ST. LOUIS – A coalition of groups supporting tenants, including civil organizations and elected officials, want the Missouri Supreme Court to impose a six-month moratorium on evictions because of the economic hardships caused by COVID-19.
“Hundreds of thousands have lost their jobs, are losing unemployment benefits and can’t pay rent,” the coalition said in a letter to the court. “Over 361,000 Missouri rental households are currently unable to make rent and are at risk of eviction. That number represents almost 50% of all Missouri renters, and is several percentage points higher than the national average.”
The moratorium should stop “all filings, hearings, writs, enforcement and garnishments,” the letter said. Without the moratorium, more than 243,000 evictions will be filed in Missouri over the next four months.
“Some people will move into motels, shelters, and cars, or double up in other housing units. Others will end up on the streets,” the letter said. “All of these circumstances pose great risks to individual and community health, especially as COVID-19 cases continue to spike across the state."
Lydia DeWitt, the Supreme Court’s chief counsel, responded to the letter writers on behalf of Chief Justice George Draper III.
“Because the correspondence addresses matters that potentially could be litigated in Missouri courts, the Chief Justice asked me to respond to you,” DeWitt told the St. Louis Record. "As you may know, the Missouri Code of Judicial Conduct prohibits judges from making public or nonpublic statements that might reasonably be expected to affect the outcome or impair the fairness of a matter pending or impending in any court. Accordingly, it would be inappropriate for the Court or any of its members to respond to your letter.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Sept. 1 issued a nationwide moratorium on evictions for nonpayment of rent through Dec. 31, a release issued on CNET said. It covers 43 million renters wherever they live in the U.S.
A moratorium on evictions in federally subsidized housing was included in the CARES Act but expired July 24.