(CN) — The Supreme Court Thursday blocked the Biden administration’s eviction moratorium, ruling that only Congress has the authority to extend it.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reinstated the pandemic-related moratorium Aug. 3 after it previously expired at the end of July. That extension was challenged by a group of landlords and real estate investors.
Census Bureau data from earlier this month showed that about 3.5 million people could face eviction in August and September.
In an unsigned opinion, the conservative-majority court ruled that the CDC did not have the power to extend the moratorium.
“If a federally imposed eviction moratorium is to continue, Congress must specifically authorize it,” the opinion states.
In June, the high court let the previous moratorium stand but warned that such a ban on evictions should be passed by Congress.
The three liberal justices of the nine-person court dissented. Justice Stephen Breyer wrote that the eviction ban should stay in place due to the increase of infections caused by the Covid-19 delta variant.
“The public interest strongly favors respecting the CDC’s judgment at this moment, when over 90% of counties are experiencing high transmission rates,” he wrote.
The moratorium was first put in place during the Trump administration, where it was feared those who lost their jobs due to the pandemic could be evicted and forced to live in crowded homeless shelters where the virus might spread.
Democrats in the House attempted to pass legislation to extend the ban before Congress recessed in August, but could not garner enough support for the effort.
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