Tenants waiting on rental assistance shouldn’t be evicted
July 26, 2021
Dear Governor Polis:
Thousands of Colorado renters are waiting in line for rental assistance, with many more submitting new applications each week, and others still unaware that help is available. This is resulting in considerable unpaid housing debt, and instability for tenants and landlords alike. No one eligible for rental assistance should be put out of their homes, especially because of systemic factors beyond their control. Allowing hardworking renters to be evicted at this point in Colorado’s recovery would cause particular harm to individuals, families, and our community.
We therefore urge you to take action to ensure that no tenant working to obtain rental assistance is evicted while awaiting funds. An executive order making a tenant’s good faith effort to obtain assistance a full defense against eviction for nonpayment is warranted from August 1 through September 30. Starting October 1, the legislature has given tenants up to the point of judgment in eviction court to secure and pay outstanding rent and remain housed.
As you noted in EO 122 in allowing the current 30-day “right to cure” executive order to stand even as you moved to end many others: “The demand for this State and federal [rental assistance] has been immense, and these programs need time to provide aid to tenants.” That time will still be much-needed even after your latest extension of this order and the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention’s eviction moratorium expire simultaneously on July 31.
The State Division of Housing reports that as of the first week of July, 36,606 applications for assistance have been approved since March 2020, totaling just over $100 million — though many tenants with approved applications are likely still awaiting the arrival of a check and remain at risk of eviction. And requests for rental assistance are growing each week. DOH further reports that 12,235 applications representing nearly $78 million in assistance as outstanding or currently in-process. Fifty-seven percent of these have been reviewed but require further information from the landlord or tenant, often requiring time– and resource-intensive outreach. Notably, these numbers exclude 3,293 “inactive” applications that could become active again with a response from a tenant, landlord, or financial institution, or 9,079 rejected applications, some of which could be revisited and validated with further help.
And even as many Coloradans are beginning to feel relief from the pandemic, many of those hardest-hit face a longer road to recovery. DOH data demonstrates the heavy burden of housing instability borne by BIPOC Coloradans, with disproportionate request for assistance among Black, Latino, Native American, and individuals who identify as multi-racial. And because eligibility for currently available rental assistance is capped at 80% of area median income, these households by definition have lower incomes.
We appreciate your leadership through the public health and economic crises caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as you rescind public health emergency orders, we appreciate your and your staff’s efforts to continue to provide for those most impacted by COVID-19 and facing longer roads ahead to recovery.
Thank you for your consideration.
Elected & Public Officials
Arvada Mayor Marc Williams
Aurora Mayor Mike Coffman
Boulder Mayor Sam Weaver
Broomfield Mayor Guyleen Castriotta
Castle Pines Mayor Tera Radloff
Denver Mayor Michael B. Hancock
Edgewater Mayor Laura Keegan
Englewood Mayor Linda Olson
Golden Mayor Laura Weinberg
Lafayette Mayor Jamie Harkins
Northglenn Mayor Meredith Leighty
Thornton Mayor Jan Kulmann
Westminster Mayor Anita Seitz
Wheat Ridge Mayor Bud Starker
Aurora City Councilmember Juan Marcano
Aurora City Councilmember Alison Coombs
Aurora City Councilmember Crystal Murillo
Boulder City Councilmember Aaron Brockett
Boulder City Councilmember Rachel Friend
Denver City Council President Stacie Gilmore
Denver City Councilmember Robin Kniech
Denver City Councilmember Candi CdeBaca
Denver City Councilmember Jamie Torres
Denver City Councilmember Paul Kashman
Denver City Councilmember Amanda Sawyer
Denver City Councilmember Amanda Sandoval
Greeley City Councilmember Tommy Butler
Larimer County Commissioner John Kefalas
Eviction Prevention Task Force Member Chris Romer
Colorado Speaker of the House Alec Garnett
State Representative Yadira Caraveo
State Representative Monica Duran
State Senator Julie Gonzales
State Representative Serena Gonzales-Gutierrez
State Representative Iman Jodeh
State Representative Chris Kennedy
State Representative Susan Lontine
State Representative Emily Sirota
State Senator Tammy Story
State Representative Mike Weissman
State Representative Steven Woodrow
Kathy Plomer, President, Adams 12 Five Star Schools Board of Education
Lori Goldstein, Director, Adams 12 Five Star Schools
Dr. Dawn Comstock, Executive Director, Jefferson County Public Health
Organizations & Public Entities
Adams 12 Five Star Schools
AdvocacyDenver
Archuleta Housing Corporation
Atlantis Community, Inc.
B-Konnected.LLC
Children’s Hospital Colorado
Colorado Center for Aging
Colorado Center on Law and Policy
Colorado Children’s Campaign
Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault
Colorado Coalition for the Homeless
Colorado Coalition of Manufactured Home Owners
Colorado Cross-Disability Coalition
Colorado Fiscal Institute
Colorado Health Foundation
Colorado Poverty Law Project
Colorado Springs Faith Table
CPCD…giving children a head start
Denver Chapter Realtist-NAREB
Denver Department of Public Health & Environment
Denver DSA
Denver Indian Family Resource Center
Denver Metro Fair Housing Center (DMFHC)
Denver Public Health
East Colfax Community Collective
Edgewater Collective
Enterprise Community Partners
Eugene S. Farley, Jr. Health Policy Center
Full Circle of Lake County
Golden United Housing Task Force
Habitat for Humanity of Metro Denver
Healthier Colorado
Housing Colorado
Jefferson Unitarian Church Community Action Network
League of Women Voters of Colorado
Maiker Housing Partners
Mental Health Center of Denver
Mile High Connects
Mile High Health Alliance
Neighborhood Development Collaborative
No Eviction Without Representation (NEWR) Denver
Northeast Denver Housing Center
Project Moxie
Rocky Mountain Partnership
Rose Community Foundation
Spring Institute for Intercultural Learning
The Arc of Aurora
The COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project
The Denver Foundation
The Fax Partnership
The Health Education and Resources Institute (THEARI)
Together Colorado
Tri-County Health Department
United for a New Economy
Violence Free Colorado
YIMBY Denver
