4, from 2:30pm to 4:00pm ET. Register for the call here: https://tinyurl.com/ru73qan

Summary of National Call

Thanks to everyone who joined today’s special national call on coronavirus, disasters, housing, and homelessness. We held an in-depth discussion about the coronavirus relief package - what’s in the package, what is not, what this means, and what’s next. We also discussed this weekend’s big news from FEMA that the agency will approve reimbursement for non-congregate sheltering through its Public Assistance program for the “duration of the emergency.”

COVID-19 Relief Bill
FEMA Policy Change
- Governor Gavin Newsom’s announcement on FEMA reimbursement; Rule change first issued for California’s Project Roomkey
- NLIHC’s best practices document on non-congregate sheltering
- Join our next FEMA Working Group call this upcoming Tuesday, December 22 at 3pm ET to learn more about the rule change. Register for the call here.

Coronavirus Updates

NLIHC is maintaining a COVID-19/Housing and Homelessness News and Resource page here.

NLIHC’s National Eviction Moratorium resource page provides important information about the federal moratorium and resources to ensure every renter knows about the protection and takes the steps necessary to stay in their home.

National Updates

FEMA

FEMA will now approve reimbursement for non-congregate sheltering through its Public Assistance program for the “duration of the emergency.” This unprecedented decision will ensure state and local officials can continue offering these critical programs needed to prevent and respond to outbreaks among people experiencing homelessness and to ensure non-congregate shelter residents can transition to permanent housing solutions when the programs eventually end.

Advocacy

NLIHC’s DHRC will continue to push for a broad array of resources and protections, including emergency rental assistance and eviction prevention assistance, a national moratorium on evictions and foreclosures, and emergency funds for homelessness service providers, housing authorities, and housing providers, among other recommendations. For more information, see DHRC’s full list of recommendations.

Reporting

NLIHC President and CEO Diane Yentel spoke on CBS News about the urgent need for Congress to extend the federal eviction moratorium and provide emergency rental assistance. Watch the full clip.

BBC World News interviewed NLIHC’s Diane Yentel about the pending tsunami of evictions and the urgent need for an extended eviction moratorium and emergency rental assistance.

NLIHC’s Diane Yentel spoke on NPR's Morning Edition about the tens of millions of renters in dire need of eviction protections and why the CDC eviction moratorium needs to be strengthened.

Shelterforce discusses the looming eviction crisis and provides an overview of the bipartisan COVID-19 relief bill being debated in Congress. According to NLIHC Vice President of Public Policy Sarah Saadian, the $25 billion for emergency rental assistance is critically needed to keep families housed this winter.

The Appeal examines how landlords have continued to evict renters, despite a patchwork of local and federal protections. “One of the most significant flaws is that the moratorium is not automatic, renters need to know it exists, know they are eligible, and know what steps they need to take in order to get the protection,” said NLIHC’s Diane Yentel.

CNN calls attention to research indicating that communities of color are disproportionately impacted by the eviction crisis. According to NLIHC, communities of color represent 80% of people facing eviction. Business Insider also reports that people of color are most at risk of losing their home when the federal eviction moratorium ends.

The Daily podcast shares the story of a single mother of two from Georgia struggling to remain in her home amid the pandemic. Matthew Desmond, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and principal investigator of the Eviction Lab, joins the podcast to discuss the eviction crisis.

NBC News reports that vital housing assistance, such as rapid rehousing, may be unavailable to families that do not meet the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) definition of homeless, including those who have had to move in with other households during the pandemic.

State and Local News

A list of state and local emergency rental assistance programs is available here from NLIHC.

Alaska

The Anchorage Coalition to End Homelessness received a grant of $450,000 from a fund established by Jeff Bezos. The grant money will be used to fund rapid rehousing for families who have become homeless and services to help families navigate the benefits system. It will also fund a subsidy program to provide one-time cash grants to families facing homelessness.

California

Governor Gavin Newsom on December 18 announced that FEMA authorized reimbursement for non-congregate shelter through the duration of the COVID-19 emergency, including California’s Project Roomkey. The state will no longer be required to submit reauthorization requests every 30 days.

The Sacramento Bee reports that more than 50 tenants may soon be evicted from a River District hotel. The tenants received notice that they needed to leave because the hotel was to be renovated or sold. The Eviction Defense Network sent a letter to City Attorney Susana Alcala Wood and the City Council saying that California’s eviction moratorium should apply to the hotel tenants and asking the city to demand the landlord rescind the eviction notices.

Ventura County officials and homeless service providers fear a surge of evictions and increase of homelessness when eviction protections expire on January 31. The program manager for the Ventura County Continuum of Care says the agency does not have the resources to stop the impending tsunami of evictions.

Colorado

Members of the Colorado Special Eviction Task Force sent a letter to Governor Jared Polis urging him to extend the eviction moratorium and suspension of late fees through at least January.

Florida

Tallahassee leaders are urging Governor Ron DeSantis to reinstate a statewide eviction moratorium. In Leon County, 438 people were evicted in November.

Georgia

As many as 160,000 households across Georgia could be at risk of eviction in January if the CDC eviction moratorium is not extended. Without significant rental relief programs, housing advocates worry that many renters will be left homeless when eviction protections are lifted.

Kansas

A 32-bed quarantine shelter for people experiencing homelessness will open December 28 near Greenville. The shelter is partly funded through $157,000 in federal coronavirus relief from Greenville County. A $1.7 million state grant will pay for support services, staff, food, and more.

Maryland

The Baltimore Sun reports that up to 200,000 Maryland households are at risk of eviction as coronavirus deaths and hospitalizations surge and temperatures drop. After Maryland courts resumed evictions in August, 1,308 evictions were carried out through September, and more than 47,000 failure-to-pay rent cases were filed in Maryland courts in those two months.

Massachusetts

Mass Live reports that the Worcester Public School system is preparing to offer additional support to families during the pandemic, as the district has nearly 2,000 students who are currently experiencing homelessness and expects to see more evictions when the federal eviction moratorium expires.

Minnesota

St. Paul leaders announced they will dismantle eight homeless encampments, citing the risk of fires and exposure to the cold.

North Carolina

Despite qualifying for North Carolina’s Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Evictions (HOPE) program, a tenant is facing eviction because her landlord refuses to accept rental assistance payments from the program. The Good Shepherd Center estimates that 500 other eligible HOPE applicants have faced the same issue with landlords refusing to participate in the program.

School social workers in New Hanover County are bracing for a potential surge of children experiencing homelessness when the federal eviction moratorium expires. They are urging families to know their rights under the McKinney-Vento Act.

Oregon

With the federal eviction moratorium set to expire on December 31, homeless advocates are bracing for a tsunami of Oregon students becoming homeless in 2021.

The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners unanimously voted to extend the eviction moratorium to July 2, 2021, and provide a six-month grace period for repaying back rent. The board also voted to allocate an additional $2.5 million to the Joint Office of Homeless Services to purchase two shelter sites. Combining the new funds with previously allocated CARES Act funds, the Joint Office will purchase two properties for a combined $6.8 million to convert into shelters.

Texas

The Dallas City Council approved the purchase of two hotels to convert into emergency shelters for people experiencing homelessness using $10 million in federal Coronavirus Relief Funds. The hotels initially will be used to house individuals experiencing homelessness who contract or are affected by COVID-19, but will be used as rapid rehousing facilities when the pandemic has subsided.

Washington

As Governor Jay Inslee considers extending Washington’s eviction ban, set to expire December 31, some tenants and landlords are slipping through the cracks of the moratorium’s protections.

Guidance

Department of Housing and Urban Development

Updated HOME Sample Self-Certification of Annual Income Form

The National Low Income Housing Coalition is dedicated solely to achieving socially just public policy that ensures people with the lowest incomes in the United States have affordable and decent homes.

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I'm with Angela Davis:

"I'm no longer accepting the things I cannot change.

I'm changing the things I cannot accept."

And with John Lewis:
"Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble."