During the most recent national call on coronavirus, disasters, housing, and homelessness, we were joined by Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) to discuss the prospect of a coronavirus relief package passing before the end of the year, heard about a Rhode Island project tracking eviction filings and notifying renters of the eviction moratorium, and learned about the impact of the Public Charge Rule on immigrants and the status of current litigation against the rule.
Jennifer Wood from the Rhode Island Center for Justice and Abby Barton and Lucas Fried from Housing Opportunities for People Everywhere (HOPE) at Brown University shared their work tracking eviction cases in the state. The Rhode Island Center for Justice, with the assistance of students from HOPE, is distributing CDC eviction moratorium declaration forms to individuals facing potential eviction.
Renato Rocha of the Center for Law and Social Policy and the Protecting Immigrant Families campaign discussed the impact of the Public Charge rule (see Memo, 8/19/19) on immigrant communities. The Public Charge Rule states that an application for a visa or lawful permanent resident (LPR) status could be denied if the applicant has received or is in need of financial assistance from public benefit programs. The rule has resulted in a “chilling effect” among immigrants, who fear that accepting any government assistance – even assistance for which they are eligible – will result in their visa or request for LPR status being denied. There is current litigation against the rule. NLIHC’s Sarah Saadian shared updates on a coronavirus relief bill and how the new administration could impact relief bill negotiations.
NLIHC hosts national calls on coronavirus, disasters, housing, and homelessness every week. On today’s call, we will hear updates on the impact of the eviction moratorium, learn about a recent repot on FEMA efforts to house people experiencing homelessness, get updates from the Hill, and more.
Register for today’s call (Monday, November 16 at 2:30 pm ET) at: https://tinyurl.com/ru73qan
Watch a recording of the November 9 call at: tinyurl.com/y4u6g9nx
Access presentation slides at: tinyurl.com/yy76zpm9