US Associate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in June he believed the eviction moratorium could only be legally extended by legislative action, but the Democratic-controlled Congress went into recess without passing such a bill, leaving it up to the White House to keep more than 11 million American renters in their homes.
The nationwide eviction ban put in place by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been allowed to stand by a DC federal court, but only because it was found to be an extension of the previous ban, which the Biden administration had denied.
That ruling barred her from further action because Judge Friedrich argued that the August 3 order is an extension of the previous moratorium, which her court previously vacated in May, and not a new document, as the Biden administration had attempted to argue. While the old order was allowed to expire on July 31, the renewal four days later was more “targeted,” including only areas with “substantial” or “high” rates of community spread of COVID-19.
Nonetheless, the basis of her May order vacating the moratorium was based on the CDC having insufficient statutory authority to order such a ban, even if in the interests of slowing community spread of COVID-19, as the CDC claimed.
The plaintiffs, a group of Georgia and Alabama landlords, are expected to appeal the decision.
The social lockdowns adopted early in the COVID-19 pandemic successfully blunted the virus’ spread, but they also brought economic chaos as capitalist economies around the globe struggled under the weight of sudden massive interruptions of manufacturing and commerce, throwing millions into unemployment. Facing a wave of evictions, the federal government and many US state governments imposed bans on evicting tenants who’d fallen behind on their rent, which at its height protected nearly 40 million Americans, according to the Aspen Institute.
The ban’s reinstatement after a four-day lapse is due in large part to a protest outside the US Capitol Building led by Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), which turned the order’s expiration into an embarrassing public spectacle for the government. While Justice Kavanaugh hinted he would rule against the moratorium in the future unless it was authorized by legislative action, Congress went into its seven-week summer recess on July 29 without having attempted to pass such a bill, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) insisting only the White House could renew the act.
Another moratorium was also allowed to expire on July 31 that has not been renewed, which protected homeowners with mortgages backed by federal lenders who were behind on their mortgage payments from being foreclosed on. While the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau implemented several mitigating measures to give qualifying homeowners additional time and flexibility to catch up on their payments, there has been no attempt to renew the foreclosure ban.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
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