Public Policy

Bureaucratic wrangling, technical malfunctions, strict documentation requirements: These are just a few of the reported reasons that billions of dollars in federal aid have failed to reach renters and landlords as the debate over the eviction moratorium has dragged on. An analysis by USA Today this week revealed a broad variety of causes for the delays. “Many states contracted third-party vendors to lead the programs, requiring lengthy procurement processes that delayed the initial rollout of money,” the paper reports. “Computer systems in several states malfunctioned, preventing renters from applying. Some states are forcing tenants to provide more documentation than required by federal law, which experts say has created unnecessary hurdles to get money out the door.” The paper notes that…

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is warning mortgage lenders around the country to continue offering practical assistant to consumers who may be delinquent in their mortgage payments, promising oversight of the lending industry to ensure adherence to consumer safety regulations. The CFPB said in a report this month that it surveyed 16 different mortgage providers and found that “some populations of borrowers at these servicers may have difficulty establishing live contact and obtaining assistance from some servicers.” Additionally, the bureau found that “growing numbers of borrowers are exiting COVID-19 hardship forbearances in a delinquent status, and some servicers are substantially underperforming their peers in key effectiveness metrics.” The CFPB said that lenders should “enhance their communication capabilities and outreach…

A group of landlords suing the federal government over its current eviction ban has been granted an expedited hearing on the matter, with the government itself agreeing to that schedule, though the ultimate date of the court’s decision remains uncertain. In a filing late last week, the Alabama Association of Realtors said the White House had agreed to a rapid filing-and-response schedule for this week, one that requires the government’s opposition filing to be in place by Tuesday and the realtors’ response to be logged by Wednesday morning. The court subsequently granted that request. Both parties have requested a final ruling on the matter by Thursday morning, though it’s unclear if the court will be able to accomplish that quick…

A bill currently working its way through the Massachusetts legislature would, if passed, institute an “equitable housing recovery” process in that state to fix what advocates say is a looming crisis of evictions after more than a year of the COVID-19 crisis. The bill would “prevent COVID-19 evictions and foreclosures and promote an equitable housing recovery,” in part by forbidding landlords from commencing evictions unless they had “exhausted all available opportunities, and worked in good faith, to obtain short-term emergency rental assistance” for their tenets. The advocacy group Homes for All Massachusetts hailed the bill as one that would “prevent displacement, ensure timely and equitable distribution of rental assistance, and promote racial and economic equity.” Massachusetts, like many states, has…

A U.S. senator this week launched a long-shot effort to repeal the eviction moratorium put in place by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a gambit which comes amid the moratorium’s uncertain constitutional standing. Penn. Sen. Pat Toomey introduced the resolution in the Senate on Wednesday; if passed, it would order that the moratorium “shall have no force or effect” under U.S. law. Pursuant to the resolution, Toomey asked the Government Accountability Office to determine whether or not the CDC’s order formally counts as a “rule” under GAO regulations. “Though the CDC did not pursue notice and comment rulemaking, the eviction moratorium appears to be generally applicable, prospective in nature, and designed to interpret law,” Toomey wrote. It…

Some courts throughout the U.S. are moving to forestall chaos by offering homeowners and renters some protection as the threat of evictions loom larger across the country. In New Mexico, the court system is setting rules to ease the potential crush of bill collectors and mortgage companies that may arise in the near future with the potential expiration of the federal eviction ban. The state’s Administrative Office of the Courts earlier this month “announced staggered deadlines for a return to debt collection orders that can be used to garnish wages or seize property to pay off commercial debts,” the Albuquerque Journal reports. Under the order, “money from standard and supplemental unemployment benefit payments will remain exempt from commercial debt collections,”…

A federal judge this week suggested that “gamesmanship” may be a factor in the ongoing legal tussle between the federal government and U.S. landlords over Washington’s extended eviction ban. DC District Court Judge Dabney Friedrich this week considered a request by a coalition of landlords to put a stay on the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest nationwide ban on evictions. Friedrich suggested that there is “a degree of gamesmanship going on” with the CDC’s eviction ban, coming on the heels of the Supreme Court’s ruling that directed any future bans to come from Congress, not the executive branch. The judge nevertheless indicated that she may let the current moratorium stand given earlier rulings permitting the last ban…

The editorial board of the Washington Post this week bluntly stated that the most recent eviction moratorium issued by the Biden administration is essentially guaranteed to be struck down by the Supreme Court. The Biden CDC issued the new ban this week after the prior version expired on July 31. This week’s moratorium comes after the Supreme Court in June ruled that any additional moratoriums would have to come from Congress, not the executive branch. On Thursday, the Washington Post’s editorial board conceded that, in light of that ruling, Biden’s new order was “almost certainly illegal.” “Under pressure from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi … and progressive Democrats, President Biden and the CDC may have muted accusations that they failed to…