Tenant Protections during the COVID-19 Eviction Moratorium

Oregon Housing and Community Services provides guidance during the pandemic under the eviction moratorium – available in 12 languages.

SALEM – Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, more than one in four Oregon renters spent half of their income or more on housing costs. As a result of the pandemic related economic downturn, even more families are having difficulty paying rent. When the pandemic began, Governor Kate Brown quickly enacted a moratorium to prevent a wave of evictions. On June 26, Oregon legislators passed HB 4213, which extended Governor Brown’s moratorium on residential and commercial evictions until September 30, 2020. This is vital in a pandemic as housing instability is linked to a variety of negative health consequences and families who fall into homelessness face an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19. 

“In order to “stay home and stay safe,” Oregonians need access to a clean, safe place to call home,” said Oregon Housing and Community Services Executive Director Margaret Salazar. “It breaks my heart to think of our neighbors moving into camping tents or children sleeping in cars. No matter where we’re from or what our circumstances are, everyone deserves safety and housing. That’s why I’m glad to live in a state where our Governor and legislators understand that housing is a basic human need.” 

Under the new law, renters will have until the end of March 2021 to pay back any debt that built up between April 1, 2020 and September 30, 2020. Landlords cannot evict a tenant based on rent that came due between April and September, until after March 31 2021. Recently released data from the Eviction Lab at Princeton University gives favorable rankings to states enacting high impact policies such as these. They note that evictions are correlated with lasting negative impacts with disproportionate evictions against low-income women of color. While it remains to be seen the extent that evictions will contribute to furthering racial disparities in the COVID-19 pandemic, several studies have demonstrated the multitude of ways evictions replicate and perpetuate racial inequities. 

While the eviction moratorium provides immediate relief, rent will still come due. Over the last four months the Oregon Legislature allocated millions of dollars for rent relief. This funding provides a lifeline to those financially impacted by the pandemic who are falling behind on rent or worried about utility bills. Many more remain vulnerable. More than $75 million in rental relief and energy assistance funding was distributed by Oregon Housing and Community Services to local Community Action Agencies (CAAs), which provide a variety of resources and supports to Oregonians free of charge. A statewide map created by OHCS details the energy and rental assistance allocations by service area along with the CAA contact information. 2-1-1 is connecting people with their local CAA service provider to apply for assistance. Calls are answered in over 150 languages.

Without substantial assistance from the Federal government, local assistance dollars will not be enough to cover the projected economic losses stemming from the pandemic. For Oregonians facing multiple stressors including additional caretaking pressures and navigating employment challenges, staying up to date on rapidly changing policies can be daunting. In order to assist tenants who are struggling to pay rent, Oregon Housing and Community Services created the following 5-step document, current as of July 27, 2020:

English

Spanish

Hmong

Arabic

Korean

Russian

Somali

Marshallese

Chinese – Traditional

Chinese – Simplified

Chuukese

Vietnamese