The White House said on Monday that United States President Joe Biden wished to extend the country's eviction moratorium but lacked the legal authority to do so, which allowed the protection to expire over the weekend.
The incident has put pressure onto many states that were not quick enough in distributing billions of dollars in financial assistance to millions of American renters. Residents are now facing the possibility of being forced out of their homes.
End of Eviction Moratorium
In a statement, White House press secretary Jen Psaki noted that Biden would have "strongly supported" an extension of the eviction moratorium recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). However, she said that in June, the Supreme Court declared the CDC did not have the authority to grant such an extension without approval from Congress.
White House officials also said that the CDC rejected Biden's proposal for a new, 30-day eviction moratorium that would prioritize counties with high infection rates of the coronavirus. On Monday, Psaki said CDC Director Rochelle Walensky and her team have been unsuccessful in finding legal authority for a new, targeted eviction moratorium, Fox News reported.
The secretary said her team is continuing its efforts to identify all possible routes to provide necessary protections to American renters. Psaki noted that Biden will continue to protect affected individuals to the best of his ability in the meantime.
In that regard, the Democrat leader has urged landlords to hold off on evicting their tenants and called on states and cities to follow their own policies that support renters in keeping their homes. The White House revealed that he asked the CDC to "consider once again" the use of executive action to extend the moratorium.
Gene Sperling, a White House senior adviser who oversees the American Rescue Plan implementation of Biden's administration, said that the president is doing everything he can to protect his citizens. The announcements come after the Democrat faced widespread criticism for not taking any actions regarding the expiration of the eviction moratorium, USA Today reported.
Risk of Becoming Homeless
Many residents at risk of being evicted due to the expiration of the moratorium are desperately seeking assistance to keep their homes. Several families from Ohio to Virginia appeared in court asking for a last-minute reprieve. At least 600 renters in Detroit had court orders against them and were immediately put at risk of being homeless.
Ted Phillips, a lawyer who leads the United Community Housing Coalition in Detroit said the situation has become even more worrisome with the end of the eviction moratorium. Despite House Speaker Nancy Pelosi asking for an immediate extension of the moratorium, the Biden administration was not successful in providing that demand.
The Democratic leader leaned on the massive funding that was set aside for American renters to avert the crisis. But officials have been slow in distributing the financial assistance nationwide. From the $25 billion allocated funds, only about $3 billion has been distributed through June by states and local governments, the Associated Press reported.
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