CDC Issues New Eviction Moratorium Targeting “High Infection” Areas; Likely To be Challenged in Court

By Christopher Boyle Last updated Aug 4, 2021 Share with new partner:

According to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, approximately 80 percent of the counties in the country currently have “substantial” or “high” degrees of virus spread.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – After the eviction moratorium instituted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was allowed to expire over the weekend, the CDC has issued a new, “targeted” and “temporary” eviction moratorium on Tuesday that will only pertain to counties in the United States that are currently experiencing elevated transmission rates of COVID-19.

The new eviction ban is scheduled to expire on October 3, and is not an extension of the previous ban, but instead an all-new one that takes into the account the spread of the new Delta variant of COVID-19, and covers areas of the country that currently have “substantial” or “high” degrees of virus spread. Nonetheless, this currently makes up approximately 80 percent of the counties in the country, according to CDC Director Rochelle Walensky.

“The emergence of the delta variant has led to a rapid acceleration of community transmission in the United States, putting more Americans at increased risk, especially if they are unvaccinated,” she said. “This moratorium is the right thing to do to keep people in their homes and out of congregate settings where COVID-19 spreads.”

The announcement of the CDC’s new eviction moratorium drew controversy, and will most likely be legally challenged in light of a recent decision handed down by the Supreme Court, which had previously ruled that the previous ban could only be extended via direct legislative action on the past of Congress, as opposed to action on the part of the CDC or an executive order.

President Joe Biden, when speaking to reporters on Tuesday, admitted that the new eviction moratorium may not be a constitutionally-valid act, but noted that any legal challenges to it will still give people more time to gain access to federal rental assistance monies, which so far have been extremely slow to disperse.

“Any call for a moratorium based on the Supreme Court’s recent decision is likely to face obstacles,” Biden said. “I’ve indicated to the CDC I’d like to look at other alternatives.”