Republicans warm to tenant protections as evictions loom

The White House and a growing number of congressional Republicans support a renewal of the federal evictions moratorium and rental assistance payments in the next economic relief package.

The GOP support is due to the fear of a wave of evictions due to the pandemic downturn. The federal evictions moratorium put in place by the CARES Act relief bill in March expired on July 25.

Approximately 30-40 million people in the United States are at risk of losing their homes in the next several months without significant federal intervention, according to research released Friday from multiple universities and housing organizations. Furthermore, 29% to 43% of renters could be at risk of eviction by the end of the year.