Biden just renewed a ban on evictions. Here’s what that means for South Carolina
While the rest of the country was focused on last week’s presidential inauguration, housing advocates in South Carolina were gearing up for a different date: Jan. 30. That’s when a nationwide moratorium on evictions was set to expire, leaving thousands across the state at risk of losing their homes.
But that crisis was averted after President Joe Biden signed an executive order extending the moratorium until the end of March.
“This is particularly important in South Carolina because we already had such a staggering eviction problem,” said Sue Berkowitz, executive director of SC Appleseed Legal Justice. Her group has called for additional protections on both the state and federal levels for renters facing eviction.
Halting evictions
In 2016, South Carolina had the highest eviction rate in the country at 8.7 percent, according to data collected by Princeton University’s Eviction Lab.. Another study released last month by insurance company AdvisorSmith said one in five renters in the state are now at risk of being evicted.
Bryan Grady, the chief research officer for South Carolina’s Housing Finance and Development Authority, said extending the moratorium gives the state more time to distribute rental relief from various sources. In December, Congress allocated $25 billion to help tenants across the country who are behind on rent. His own agency has also set aside $25 million for a similar program.
“As we race to get that money out the door, we now know that the moratorium isn’t going to end before people have access to these resources.” he said.
Though most advocates agreed the move was necessary to help keep people off the street, some, including Columbia city councilwoman Tameika Isaac Devine, said they would like to see a longer term solution as well.
“This kicks the can down the road and could put renters and landlords in jeopardy if they are still unable to pay off their debts when [the moratorium] ends,” said Devine, who heads the city’s affordable housing task force. “Luckily there is some funding and help that’s available, but we need to do a better job of educating people about that.”
Funding rental relief
As part of his own proposed coronavirus stimulus package, Biden is calling on Congress to allocate an additional $30 billion in rent and utility assistance and $5 billion in emergency aid for those facing homelessness.
Ivory Mathews, CEO of the Columbia Housing Authority, said these added funds were “much needed,” especially for tenants living in public housing, many of whom have been laid off or had their hours cut due to the pandemic.
“This assistance will help reduce and hopefully eliminate an unprecedented wave of evictions,” she said.
Transforming affordable housing
Aside from coronavirus relief, Biden proposed several housing policies during last year’s campaign. One of the most significant is a plan to vastly expand the Section 8 housing voucher program, which provides housing subsidies to low-income households. According to his campaign website, Biden wants to fully fund the program so that all 17-million low-income families who are eligible receive vouchers.
Maren Trochmann, assistant professor of political science at the College of Charleston and former division director for the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, explained that Section 8 works differently from other entitlement programs like Social Security. That’s because the program doesn’t receive enough funding to cover everyone who meets the income requirements.
“Even people who qualify end up on years-long waiting lists,” she said. “His plan to make this program universal would have huge economic impacts. If people are no longer spending half their income on rent, they can plug that back into the economy in other ways.”
As part of his $1.3 trillion infrastructure plan, Biden has also designated funding for the construction and rehabilitation of 1.5 million affordable housing units.
“Resources of this magnitude will have a tremendous impact on addressing the affordable housing needs of our community,” said Mathews. She noted that it would cost more than $500 million to rehabilitate the city’s current public housing units.
