An eviction moratorium has lapsed after President Joe Biden's administration, and Congress failed to win an extension, placing hundreds of thousands of tenants at risk of losing shelter.

When the Supreme Court allowed a one-month extension of the eviction moratorium last month, Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh warned that any further extensions would have to go through Congress, The New York Times reported.

The nationwide moratorium on residential evictions has expired on July 31. Last Thursday, the White House said it could not extend the eviction ban and urged Congress to do it.

But the House Democrats failed to collect the votes to prevent its lapse this weekend. Several lawmakers were claiming that Joe Biden's inaction blindsided them on the matter. Some were infuriated that he called on Congress to give a last-minute solution.

New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and other Democrats were with Rep. Cori Bush in camping outside the Capitol over the weekend. Bush said they don't plan to leave until some type of change is applied.

In a statement, the House Democratic leaders said it was now up to the Biden administration to act and extend the eviction moratorium until Oct. 18.

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American Renters

Over 3.6 million Americans are at risk of facing eviction in a matter of days, Associated Press reported. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) had implemented the eviction moratorium as part of the COVID-19 crisis response when employment changed, and many workers had lost their income.

The moratorium is needed as evictions make it difficult for people to socially distance, according to advocates. Rep. Maxine Waters said they thought the White House was in charge. She is the current chair of the Financial Services Committee.

Aspen Institute and the COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project noted that more than 15 million people are currently behind rental payments, out of the 6.5 million households in the U.S., Reuters reported.

They owe as much as $20 billion to their landlords. Landlord groups have been against the moratorium, with some struggling to keep up with the mortgage, tax, and insurance payments on properties without rental income.

Eviction Moratorium

The moratorium took effect in September 2020 to prevent homelessness during the pandemic. It has faced extensions multiple times.

The CDC said in June that it would not impose further extensions. But a CDC spokeswoman has affirmed that the moratorium has already expired and did not comment on the matter.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that out of $46.5 billion in rental relief earlier approved by Congress, only $3 billion had been distributed to renters.

Pelosi said on Saturday that lawmakers were demanding the $46.5 billion approved by Congress to be handed out to renters and landlords.

Meanwhile, other states have taken the initiative to extend the eviction moratorium, such as California and New York. Federal agencies that finance rental housing had urged owners of those properties to take advantage of assistance programs and avoid evicting tenants.

Homelessness Amid the Pandemic

Many U.S. cities had seen a significant increase in homeless populations, with an estimated peak of three percent between 2008 and 2009.

A report provided to Congress by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development said that 580,466 Americans experienced homelessness on a single night in 2020. The current figure was an increase of 2.2 percent from 2019, The Guardian reported.

The number of unsheltered individuals increased by seven percent, while chronic homelessness had risen by 15 percent.

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Written by: Mary Webber

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