Housing advocates call on governor to extend evictions hold to July

Whitney Beaslin and daughter Charlotte pose for a photo on the deck of their apartment in Sandy on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Beaslin, a server and a single mom, was worried about getting evicted due to losing work from the COVID-19 pandemic. | Kristin Murphy, Deseret News

Request from 21 groups comes week before Herber’s order set to expire

SALT LAKE CITY — Advocates for Utah’s homeless and low-income communities are calling on Gov. Gary Herbert to extend a statewide hold on evictions for those directly affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

In a Wednesday letter to Herbert, 21 groups asked him to shield tenants from eviction until July 15 and put in place further protections, like barring landlords from charging late fees or raising rent.

Herbert’s current executive order is set to expire after May 15, when those who deferred rent for April or this month must pay.

An additional extension for renters will help make sure each Utahn can stay home as the virus outbreak is expected to reach its peak over the next two months, the advocates said. Moreover, they contend it would align more closely with the rollout of federal aid.

Governor’s spokeswoman Anna Lehnardt said Herbert’s April 1 directive is now under review, part of his office’s standard protocol for any order set to expire.

The groups urging him to extend it include religious organizations, plus others who advocate for disabled Utahns, immigrants and minorities. They include the Crossroads Urban Center, Christ United Methodist Church, Comunidades Unidas, the Utah Black Roundtable and the Utah Health Policy Project.

They note that many in the Beehive State have not received stimulus or unemployment checks. Undocumented immigrants also are not eligible for the payments; neither are their spouses or children.

“Extending the eviction deferral order will provide more time for renters to stabilize their incomes until we see greater certainty in the economy that more of us will be able to return to work,” the letter says.

It calls for measures to guard landlords from foreclosure as many have worked with tenants to allow them to stay in their homes, the groups said. Efforts to help the property owners stay afloat are needed so they can continue to provide housing “in a tight and turbulent market.”

The groups also called on Herbert to allow renters six months to a year to come up with back rent, with no fees attached; prohibit nonemergency evictions; and allow tenants 30 days to leave if they are being evicted for reasons other than late rent.

This story will be updated.

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