APARTMENT ADVOCATE
NATIONAL APARTMENT ASSOCIATION / NATIONAL MULTIFAMILY HOUSING COUNCIL
Preliminary Guidance on CDC Eviction Moratorium
On September 1 , 2020 , the U . S .
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) filed an order in the Federal Register to temporarily halt residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19 . The order was formally published on Friday , September 4 , 2020 and bars evictions of renters in residential housing until December 31 , 2020 . The order :
• Applies to virtually all rental housing providers and prohibits any eviction action to remove a renter from their housing during the covered period , so long as the renter provides the required declaration to their housing provider ;
• Does not prevent evictions based on the lawful reasons articulated in the order , other than nonpayment of rent ;
• Does NOT eliminate the resident ’ s obligations under the lease , and housing providers may charge late fees or other penalties for nonpayment of rent ; and
• States that any person or organization that violates the order may be subject to up to $ 500,000 in fines per violation and / or jail time . Enhanced penalties apply if the violation resulted in death , at the discretion of the U . S . Department of Justice .
For renters to be eligible for the order ’ s protections , they must provide a declaration under penalty of perjury to their housing provider indicating the following :
• The individual has used best efforts to obtain rental assistance ;
• The individual expects to earn no more than $ 99,000 ( no more than $ 198,000 when filing jointly ); was not required to report income in 2019 to the IRS ; or received a stimulus check pursuant to the CARES Act ;
• The individual is unable to pay their full rent due to a number of factors that remain unconnected to COVID-19 ;
• The individual is using best efforts to make timely partial payments ; and
• Eviction would likely render the individual homeless or force the individual to move into and live in close quarters in a new congregate or shared living setting because the individual has no other available housing options .
• An example of the declaration can be found in the order , and the CDC has provided the document on the website here . Please note that this form will immediately halt any eviction proceedings , and housing providers are not required to distribute the form to residents .
Jurisdictions that have an eviction moratorium providing the same or greater level of public-health protection than the CDC order are exempt from its requirements .
To help housing providers better understand their rights and responsibilities under the order , NAA , in partnership with the Texas Apartment Association ( TAA ), has prepared preliminary guidance and FAQs . This guidance is not intended to be state specific and should be used in conjunction with advice from local legal counsel to interpret these requirements in light of existing federal , state and local eviction laws .
42 | TRENDS OCTOBER 2020 www . aamdhq . org