Congressmen Krishnamoorthi, García, And Davis Ask CDC To Extend Eviction Moratorium In Response To Worsening Pandemic
WASHINGTON, DC – Yesterday, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-8), Congressman Jesús García (IL-4), and Congressman Danny Davis (IL-7) sent a letter to Director Robert Redfield at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) requesting that the CDC extend its eviction moratorium. The Congressmen expressed their concern that if this moratorium were to expire at the end of December, over 19 million Americans would potentially face evictions.
The CDC's eviction moratorium was implemented on September 4th through the Public Health Service Act with the justification that evictions could lead to a rise in homelessness and overcrowding in homeless shelters, a situation in which it's difficult to follow public health measures. When the eviction moratorium was implemented, there were 174,000 deaths in the U.S. from COVID-19, and currently, there are over 270,000 deaths.
Given the prolonged stalling of the economy, the current rising COVID-19 case rates, and the potential increase in COVID-19 cases which could result from a wave of new evictions, the Congressmen believe that this eviction moratorium is still necessary in order to provide a safety net to those in need.
"We saw an increased level of evictions in between the expiration of the CARES Act eviction mortarium on July 25th and the implementation of the CDC moratorium on September 4th," the Representatives wrote. "Allowing for another gap in between moratoriums – during the coldest month of the year – could have a catastrophic impact on public health and economic recovery in the United States."
The Congressmen asked that the eviction moratorium be extended past its current December deadline and requested a response from Director Redfield by Friday, December 11th.
A copy of the letter is available here.