LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- Under the latest stimulus package passed by Congress, renters in Arkansas are protected from eviction until January 31. However, those protections aren't automatic - tenants still must sign the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's declaration form on the agency's website and give it to their landlord.

Beau Cromartie, communications manager with the group Southern Vision Alliance, noted the moratorium extension ends in just a few weeks during the coldest months of the year, and as COVID-19 cases continue to climb.

"We're asking for an extension on the moratorium until the end of the pandemic," Cromartie said. "Nobody can shelter in place or stay at home if they don't have a place to stay in."

They added in Arkansas, Gov. Asa Hutchinson has banned utility shutoffs during the pandemic, meaning companies cannot disconnect customers for late or unpaid bills.

For housing assistance or legal help, residents can contact the Arkansas Community Action Agencies Association at 501-372-0807 or call 211.

A U.S. Census Pulse Survey found more than 425,000 Arkansans are behind on rent. Roughly half said they have zero confidence they can pay next month's rent.

Cromartie said when rental assistance disappears and eviction protections expire, the state could see an unprecedented spike in its transient and homeless population.

"A lot of tenants are unaware, because landlords are not required to tell their tenants that evictions are not allowed right now," they said.

Cromartie added the moratorium has helped tenants in court, especially those who delivered the declaration to their landlords before or at the beginning of the eviction process.



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Data from Maine's annual Point in Time homelessness survey has been released, showing 4,411 individuals were experiencing homelessness on Jan. 25 of this year, a sharp increase from the count the previous year.

Dan Brennan, director of the Maine State Housing Authority, acknowledged while there may have been an increase in people experiencing homelessness, the number also reflects a change in formula for the count.

It includes those in transitional housing, as well as those housed in motels and hotels through the federally funded rent relief program.

He said the more accurate data collection becomes, the better Maine will be able to tackle homelessness.

"We want homelessness to be as rare as possible," Brennan asserted. "We know that things are going to happen in life that cause people to lose their homes or to fall out of safe, stable housing. That's going to happen. But the issue is how long does someone remain in that situation?"

Nearly half of households who were counted as experiencing homelessness have at least one child, and nearly 40% are Black, brown or Indigenous, while less than 10% of Maine's overall population identifies as BIPOC.

Brennan added homelessness in Maine is largely concentrated in urban centers, such as Portland and Bangor.

"What we need to do is help support the communities that are around those areas and in more rural parts of Maine, so that people experiencing homelessness can at least stay in their own community," Brennan urged.

He noted it is one reason why Maine Housing has partnered with an organization called Community Solutions, to improve data collection and collaboration. They are creating what they call regional hubs, each with a hub coordinator who can help people in the area connect with services.

"Right now, we're in an environment where the availability of affordable housing units is very sparse," Brennan emphasized. "That's been a real challenge. But if we can get these hubs up and running and working and more robust than they historically have been, they will be a help to the homeless shelters that are in those particular areas."

Arkansas is declining most of the $146 million made available in a second round of Emergency Rental Assistance from the federal government. Critics of the move predict the decision will hurt families still struggling due to the pandemic.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Treasury asking to take only 39% of the funds for "housing stability" programs. Hutchinson cited a strong economy and job market as reasons for rejecting the funds.

But Joyce Jones - a volunteer with Arkansas Renters United - said rental assistance has been a lifeline for lower-income families.

"This pandemic put a lot of pressure on a lot of families," said Jones. "A lot of families lost their jobs. Some people have recovered, in the sense of getting their jobs or getting a new job. These are minimum-wage jobs, and minimum wage does not pay the rent."

Arkansas still has $6.7 million in rental assistance left, but the state has closed its emergency Rent Relief Program application portal and there are no plans to reopen it.

A spokesperson for the Arkansas Department of Human Services said the state hopes to get approval to use these federal funds for job training, education and other services for families at risk of housing instability.

In the meantime, Little Rock's rental prices have grown more than 16% since March 2020. Jones said with money remaining in the emergency fund, her organization would like to see the state reopen the Arkansas Rent Relief Program.

"Some of these people end up living in their cars," said Jones. "And if we get these funds and keep distributing the funds to the people in need, then we're averting some of that disaster."

The state DHS says Arkansans can access other rental-assistance programs through the Emergency Solutions Grant, the Community Services Block Grant, and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program - all of which are available through community action agencies.

Despite two years of government initiatives designed to provide financial aid and support to housing insecure residents, Wisconsin is still facing a shortage of affordable housing.

A new report from the National Low-Income Housing Coalition found the state has just 34 affordable and available rental homes for every 100 extremely low-income households.

Brad Paul, executive director of the Wisconsin Community Action Program Association, said pandemic aid programs, while important resources for housing-insecure Wisconsinites, largely failed to address underlying systemic issues.

"The housing crisis that's described in this report and elsewhere certainly got put into overdrive during the pandemic, but it existed before the pandemic," Paul explained. "So it's a pretty safe bet to assume that once we're through this unique moment, we're still going to be faced with a housing crisis."

Paul argued it is up to lawmakers to help close the affordable-housing gap by investing in more affordable housing and other structural changes. In the meantime, he said the Wisconsin Help for Homeowners initiative can help people meet their overdue housing costs. Several counties, municipalities and local organizations also have their own local housing aid programs.

Paul contends it is a crisis with essentially two components: availability and affordability. Per the report, of Wisconsin's 187,000 extremely low-income renter households, nearly three-quarters spend more than half of their earnings on housing costs.

"It really takes a report like this, and some others, that say 'Yeah, housing is expensive for everyone. But, boy, it's really intense at this ELI, or extremely low-income, level,' " Paul remarked.

A separate report from the National Low-Income Housing Coalition finds, on average, a person would need to make nearly $18 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment in Wisconsin, nearly three times the state's current minimum wage.