Zafar Shah, a housing attorney with the Public Justice Center, said, “Nearly four in ten Maryland households are behind on rent and report that they are very likely or somewhat likely to leave their home due to eviction in the next two months. And, notably, that figure is 55% for Black households.”
Renters United Maryland says there are less than three weeks left in the legislative session and are calling on lawmakers to act.
“It is not unreasonable to expect that we would use the 800 million dollars that has come to Maryland to provide for rental assistance to ask landlord to take that money to continue to keep people housed just for the emergency, “ said Molly Amster with Jews United for Justice
Since the start of the pandemic, over 3,000 Maryland families have experienced court-ordered evictions, despite the existing eviction protections provided by the CDC and the Governor’s Executive Order. The CDC’s order is set to expire at the end of the month, courts have reopened and are hearing tens of thousands of eviction cases in the coming weeks, and there are less than three weeks left in the Maryland General Assembly session, yet the legislature has done nothing to provide additional protections against evictions.
If property owners can still terminate a lease after their tenants pay what they owe, the money will amount to little more than a bailout for landlords, says Zafar Shah with the Public Justice Center. He says landlords are less likely to keep a tenant they predict will fall behind on rent again, even after the pandemic wanes.
RUM strongly urges the General Assembly to protect Maryland renters from lease non-renewals and “Tenant Holding Over” evictions during the emergency and economic recovery.
On Tuesday February 23, more than two hundred renters and activists urged their legislators to support critical legislative proposals now pending in the Maryland General Assembly to win housing justice in 2021.
Renters, now approaching 40 percent of state residents, know what’s at stake. They know what’s on the table. They are watching and waiting for bold action. Although temporary protections from eviction are helpful, they do little to change the underlying destabilization in Maryland’s housing economy.
Protect our Homes Day is Renters United Maryland’s virtual lobby night for the 2021 Maryland General Assembly session.
Learn about HB 52/SB 454, the Eviction Diversion and Defense bill, in the video below and download RUM’s bill summary and testimony template so that you can support this legislation. Written testimony to support SB 454 is due on Friday Feb 5 by 3PM. The bill will be heard in the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee on… Read More »Supporter Kit: HB 52/SB 454 Eviction Diversion and Defense
HB 52/SB 454 is a key reform to Maryland’s eviction process. Learn about the bill in this video and then take action to support the legislation.