NEWS: Advocates praise Gov. Kate Brown calling special session to stop preventable evictions
Today Gov. Kate Brown called for a special session next month for lawmakers to take action so that people who have applied for rent assistance from state and local agencies cannot be evicted during the application process. Here is a statement from Stable Homes for Oregon Families:
“Governor Brown’s call is welcome news for the thousands of renting families and individuals who are living every day with the threat of eviction because the rent assistance they applied for has been delayed for months. We also appreciate all the state lawmakers who have been working together on a solution. We urge the legislature to ensure no one loses their home while their applications are pending and also provide additional funding to help keep people safe and stable during this time of ongoing economic upheaval.”
Background:
Current state and local law says no one can be evicted for 60 or 90 days - depending on the county - after showing landlords proof of applying for assistance. But according to Oregon Housing and Community Services, more than 10, 500 Oregon Households are at risk of eviction because their applications still haven’t been processed after two or three months. Since July 1, court eviction filings for non-payment have increased six-fold and the application logjam means thousands and thousands of renting households are at risk
More than 60 local and statewide advocacy, health care, faith-based organizations as well as housing providers, local governments and labor unions are supporting action to protect tenants in the special session. They include:
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AARP Oregon
ACLU Oregon
Basic Rights Oregon
Cascade Aids Project
City of Beaverton
City of Bend
City of Gresham
City of Hillsboro
City of Portland
Clackamas Women’s Services
Coalition of Communities of Color
Community Alliance of Tenants
Compact of Free Association Alliance National Network
Community Action Partnership of Oregon
Consejo Hispano
DevNW
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon
Fair Shot for All
Family Forward Oregon
Habitat for Humanity of Oregon
Health Share of Oregon
Home Forward
Housing Alliance
Housing Authority of Oregon
Housing Oregon
Human Solutions
JOIN
Lane County Oregon
Latino Network
Metro
Metropolitan Alliance for Common Good
Metropolitan Family Services
Multnomah County
NAMI Oregon
Northwest Family Services
Northwest Pilot Project
Oregon AFL-CIO
Oregon AFSCME
Oregon Center for Public Policy
Oregon Coalition Against Domestic and Sexual Violence
Oregon Coalition of Christian Voices
Oregon Consumer Justice
Oregon Education Association
Oregon Food Bank
Oregon Law Center
Oregon Nurses Association
Oregon Primary Care Association
Oregon Renters in Action
Project Access Now
Raphael House of Portland
Rent Well
Residents Organizing for Change Oregon
Rogue Action Center
SATF Oregon
SEIU
Springfield Eugene Tenants Association
Transition Projects
Unite Oregon
United Way of the Columbia-Willamette
Washington County
We Can Do Better
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