For Immediate Release: Tuesday, July 28, 2020
ROCKVILLE, Md., July 28, 2020—Today the Montgomery County Council introduced a resolution urging Maryland Governor Larry Hogan to extend the duration of his executive order temporarily prohibiting the eviction of tenants who are suffering financial hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This executive order is currently scheduled to expire on August 1. This resolution, which was initiated by Councilmember Will Jawando, is sponsored by the full Council.
“My colleagues and I call on Governor Hogan with the utmost sense of urgency to extend the executive order prohibiting evictions until January 31, 2021, of those individuals and families who can’t make rent due to the COVID-19 crisis,” said Councilmember Jawando. “This is a national emergency of unprecedented scope and scale, and we cannot allow tens of thousands of Marylanders to become homeless because they’ve lost their income due to the pandemic. The effect on people’s well-being, on our economy and on our already overburdened institutions would be devastating.”
On March 16, Governor Hogan issued a temporary executive order, which was then extended on April 3 until the end of the state of emergency, prohibiting the eviction of tenants suffering substantial loss of income due to COVID-19. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act also created a national 120-day eviction moratorium for covered properties, but this moratorium officially ended on July 25.
It is anticipated that anywhere from 20 to 28 million people nationwide will face eviction between now and September, which represents three to four times as many people as the number who lost their homes during the last financial crisis. A study by the Aspen Institute estimates that 356,408 Maryland residents, or 19 percent of all renters in the state, face the possibility of eviction by September 30.
The Council staff report can be viewed here.
Councilmember Jawando’s remarks at the introduction of the resolution can be viewed here.
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Release ID: 20-330