WASHINGTON (CN) — A fight between congressional Democrats, their party’s leadership and the Biden administration has culminated on the steps of the U.S. Capitol after lawmakers failed to extend a nationwide ban on evictions.
The House recessed on Friday for an August state work period, during which members flock back to their districts to meet with constituents and spend time with their families, but not before a day-long fight took place behind closed doors about extending a legislative buffer between millions of Americans and homelessness, first implemented at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic last year.
Democrats sought to extend the moratorium on evictions through December last week, amid a spike in coronavirus cases driven by the delta variant, but pushback among members forced them to shorten that deadline. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi called for extending the moratorium through Oct. 18 and Democrats tried to pass the extension through unanimous consent, but the effort was quickly blocked by Republicans.
The federal eviction moratorium expired on Saturday after the last-minute congressional scramble came up short, ending protections that have helped millions of Americans stay in their homes since the start of the coronavirus crisis in spring 2020.
Congressional inaction has led to a split among Democrats in the fight for reinstatement of the moratorium.
Since Friday, Congresswoman Cori Bush, a Missouri Democrat, has slept on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in protest, urging the House to reconvene to pass an extension to the ban. On Saturday night, over 100 other people joined her protest.
“We are now in an eviction emergency,” Bush said in a statement Sunday. “Allowing the federal eviction moratorium to expire was a moral failure, but we came together last night to demonstrate that our movement is strong and our work is not finished. As someone who has been evicted and unhoused, I know the trauma that millions of families could face if we do not act immediately.”
Congressman Al Green – a Texas Democrat and member of the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development and Insurance – said in an interview Monday it was Congress’ responsibility to protect Americans against the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. Chief among those impacts is a national uptick in evictions, he said.
“Just as a high fever is a symptom of the pandemic, so is the eviction process that we are looking at that is impacting families now,” Green said. “So we have a duty to do all that we can to protect them.”
Speaking from the demonstration in Washington on Monday, Green lauded individuals who were protesting around the country in support of extending the eviction moratorium.
“Many people are protesting and all who are protesting should be commended for taking a stand against an injustice being perpetrated on people who had little to do with the Congress, very much to do with maintaining the economy," he said. "It is unfair, it is unjust and the rent must be paid and in doing so the moratorium must be extended.”
Meanwhile, House Democratic leaders are calling on President Joe Biden's administration to act to extend the moratorium. However, the White House said last week its hands are tied by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the issue. In a concurrence to that decision, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said it was lawmakers' responsibility to reauthorize the moratorium.
In a joint statement Monday, Pelosi along with House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Whip James E. Clyburn and Assistant Speaker Katherine Clark said "action is needed, and it must come from the administration."
"As the CDC doubles down on mask-wearing and vaccination efforts, science and reason demand that they must also extend the moratorium in light of the delta variant," they said. "Doing so is a moral imperative to keep people from being put out on the street which also contributes to the public health emergency."
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is set to brief House Democrats on Tuesday on the distribution of $46.5 billion to local and state governments to help struggling renters. Congress passed those funds in both the American Rescue Plan and last December's omnibus bill, but only $3 billion has been distributed.
The Democratic leaders asked the Treasury Department to "indicate how the funds that it has already transferred to states and communities can be more effectively distributed to renters and landlords."
"The virus is still a threat. The moratorium must be extended, and the funds Congress allocated to assist renters and landlords must be spent," they said. "An extension of the moratorium is based on public health and the delta variant. It will also give more time to allow the money that Congress allocated to finally flow."
Ilana Branda, deputy chief for a Montgomery County, Maryland, program to end homelessness, said in an interview Monday the county government had been providing rental assistance since May 2020, distributing $18 million in assistance through a self-funded program.
Montgomery County, located just outside the nation's capital, has also released about $12 million in federal emergency rental assistance funds to about 1,200 households. The county has received about $59 million in aid from the original federal stimulus for rental assistance and is scheduled to receive another $34 million, Branda said.
To ensure a blanket of services, including relocation services and other assistance, the county limits its allotment per application to $12,000. County officials also try to partner with landlords of households whose average income falls 30% below the county’s median to forgive 10% of unpaid rent.
“At this point, we do not anticipate that we’ll run out of funds for rent relief,” Branda said.
As for federal discussion on the speed of local distribution of rental assistance funds, Branda noted the first round of guidance from lawmakers came in the middle of January. There were “a lot of questions” about that guidance, she said, and a frequently asked questions page doesn't offer clear answers.
“So, on the one hand we appreciate some of the flexibility, that they’re acknowledging that different jurisdictions have different methods that surround our housing programs and their housing markets, that we have the flexibility to adapt to,” Branda said. “But on the other hand, you know, the first one came out in January, it was very cryptic and honestly it was from the previous administration and it came out about a week before they were departing.”
The Treasury Department since then has issued four updates to that original guidance, which ranges from changing the certification of eligibility for those who can receive assistance to what information localities must report to the federal government.
“And so every time that has happened you know, all of us jurisdictions kind of need a pause … and recheck, are we still in compliance? Are we still aligning?” Branda said. “Do we have the information needed to justify, because none of us have the funds to give the money back, right? We want to make sure every penny we’re putting out is correct and appropriate to be putting out.”
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