CAT Calls on Governor Brown to Act Urgently
On Friday, September 17th, CAT sent this letter to Governor Kate Brown and copied leaders in the legislature.
Dear Governor Brown:
We are writing to you to urge action to address the escalating eviction crisis facing Oregon tenants. The actions taken by the 2021 Oregon Legislature are proving inadequate to prevent evictions as thousands of tenants have seen their applications for rental assistance languish without approval. With the expiration of the federal moratorium, thousands of Oregonians face the real threat of being evicted from their home. Now is the time for you and the Legislature to take immediate action to address the backlog of rental assistance claims and restore an eviction moratorium until those claims can be resolved.
Earlier this year, the Legislature acted through Senate Bill 278 to establish a process for tenants to apply for assistance to repay outstanding rent and forestall eviction until that application was resolved. Unfortunately, the vast majority of renters seeking relief under this legislation have become trapped in a bureaucratic limbo leaving them vulnerable to eviction and uncertain about the relief they will receive. Indeed, fully 80% of Oregonians that have applied for assistance are still waiting on public entities to process those applications. And until an application is processed, they lack the Safe Harbor letter necessary for them to enforce their rights and forestall a landlord beginning eviction proceedings.
The risk of eviction is not abstract or academic: it is a reality for too many Oregonians today. Eviction filings have doubled since May of this year and continue to escalate without the protections of an eviction moratorium. Once a person or family is evicted, the threat of them losing a job, interrupting an education, and even becoming houseless are very real. These are social costs, estimated in a June 2021 study by Portland State University to potentially total up to $4.7 billion, that will impact these Oregonians and the state as a whole for decades to come.
It is not too late to act. The U.S. Department of Treasury recently approved an easy, simple attestation method that cuts the red tape to get assistance to renters quickly and efficiently. It is possible for local housing agencies and nonprofit organizations to accelerate the resolution of rental assistance applications and get funds into the hands of those who need them. But we must act before it is too late. It is critical that the Oregon Housing and Community Services Department act to authorize the lowest barrier method for assistance as allowed by federal guidelines. Only about a third of the rental assistance that has been distributed has gone to Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, Pacific Islander, immigrant and refugee tenants and families. These tenants have spent the last 18 months depleting their savings, going into debt, borrowing from family and friends, and skimping on necessities to pay their rent. There are no more fallbacks for them.
The Oregon Legislature is poised to meet in Special Session to develop maps for the elections next year. We know that this body can act quickly when there is the political will to do so. Oregon tenants cannot wait and hope for the best as bureaucratic delays place their homes at risk. Now is a time for leadership and action to prevent an escalating wave of evictions and displacements. We urge you to call a special session immediately to adopt a temporary eviction moratorium and confront the crisis happening in your community.
As time is of the essence in this matter, we look forward to your response no later than September 19, 2021.
Sincerely,
Kim McCarty
Executive Director
Community Alliance of Tenants