American Rescue Plan - Extend the Moratorium

In response to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, the

United States federal government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 ...

and several

U.S. states In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

implemented moratoriums on

eviction Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosed by a mortgagee (often, the prior owners who defaulted on a mortgage ...

Federal

In March 2020, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

passed the

CARES Act The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, is a $2.2trillion Stimulus (economics), economic stimulus bill passed by the 116th U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Donald Trump on March 27, 2 ...

, which included a moratorium on the evictions of tenants in rental properties that receive federal funding or have federal government-backed mortgages until July 2020. The

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is the national public health agency of the United States. It is a United States federal agency, under the Department of Health and Human Services, and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgi ...

(CDC) announced an additional eviction moratorium on September 1, 2020, expected to last until December 31 of that year. The order cited Section 361 of the

Public Health Service Act The Public Health Service Act is a United States federal law enacted in 1944. The full act is codified in Title 42 of the United States Code (The Public Health and Welfare), Chapter 6A (Public Health Service). Contents The act clearly establis ...

, which gives the agency authority to: A challenge to the moratorium was filed in November by the Alabama Association of Realtors. In the District Court for D.C., Judge

Dabney L. Friedrich Dabney Langhorne Friedrich (née Patricia Dabney Langhorne; born June 19, 1967) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States federal judge, United States district court judge of the United States District Court for the District o ...

ruled that the Public Health Service act did not give the CDC authority to enact moratoria on evictions. Friedrich cited the rule of '' eiusdem generis'', writing that evictions were too dissimilar from the other items listed in Section 361 to be covered under the phrase "and other measures." On appeal, the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

voted 5–4, to maintain the moratorium. The

Biden administration Joe Biden's tenure as the 46th president of the United States began with his inauguration on January 20, 2021. Biden, a Democrat from Delaware who previously served as vice president under Barack Obama, took office following his victory ...

issued a new eviction moratorium on August 3, 2021, intended to last until October 3. It was applicable to counties with substantial or high transmission rates of COVID-19. On August 26, the Supreme Court struck down the moratorium.

State

have implemented some form of an eviction moratorium during the COVID-19 pandemic; 27 of these states lifted their eviction moratoriums between May and September 2020.

California

On June 28, 2021,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Newsom signed a bill passed by the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...

extending eviction protections until September 30.

New York

In December 2020, the

New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an official ...

passed a state moratorium on evictions. In May 2021, the legislature extended the moratorium until August 31. The Supreme Court struck down a provision of the state moratorium that protected people who filed a form declaring economic hardship, rather than providing evidence in court.

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* * {{COVID-19 pandemic in the United States Housing in the United States United States responses to the COVID-19 pandemic