NAR has always maintained that the best solution for all parties whose housing was impacted by COVID-19 was rental assistance to cover the rent, taxes, and utility bills for tenants struggling during the pandemic. This prevents two crises—one for tenants, and one for mom-and-pop housing providers who do not have a reprieve from their bills. With rental assistance secured, the economy strengthening, and unemployment rates falling, there is no need to continue a blanket, nationwide eviction ban. Our focus now is on the swift and full implementation of rental assistance as we aim to regain stability and normalcy in America’s housing market.
On August 3, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a fourth extension of the eviction moratorium(link is external), effective through October 3, 2021. The previous order expired on July 31, 2021, and the most recent order states the expiration is subject to revision based on the changing public health landscape.
With NAR’s support, the Alabama and Georgia Associations of REALTORS® (Plaintiffs), who originally filed a lawsuit against the CDC in November 2020 on behalf of housing providers nationwide, again challenged the latest extension. An emergency motion(link is external) was filed on August 4, 2021, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, seeking enforcement of the June 29th U.S. Supreme Court Order(link is external) that stated the CDC could not extend the moratorium beyond July 31st, without congressional authorization via new legislation.
On August 13, 2021, after holding a hearing on the motion, the D.C. District Court denied the plaintiffs’ motion to lift the stay of the District Court’s order pending appeal, thereby leaving the CDC’s extension of the eviction moratorium in place. While the D.C. District Court felt bound by the D.C. Circuit Court’s judgment upholding the stay, the court also recognized that the Supreme Court and other federal appellate courts “call into the question the D.C. Circuit’s conclusion that the CDC is likely to succeed on the merits . . . [and] absent the D.C. Circuit’s judgment, this Court would vacate the stay.” The plaintiffs immediately appealed the District Court’s decision to the D.C. Circuit on August 14, 2021.
On August 20, 2021, a three-judge panel of the D.C. Circuit Court likewise denied(link is external) the plaintiffs’ request to vacate the stay pending appeal. As a result, the plaintiffs will now appeal to the Supreme Court.
READ MORE ABOUT THE CDC LIGITGATION – HERE