CDC officially extends eviction moratorium through March

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has officially extended the nationwide eviction moratorium through March 31. The order was signed and posted to its website Friday. It had been set to expire Jan. 31.

President Joe Biden had officially requested the agency extend the moratorium on his first day in office, as part of a slew of executive orders. The new director of the Centers for Disease Control, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, had also indicated in a statement released on inauguration day that she would be extending the moratorium.

In that statement, Walensky noted that the pandemic has not only threatened the nation’s health, “it has also triggered a housing affordability crisis that disproportionately affects some communities.”

“We must act to get cases down and keep people in their homes and out of congregate settings — like shelters — where COVID-19 can take an even stronger foothold,” she said.

As with previous extensions of the order, renters must meet certain criteria, such as being unable to make rent due to a “substantial loss of household income,” and submit a signed declaration form to their landlords in order to take advantage of its protections.

Additionally, there have been cases where renters thought they met all the eligibility requirements, but were still kicked out of their housing because of loopholes, such as having their leases terminated rather than explicitly being evicted for failing to pay.

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