Congresswoman Cori Bush Leads House Colleagues in Urging the Biden Administration to Extend and Strengthen Eviction Moratorium
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Cori Bush (MO-01), along with Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley (MA-07) and Congressman Jimmy Gomez (CA-34), led a group of 41 lawmakers in sending a letter to President Biden and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Rochelle Walensky urging them to extend and strengthen the federal CDC eviction moratorium beyond its current expiration date of Wednesday, June 30, 2021.
“Without further action, in just eight days, the CDC moratorium will expire, and millions of renters will once again face the threat of eviction. Evictions take lives and push households deeper into poverty, impacting everything from health outcomes to educational attainment,” the Members wrote. “As workers and families across the country are just beginning to recoup from the trauma and economic hardship caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we must take all necessary action to protect them from becoming unhoused during this vulnerable time.”
The eviction crisis is a matter of public health, racial, and economic justice. According to the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey, Black, Latino, Asian, and Indigenous households are more likely to report being behind on their rental payments. Additionally, communities with lower vaccination rates and higher COVID-19 cases tend to be those at a heightened risk for eviction. Allowing the moratorium to expire would both exacerbate the eviction crisis disproportionately impacting communities of color and potentially lead to an increase in the spread of, and deaths from, COVID-19.
“The Biden Administration must aid those facing eviction by extending and significantly strengthening the current CDC moratorium to ensure the protections are automatic, self-executing, and that tenants are not expected to navigate a myriad of overly burdensome eligibility requirements in order to safely remain in their homes,” the Members said. “The impact of the federal moratorium cannot be overstated.”
This letter is co-signed by: Reps. Ritchie Torres, Nydia M. Velazquez, Marie Newman, Karen Bass, Jesus G. “Chuy” Garcia, Andre Carson, Bonnie Watson Coleman, Barbara Lee, Donald S. Beyer Jr., Jan Schakowsky, Ted W. Lieu, Henry C. Johnson Jr., Carolyn B. Maloney, James P. McGovern, Alan Lowenthal, Jamaal Bowman, Betty McCollum, Adriano Espaillat, Frederica Wilson, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Brenda Lawrence, Bobby Rush, Rashida Tlaib, Earl Blumenauer, Kweisi Mfume, Rick Larsen, Mark Pocan, Grace Meng, Jim Cooper, Veronica Escobar, Diana DeGette, Raul Grijalva, Gregory Meeks, Ruben Gallego, Ro Khanna, Jim Himes, Danny Davis, Jerrold Nadler and Ilhan Omar.
Since taking office, Congresswoman Cori Bush has worked tirelessly to ensure families in St. Louis and across the country can remain safely in their homes for the duration of the COVID-19 global health emergency and beyond.
- In March, the Congresswoman helped pass the American Rescue Plan and secured $700 million in funding for the St. Louis region, in addition to $37.5 billion for emergency rental and utility assistance, supportive services, affordable housing and non-congregate shelter space for the unhoused, and support for homeowners.
- In April, the Congresswoman joined St. Louis County Executive Dr. Sam Page in urging the County Council to adopt emergency legislation to temporarily halt 600 evictions, allowing residents additional time to access federal housing aid.
- In May, the Congresswoman led nearly 30 members of Congress in sending a letter to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calling on the CDC to strengthen and extend the federal moratorium on evictions.
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Congresswoman Cori Bush represents Missouri’s First Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives. She serves on the House Judiciary Committee and the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. She is also a Deputy Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a proud member of the Congressional Black Caucus. She is a registered nurse, single mother, and an ordained pastor. Following the murder of Michael Brown Jr. by a now-terminated Ferguson police officer, she became a civil rights activist and community organizer fighting for justice for Black lives on the streets of Missouri and across the country.