The CDC extended its pandemic eviction moratorium for another month on Thursday but director Rochelle Walensky said it would be the last time the do so. The moratorium, which was set to expire next week, will now end on July 31, giving the Biden administration time to institute what it calls an “all-hands-on-deck” approach to prevent a national wave of evictions. That includes Treasury Department guidance on billions in federal funding to go toward rent relief, along with an open letter from Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta urging state courts to find eviction alternatives. All in all, the extension was “the right thing to do—morally, fiscally, politically, and as a continued public health measure,” said Diane Yentel, the president of the National Low Income Housing Coalition.
Some states have already adopted relief measures. Earlier this week, California announced it would pay $5.2 billion in unpaid rent using federal stimulus money.