Fighting the Spread of COVID-19 by Providing Assistance to Renters and Homeowners
Directs federal health and housing agencies to consider and pursue measures — including a possible eviction moratorium — to prevent the spread of COVID-19 by keeping renters and homeowners in their homes after the CARES Act moratorium expired.
Establishes a policy of minimizing residential evictions and foreclosures during the COVID-19 national emergency, but stops short of itself imposing a moratorium; the order sets up a process for agencies to act rather than creating an immediate legal protection.
What this order does
What it orders
The order directs the CDC and HHS Secretary to consider whether temporarily halting residential evictions is reasonably necessary to prevent COVID-19 from spreading across state lines. It directs the Treasury Secretary and HUD Secretary to identify all available federal funds for temporary financial assistance to renters and homeowners struggling with monthly payments due to COVID-19 hardships. It also directs HUD to promote renters' and homeowners' ability to avoid eviction or foreclosure — including by encouraging public housing authorities, landlords, and federal grant recipients to minimize evictions — and instructs the FHFA Director to review existing authorities to prevent COVID-related evictions and foreclosures.
The order does not itself impose a moratorium on evictions or foreclosures, and it explicitly states it does not create any enforceable legal right or benefit. Implementation is subject to available appropriations and existing law. Any direct protection for tenants would require subsequent agency action.
Who it affects
Renters and homeowners experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19, particularly racial and ethnic minorities at elevated eviction risk. Also affected: public housing authorities, landlords, affordable housing owners, and recipients of federal housing grant funds who may receive agency guidance or assistance.
Why it matters
The expiration of the CARES Act eviction moratorium left millions of financially distressed renters without a federal backstop. This order sets agencies in motion to construct a replacement protection, though tenants have no immediate enforceable right until agencies take follow-on action.
What must happen and when
How the order is supposed to work
The order functions as a directive to four agencies to act in parallel: CDC/HHS must assess a potential eviction moratorium; Treasury and HUD must map available funding streams; HUD must actively engage housing stakeholders; and FHFA must audit its own authority. No hard deadlines are set for any step, meaning the pace of actual relief depends entirely on agency initiative. The order's "subject to appropriations" and no-private-right-of-action clauses mean tenants cannot sue under it, and any moratorium would require a separate agency rulemaking or order.
Actions and deadlines
- Consider whether temporarily halting residential evictions is necessary to prevent interstate COVID-19 spread
- Identify all available federal funds to provide financial assistance to struggling renters and homeowners
- Take action to promote renters' and homeowners' ability to avoid eviction or foreclosure, including engaging housing stakeholders
- Review all existing authorities and resources that may be used to prevent COVID-related evictions and foreclosures