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Maine affordable housing advocates hope tandem of moratorium extension and new law will avoid evictions due to COVID-19

The moratorium was scheduled to expire on June 30, 2021. The CDC said it intends to make this the final extension of the moratorium.

PORTLAND, Maine — The Biden administration announced an extension on the eviction moratorium that will go through the end of July

The extension provides another brief relief for people struggling to pay rent after they lost their incomes due to COVID-19. It prevents the eviction of tenants who are unable to make rental payments. 

The moratorium was scheduled to expire on June 30, 2021. The CDC said it intends to make this the final extension of the moratorium.

Simultaneously, Governor Mills signed a bill earlier this week that requires Maine landlords to issue plain-language letters that explain the eviction process and where to get rent relief when issuing eviction notices. The bill also spurred the partnership of MaineHousing and Pine Tree Legal to hire more attorneys and paralegals to represent people facing eviction.

"This is an opportunity for them to be made whole and to receive the back rent that they need to pay their own bills, so it really is a program designed to help both tenants and landlords and this one extra month gives the program more time for the money to get dispersed where it needs to be," said Greg Payne, director of the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition.

The big challenge now is processing the rent relief applications. A Maine State Housing Authority analysis found that roughly 30-33 percent of applications are still being processed.

"Part of that is a result is immense demand that agencies are working through," Payne said. "The rent relief program is a lifeline for both tenants and landlords. Tenants avoid the anxiety of being on the wrong side of an eviction complaint. Landlords -- this is an opportunity for them to be made whole and receive the back rent to pay their own bills."

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