For Immediate Release June 1, 2021
Contact: Zafar Shah, (410) 625-9409 x 237, Matt Losak, (301) 588-3987
Governor Hogan announced on May 28, 2021, that HB 18, Access to Counsel in Evictions, will become law without his signature. With the bill’s passage, Maryland becomes the second state in the nation to promise legal representation to renters in eviction cases. HB 18 sets the blueprint for ensuring that all income-eligible renters have access to free legal representation in evictions and subsidy terminations by 2025. Access to Counsel legislation was sponsored by Delegates Wanika Fisher, Sandy Rosenberg, Vaughn Stewart, and Jheanelle Wilkins, and in the Senate by Senators Shelly Hettleman, Jill Carter, Michael Jackson, Susan Lee, William Smith, Charles Sydnor, Jeff Waldstreicher, and Christopher West.
Effective October 1, 2021, HB 18 also requires landlords to send tenants a 10-day notice of intent to file an eviction complaint for past due rent. This notice will provide tenants information about the rent purportedly past due, as well as information about how to access legal and dispute resolution resources and financial assistance. With this reform, Maryland joins the majority of states that require notice to the tenant before their landlord resorts to eviction litigation.
“So many people we work with are scared to make demands on their landlord because the landlord may retaliate with an eviction action. Right to counsel gives support to residents who stand up for their right to live in safe, healthy housing.”
Tiffany Ralph, Bolton House Residents Association
“This legislation will give residents in my district and across the state an opportunity for fairness and justice,” said Delegate Wanika Fisher, the lead sponsor of the House bill.
HB 18 was part of the 2021 Housing Justice Package proposed by Renters United Maryland in December 2020 and supported by over 40 organizations listed below.
“I am thrilled that Maryland will become the second state in the nation to provide access to counsel to tenants in eviction proceedings,” said Senator Shelly Hettleman, sponsor of the cross-filed SB 154 on right to counsel. “I am grateful that my colleagues supported providing low-income tenants with the tools they desperately need in landlord/tenant disputes where landlords are already represented the vast majority of the time.”
“With the passage of HB 18, Maryland has a powerful new tool to fend off the looming eviction crisis and the resulting harm to Maryland’s families, public health, and economy,” said Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh. “We urge Governor Hogan to allocate funding from the billions of dollars of Maryland’s federal relief funds to ensure timely and successful implementation of this critical program.”
HB 18 offers a proven, cost-effective path to leveling the imbalance of power between landlord and tenant in court and to preventing the enormous human and social trauma of eviction.
Tiffany Ralph, secretary of the Bolton House Residents Association in Baltimore, noted the importance of this bill for renters: “So many people we work with are scared to make demands on their landlord because the landlord may retaliate with an eviction action. Right to counsel gives support to residents who stand up for their right to live in safe, healthy housing.”
“Providing a statewide right to counsel is a racial and economic equity imperative, especially in light of the massive imbalance of power between landlords and tenants, and Maryland is the second state in the nation to show the others how it can be done,” according to John Pollock, Coordinator of the National Coalition for a Civil Right Counsel and the Public Justice Center.
All eyes now turn to the Governor and General Assembly to allocate funding to implement the bill. The Attorney General, the Maryland Legal Services Corporation, and the Maryland Access to Justice Commission have proposed a gradual implementation schedule seeking $5-$7 million in FY 2022, scaling toward full implementation at $29- $31 million in FY 2025, which would provide access to counsel to 34,000 households resulting in cost savings to the state in the amount of $90.5 million in reduced Medicaid and foster care costs.
Renters United Maryland (RUM) is urging Governor Hogan to allocate funding from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) toward the immediate implementation of the HB 18. As a direct result of the social and economic fallout from COVID-19, over 144,000 Maryland households are facing eviction, with a total rent debt of over $565 million. A staggering 82% of Maryland households facing eviction are persons of color.
Low-income renters, especially in Black and Brown communities, and essential workers have suffered most from COVID and are now most subject to eviction. Providing them with legal counsel will help ensure that the more than $800 million in rental assistance distributed in Maryland to landlords fulfills its primary purpose—to help families maintain safe, stable housing despite the widespread disruption to the economy precipitated by COVID-19.
“If rental assistance is going to be more than a bailout for landlords, legal counsel must help tenants enforce legal protections,” said Matt Hill, attorney at the Public Justice Center.
“By making access to counsel the law in Maryland, Governor Hogan and our legislative leaders have underscored the important role legal representation plays in reducing evictions,” said Reena Shah, Executive Director of Maryland Access to Justice Commission. She continued: “Hundreds of thousands of Marylanders are on the precipice of an eviction tsunami. We thank the Governor for his leadership and urge him to fund the legislation, so we can see the impact this legislation is capable of delivering.”
HB 18 was the product of advocacy and organizing led by Renters United Maryland and over 40 organizations below. In addition to the bill sponsors, Delegate Luke Clippinger and Senator Will Smith as well as House Speaker Adrienne Jones, Senate President Bill Ferguson, and Maryland Attorney General Brian Frosh provided critical support for the legislation. Passing right to counsel legislation for eviction proceedings was a key recommendation of Attorney General Brian Frosh’s COVID-19 Access to Justice Task Force.
Led by Renters United Maryland, the following organizations supported HB 18:
ACLU of Maryland
Arundel Comm. Dev. Services
Balt. Co. Executive Johnny Olszewski, Jr.
Baltimore Jewish Council
Baltimore Regional Housing Pship.
Beyond the Boundaries
Bolton House Residents Association
CASA de Maryland
Catholic Charities
Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility
Commission on Aging
Community Development Network
Communities United
Disability Rights Maryland
Green & Healthy Homes Initiative
Health Care for the Homeless
Homeless Persons Rep. Project
Jews United for Justice
Jewish Community Relations Commission
Marylanders Against Poverty
Md. Access to Justice Commission
Md. Catholic Conference
Md. Center on Economic Policy
Md. Consumer Rights Coalition
Md. Judicial Conf.
Md. Legal Aid
Md. Legal Services Corp.
Md. Legislative Coalition
Md. Pro Bono Resource Ctr.
Md. State Bar Association
Montgomery County Renters Alliance
Naral Pro-Choice Maryland
National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel
Our Revolution, Howard Co.
Prince George’s County Council
Prince George’s County Young Democrats
Public Justice Center
Right to Housing Alliance
Santoni Vocci & Ortega
Showing Up for Racial Justice Baltimore
Stout Risius Ross
Strong Futures Maryland
Voices Maryland
Women’s Law Center of Maryland
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