Supreme Court Rules Against Eviction Moratorium

Yesterday the Supreme Court blocked the extension of the Biden administration’s Covid-19 related eviction moratorium. A majority of the justices ruled that the only way the moratorium could continue was if it was specifically authorized by Congress. In an unsigned 8 page decision, the court wrote that the CDC exceeded it’s authority in preventing landlords from evicting tenants who haven’t paid rent.  Congress issued the original eviction moratorium and former President Trump ordered the CDC to extend it several times. The latest round of litigation was prompted by the version of the moratorium rolled out by the CDC on August 3rd and issued by the Biden administration days after the last moratorium had expired.

Three justices Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan dissented publicly citing the spike in Covid-19 cases and the Delta variant. The ruling allows evictions to resume around the country. This was the second time this week that the Supreme Court’s conservative majority sided with those challenging the Biden administration’s policies.