New York passed a sweeping law extending its eviction and foreclosure moratoriums until May 1 and bolstering credit protections for people struggling to pay their rent, mortgage or property taxes during the coronavirus pandemic.
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the COVID-19 Emergency Eviction and Foreclosure Prevention Act of 2020 into law late Monday, explaining that “the more support we provide for tenants, mortgagors and seniors, the easier it will be for them to get back on their feet when the pandemic ends.”
Housing rights advocates have praised the move, but say more action is needed to protect tenants and homeowners nationwide.
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President Donald Trump signed the bipartisan $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill late Sunday, along with the $1.4 trillion omnibus spending package that continues to fund the U.S. government.
The relief bill, which passed both houses of Congress last week, includes expanded unemployment, money for small business loans, direct payments, rental assistance and extends the eviction moratorium for another month.
In a statement, Trump criticized some of the spending and provisions included in the bill.
“I will sign the Omnibus and Covid package with a strong message that makes clear to Congress that wasteful items need to be removed,” Trump said in a statement. “I will send back to Congress a redlined version, item by item, accompanied by the formal rescission request to Congress insisting that those funds be removed from the bill.”
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With mass vaccinations on the horizon, many advocates, community leaders and legal experts are worried about a possible wave of evictions once moratoriums are eventually lifted, spiking homelessness and exacerbating another public health issue. They say whether that wave will be a tsunami, as some have predicted, will be up to the progress communities can make while the moratoriums remain in place.
However, issues in collecting local data have left the city uncertain as to the scale of unpaid rent in Austin and, thus, the resources required to address it. The federal government’s only coronavirus stimulus package is set to expire Dec. 31 and local elected leaders, government officials and housing advocates say without another one, progress will be difficult to forge.