US House Speaker Pelosi urges fellow Democrats to support extension of eviction moratorium

Washington, Aug 2 (FN Agency) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in a letter to her fellow Democrats in the US Senate on Monday has asked to support the extension of the eviction moratorium that expired on Saturday. “It is unfathomable that we would not act to prevent people from being evicted. Overwhelmingly, our Members agreed to extend the moratorium and universally, to distribute the funds. But the House passing the eviction moratorium without the Senate acting does not extend the moratorium. Instead, the money must flow, and the moratorium must be extended by the Administration,” Pelosi said in the letter.

Pelosi underscored that the whole point of the extension is to provide more time for the distribution of the unspent $46.5 billion allocated by the US Congress to cover the needs of those who face evictions. On Thursday, US President Joe Biden asked Congress to extend the moratorium on evictions that was put in place due to the coronavirus pandemic, saying many renters still faced financial difficulties and those driven from their homes could face a heightened risk of infection. A nationwide moratorium on evictions for non-payment of rent instituted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been in place for nearly 11 months, since September 2020, and was slated to expire on June 30, however, the deadline was extended till July 31.