ABA president urges Congress to prevent COVID-19 eviction crisis
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ABA President Patricia Lee Refo is calling on Congress to immediately pass a renewed moratorium on housing evictions and provide essential economic relief to rental property owners.
In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, Refo warned that millions of households across the country will face evictions on Jan. 1, which will in turn severely impact legal and social service providers.
“Without a strategy in place, this wave of evictions will produce a sharp spike in both unemployment and homelessness, and the demand for shelters will continue to rise as temperatures drop below freezing in many states,” Refo wrote in the Tuesday letter. “Many of these evictions will be the result of COVID-related job and wage losses under government-imposed restrictions on businesses, while at the same time government-ordered protections against evictions have created hardships for property owners.
“At a time when our country should take every step necessary to keep all of these Americans resilient, Congress must act now. The required investment is significant, but the cost of inaction will be far greater and enduring.”
She suggested that requested protections continue until after the pandemic has ended and the economy has stabilized.
See also:
ABA Journal: “An eviction crisis is coming, housing lawyers warn”
