CDC Announces Eviction Moratorium Through October 3rd - Updated
Yesterday, the CDC issued a new limited eviction moratorium order – starting today through October 3 – for renters living in counties experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases.
The order covers counties experiencing substantial or high levels of community transmission of COVID-19. Visit the CDC's COVID Data Tracker to see the 29 counties in Pennsylvania that are currently covered by the order. Counties that are not covered now but later experience substantial or high levels of community transmission will become subject to the order. Conversely, counties that are no longer experiencing substantial or high transmission levels for 14 consecutive days will no longer be subject to the order.
Recent research estimates that up to 80% of households behind on rent and at risk of eviction live in communities with over 100% COVID-19 case growth rates in July. The new moratorium will help keep renters safely and stably housed and it will provide state and local governments more time to distribute emergency rental assistance (ERA) to households in need.
Under the new moratorium:
All renters living in communities experiencing a surge in COVID-19 cases are covered
Renters are protected for up to two months, through October 3
Persons who have previously filed a declaration under the prior CDC eviction moratoria, still meet the definition of "covered persons", and are currently residing in a community experiencing substantial or high rates of transmission will not need to submit a new declaration
The moratorium is not retroactive and will not protect those renters who have already been evicted from their homes.
For the most recent information on the CDC Moratorium, please visit the CDC Temporary Protection from Eviction Webpage.
For the most recent information on federal guidance for ERAP, please visit the US Treasury ERAP webpage.
For the most recent information in the Pennsylvania State ERAP programs, please visits the PA Dept. of Human Services webpage on Emergency Rental Assistance.
### Since this article was first published on August 4, 2021, the Supreme Court has since voted to overrule the CDC moratorium as of August 26, 2021. Currently, there are no federal eviction moratoriums in place.