Federal money is available. So why are landlords and renters suffering? States, cities are dispersing rental assistance at a snail’s pace File(Vyacheslav Dumchev / Getty Images/iStockphoto) 2:00 AM on Aug 4, 2021 CDT With a fight now well underway over the federal eviction moratorium, it is past time to take the non-controversial step of spending the federal money available for renters. We say this regardless of whether the administration can now extend that expired moratorium. After all, too many people could be cast onto the streets. Such an outcome is avoidable. States and local governments must speed distribution of billions of federal dollars to pay landlords whose tenants are unable to pay the rent. Nationally, just $3 billion of the $45 billion in federal rental assistance from the last two coronavirus stimulus packages has made it to the landlords despite the fact that those dollars are in the hands of state and local officials. The disbursal rate is better in Texas, but by some estimates about 30% of the money has made it to landlords.