When COVID-19 broke out, Governor Newsom and Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sankauye issued emergency moratoriums on residential evictions, to allow California tenants to defer paying rent if they were unable to afford it due to COVID-19. With millions of Californians out of work or with reduced incomes, these decisions have been critical to keeping Californians safely in their homes and saving millions of tenants from being forced into homelessness.
But time is running out on those protections, and eviction moratoriums could be lifted at any time. When they are, tenants would immediately owe all past due rent at once or face evictions. As we all know, so many Californians are hanging by a thread financially, and if the protections go away, that would be catastrophic for all of them.
From a study by the U.S. Census Bureau, we know that 14% of Californians could not pay their rent last month, and 31% are concerned they won’t be able to this month. If you or your family have lost your job or seen your wages go down because of COVID-19, that’s not your fault, and you should not be evicted. Period.
While this bill is incredibly necessary, it will not be an easy fight — so I need you with me. I’ll make sure to let you know how you can help pass AB 1436 in the coming weeks.
By passing common-sense legislation like this, we can weather this health and economic storm as one California. Please join us.
Onward,
David
PS — You can read more about our bill in this San Francisco Chronicle article here.