The U.S. House passed H.R. 5196 (Expediting Rental Assistance to Renters and Landlords Act 2021) intended to improve rental assistance distribution.
The bill includes some encouraging provisions aimed at streamlining the program, such as:
- allowing owners to apply for assistance when they have an unresponsive resident and for vacant units;
- expanding the timeline for assistance eligibility for renters to 24 months due to COVID’s continuing economic impact;
- improving self-attestation ability of residents; and
- providing needed clarity to grantees.
However, the bill also includes a 120-day eviction moratorium as a condition of assistance, as well as several of the other provisions, that several housing groups argue perpetuates the challenges that owners have when it comes to navigating the program.
Read the letter the National Multifamily Housing coalition sent to the Committee on Financial Services.