CDC Issues Eviction Moratorium for Areas of Substantial Covid-19 Transmission

CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky has signed an order determining the evictions of tenants for failure to make rent or housing payments could be detrimental to public health control measures to slow the spread of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19.

This order will expire on October 3, 2021 and applies in US counties experiencing substantial and high levels of community transmission levels of SARS-CoV-2.

“The emergence of the Delta variant has led to a rapid acceleration of community transmission in the United States, putting more Americans at increased risk, especially if they are unvaccinated,” CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said in a statement. “This moratorium is the right thing to do to keep people in their homes and out of congregate settings where COVID-19 spreads.”

The eviction moratorium allows additional time for rent relief to reach renters and to further increase vaccination rates. In the context of a pandemic, eviction moratoria—like quarantine, isolation, and social distancing—can be an effective public health measure utilized to prevent the spread of communicable disease.

The Order prohibits residential landlords nationwide from evicting certain tenants through October 3, 2021. The Order protects tenants who:

• have used their best efforts to obtain government assistance for housing
• are unable to pay their full rent due to a substantial loss of income
• are making their best efforts to make timely partial payments of rent
• would become homeless or have to move into a shared living setting if they were to be evicted, and
• reside in a U.S. county experiencing substantial or high rates of community transmission levels of COVID-19 as defined by the CDC.

In addition to the above requirements, one of the following financial criteria must apply. To qualify for protection, a tenant must:

• have earned no more than $99,000 (or $198,000 if filing jointly) in 2020 or expect to earn no more than $99,000 (or no more than $198,000 if filing a joint tax return) in 2021
• not have been required to report any income to the IRS in 2020, or
• have received an Economic Impact Payment (stimulus check) pursuant to Section 2201 of the CARES Act, Section 9601 of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, or to any other similar federally authorized payments made to individuals in 2021 and 2021.

CDC remains committed and will continue to explore and use all of the tools at our disposal to protect the health and well-being of Americans affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.  The order can be found at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/covid-eviction-declaration.html.

View the Covid-19 county data tracker at covid.cdc.gov/covid-data-tracker/#county-view.