Amid an influx of federal stimulus funds and the impending expiration of tenant protections, state lawmakers passed the Thursday an emergency measure to deliver billions of dollars in rental assistance and extend an eviction moratorium until June.
The approval of Senate Bill 91 clears the way for the distribution of $ 2.6 billion to homeowners and utilities to settle at least some of the unpaid bills of low- and moderate-income Californians affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The budget bill measure comes days before the January 31 expiration of a state moratorium about evictions.
????Info re: proposed rent relief in California Senate Bill 91 (CA #SB91):
6mo. eviction moratorium, landlord options:
A – Agrees, gets directly up to 80% back rent pay, must forgive 20%
B – Refuses, gets 25% backpay from state, 25% to tenant for future rent https://t.co/sZEos1AS7a– ???? Cortez Le for LA Controller 2022 (@cortezleforla) January 26, 2021
“WE WILL CONTINUE WORKING”
The President of the Senate, After Tem Toni Atkins, a San Diego Democrat, said the bill would serve as a down payment to support homeowners and renters.
“Make no mistake, this is not the end,” said Atkins, one of the top leaders behind the measure. “We will continue to work on this in the coming months.”
The bill still needs Governor Gavin Newsom’s signature. The state expects to begin distributing this aid until March.
Federal funds go to renter families who earn less than 80% of income middle of the area, and those who win less than half the median income.
Under the new state measure, landlords can receive 80% of back rent between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021. Landlords must give up the remaining 20% of the debt and not seek eviction of tenants. Landlords who refuse to give up their right to vacate, they can charge the state only 25% back rent. Tenants may also be eligible for partial assistance of up to three months of future rent in the latter case.
CHECK REQUIREMENTS
Tenants will be eligible for protection until June 30 if they meet multiple requirements; must declare that they have lost income due to the pandemic and pay at least a quarter of the back rent owed between September and June.
Landlords must notify tenants of rental assistance programs. Legislators have also earmarked additional funds for legal assistance and plan a multilingual program to educate tenants.
The system for distributing the aid is expected to develop in the coming weeks, likely through a hybrid of state and local programs, officials say. State budget officials estimate that the California renters owe $ 400 million in back rent; other federal and independent investigators estimate it at more than $ 1 billion.
Lawmakers say the urgency is to put money in the accounts of struggling tenants and landlords, despite criticizing the measure for not going far enough.
“This bill extends eviction protections through June and gets Californians on rental assistance quickly,” said Assemblyman David Chiu, D-San Francisco and author of the original moratorium. “While the bill is not perfect and will likely require follow-up action, this is good news for California tenants.”
NOTE IN ENGLISH: California lawmakers approve rent relief, eviction protections
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