President Biden said Tuesday the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would announce a new moratorium on evictions later in the day — before admitting that its order was “not likely to pass constitutional muster.”
The New York Times reported earlier Tuesday that the new freeze would likely be in effect for up to 60 days and apply to places with high rates of coronavirus infection.
A previous nationwide eviction freeze expired on Saturday after congressional Democrats failed to garner enough support for an extension before House members left DC to begin their August recess.
The White House had urged Congress to pass legislation extending the moratorium after the Supreme Court decided in June that the CDC overstepped its authority by enacting the ban. The court left the moratorium in place through July 31 in a 5-4 ruling but one of the five, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, warned that extending the freeze beyond that date would require legislation from Congress.
“I’ve sought out constitutional scholars to determine, what is the best possibility that would come from executive action or the CDC’s judgment? What could they do that is most likely to pass muster, constitutionally?” Biden told reporters at the White House Tuesday.
“The bulk of the constitutional scholarship says it’s not likely to pass constitutional muster … But there are several key scholars who think that it may, and it’s worth the effort.”
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement Tuesday that Democrats “stand ready” to work with the White House to find a way to extend the ban.
“Our sole focus must be keeping people housed and we must do so with the urgency this moment deserves,” said Pelosi, who added that families being tossed from their homes during the coronavirus pandemic “is a challenge to the conscience of the country, and Democrats’ commitment to immediately helping renters and landlords is a priority that unites our Caucus.”
On Monday, Biden called on states to distribute more than $40 billion in unspent rental assistance money included in coronavirus relief bills to assist renters and homeowners.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), speaking to people camping out on the Capitol steps to press the administration to act, had recommended the president issue an executive order to extend the ban.
“The message of the day is the White House needs to get its act together and extend the eviction moratorium,” she said. “We do not want to hear the excuses about ‘What will the court do?’, etc.”
Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), who had camped out on the Capitol steps since Friday night to draw attention to the expiration of the previous moratorium, praised the Biden administration for moving forward with unilateral action.
“On Friday night, I came to the Capitol with my chair,” tweeted Bush, who went through a period of homelessness nearly two decades ago. “I refused to accept that Congress could leave for vacation while 11 million people faced eviction.”
For 5 days, we’ve been out here, demanding that our government acts to save lives,” she added. “Today, our movement moved mountains.”
Bush briefly spoke with Vice President Kamala Harris on Monday in an effort to push the administration to take action.