Will CDC’s eviction moratorium help Coloradans?
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Starting this month, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) is partnering with the Department of Health and Human Services to call for a halt on evictions across the country.
Some are questioning, what authority does the CDC have to prevent evictions?
According to the CDC's website, "Director Dr. Robert Redfield signed a declaration determining that the evictions of tenants could be detrimental to public health control measures to slow the spread of SARS-Cov-2, the virus that causes COVID-19."
The validity and process hasn't brought clarity to local governments including Colorado.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Governor Jared Polis said, "Our administration is currently reviewing this recent federal action to see if it will really help Coloradans or is just empty words."
Renters who meet the criteria will need to fill out a form and present it to their landlord.
The requirements include a renter proving they have exhausted other resources to pay rent, make less than $99,000 a year for singles and $199,000 for couples, will be become homeless if they are evicted and that they've lost work due to CoVID-19.
The order hasn't been officially published but is expected to be signed Friday.
"The evictions came to a halt about mid-March, beginning of March timeframe, prior to that, we were averaging about 300 evictions a month," said Sgt. Owen Mccormack, with the civil unit at the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.
He explains, the ever-changing process has been confusing for those receiving an eviction notice.
"They were confused. They had some questions and rightfully so, this isn't a process they go through every day of their lives, some of them, first they ever had to worry about this," he explained.
