White House Outlines Alternatives To Keep Vulnerable Americans In Their Homes
Administration, others scramble after Supreme Court knocks down latest eviction moratorium
With as many as perhaps 11 million US households now facing anew the threat of imminent evictions following a late Thursday Supreme Court decision, the Biden administration and others are struggling to find alternatives for these Americans who soon could find themselves out on the streets in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had been issuing and extending moratoria on housing evictions since last year.
However, the Supreme Court issued a first decision on the moratorium earlier this summer calling into question its ability to extend beyond July 31.
CDC Director Dr Rochelle Wallensky, however, issued a new moratorium earlier this month which was tailored in a somewhat more narrow fashion in the hopes that would satisfy the nation's high court.
That was not to be, as the court's conservative majority flexed its muscle and ruled against even the revised moratorium on a 6-3 basis.
“First, of course, President Biden would support congressional action to authorize an eviction moratorium. And the Supreme Court has now clearly outlined that as the sole way an eviction moratorium could remain in effect,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Friday during her regular daily briefing. “Now, at the same time, I think it's important to remember what our objective is, here. Our objective is to keep as many people around the country, in their homes, as possible.
“Federal legislation is one way to do that. Obviously, the eviction moratorium we have had in place — and we've been issuing month-to-month — is one way to do that,” Psaki added. “But the [emergency rental assistance] funding that came through the American Rescue Plan — and is going out to states — is another way to do that.”
The American Rescue Plan is the large COVID relief package which congressional Democrats passed earlier this year with President Biden's urging.
The departments of Treasury and Housing and Urban Development released a joint letter Friday to state governors, as well as county and local officials calling on them to implement their own, more localized moratoria, according to Psaki.
“There are seven states across the country who have done that. It has the same impact, right? Because it is preventing people from being kicked out of their homes, and these states have the funding — thanks to the American Rescue Plan — to get that done,” she said.
Meanwhile, some House Democratic progressives are also calling for action, including Rep Cori Bush of Missouri, who spent several overnights outside the Capitol Building protesting the expiration of the previous moratorium on July 31 and the failure of the House to act at that time.
“Tonight, the Supreme Court failed to protect the 11 million households across our country from violent eviction in the middle of a deadly global pandemic,” Congresswoman Bush, who herself experienced homelessness earlier in life, said Thursday. “We are in an unprecedented and ongoing crisis that demands compassionate solutions that center the needs of the people and communities most in need of our help. We need to give our communities time to heal from this devastating pandemic.
“We already know who is going to bear the brunt of this disastrous decision—Black and brown communities, and especially Black women. We didn’t sleep on those steps just to give up now. Congress must act immediately to prevent mass evictions and I am exploring every possible option,” she added. “I urge my colleagues to reflect on the humanity of every single one of their unhoused, or soon to be unhoused, neighbors, and support a legislative solution to this eviction crisis.”
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