U.S. Supreme Court blocks Biden’s COVID eviction ban. What it means for SC tenants
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a federal moratorium on evictions late Thursday night, putting thousands of South Carolinians who benefited from the temporary protections at risk of losing their homes yet again.
The court’s six conservative justices ruled that the federal Centers for Disease Control had “exceeded its authority” in issuing the moratorium, which was aimed at keeping tenants in stable housing to help curb the spread of COVID-19.
The decision comes during a major resurgence of the virus that is overwhelming hospitals in South Carolina. On Friday, the state reported 6,697 probable and confirmed cases, the highest single day count it has seen since January.
Meanwhile, 68% of renters in South Carolina said they were likely or very likely to be evicted in the next two months, according to a U.S. Census Bureau survey from earlier this month.
“Kicking people out of their homes is only going to make what is already a very serious situation even worse,” said Sue Berkowitz, director of the South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice.
Other states, including California and Illinois, have issued their own eviction bans, but South Carolina residents have relied solely on various federal protections for the bulk of the pandemic.
“Our legislative leaders or the governor could step up and try to issue an emergency order but so far no one has tried to taken any action on this issue,” said Berkowitz.
Donald Wood, executive director of the South Carolina Apartment Association, said another moratorium would only kick the can further down the road.
“It does nothing to speed the delivery of real solutions for America’s renters and ignores the unsustainable and unfair economic burden placed on millions of housing providers.”
Though thousands of eviction proceedings that were put on hold can now resume, Wood said many of those filings may not actually end with the tenant being displaced. That’s because property owners are usually willing to work with tenants who are making an effort to pay off their debts.
“Our members are committed to keeping residents in their homes but we cannot foot the bill alone,” he said.
There are millions of dollars in federal aid available to tenants who have fallen behind on rent, but most of that remains untouched. For instance, SC Housing received more than $271 million to help residents in the state’s 39 smaller counties. Though 4,195 applications have been completed, only $17.2 million has been paid out, according to the agency’s spokesman, Chris Winston.
Still, Winston said that represents a vast improvement from the $3 million that had been distributed by the end of July. Since then, the agency has relaxed documentation requirements and other guidelines to get applications approved at a faster pace. With those changes, Winston said, it now takes between 2-4 weeks from the time an application is submitted to get the funds paid out.
Even if a renter has already been evicted, they can still use that money to help pay off their outstanding debts and cover other expenses such as moving vans, storage, or a down payment at a new apartment.
Renters in most counties can apply for assistance through SC Housing by visiting its website or calling 800-476-0412.
Those living in Anderson County, Berkeley County, Charleston County, Greenville County, Horry County, Richland County or Spartanburg County should apply through their respective county-wide programs.
This story was originally published August 27, 2021 at 3:15 PM.
