Rural homelessness could go up once federal pandemic measures expire; study ranks states by risk - Entrepreneur Generations

"With federal unemployment benefits ending soon and moratoriums on evictions soon to follow, social services organizations are bracing for a homelessness crisis to hit rural Americans," Liz Carey reports for The Daily Yonder. "The agencies and churches that would normally help are already stretched thin by the pandemic," according to Adrienne Bush, executive director for the Homeless and Housing Coalition of Kentucky.

To complicate matters further, state orders and laws sometimes conflict with or muddy the waters on federal orders and laws. In Kentucky, for example, Gov. Andy Beshear has halted evictions until the state of emergency is lifted, but federal guidelines in the CARES Act lift some eviction moratoria on Aug. 24. "Whether the governor’s executive order will supersede the federal government’s directives are still to be seen," Carey reports.

Some Kentucky landlords are still trying to evict tenants who can't pay rent, sending them threatening texts, letters, or even disconnecting utilities, Bush told Carey. The same thing is likely happening elsewhere in the nation.

Nationwide, around 20 million renters are at risk of eviction once the expanded unemployment insurance expires, according to a study from the Covid-19 Eviction Defense Project, an organization founded in March to study the looming problem and suggest solutions. According to their research, "mass evictions would be a disaster," The Aspen Institute reports. "For both individuals and families, evictions result in severe harm; when they become widespread, there are also significant consequences for entire communities and even the speed of economic recovery."

from The Rural Blog https://ift.tt/30QiyZ0 Rural homelessness could go up once federal pandemic measures expire; study ranks states by risk - Entrepreneur Generations

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