We have a remarkable achievement to celebrate. The National Low Income Housing Coalition captures it here:
President Biden signed into law yesterday legislation that includes nearly $50 billion in essential housing and homelessness assistance, including over $27 billion for rental assistance and $5 billion in new funding for states and cities to provide housing stability for tens of thousands of people experiencing homelessness.
The passage of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) is a tremendous achievement! The $27 billion for rental assistance, combined with the $25 billion provided by Congress last year and a separate $5 billion for utilities in the ARP, can eliminate the over $50 billion of rent and utility arrears that renters have accrued during the pandemic and will enable longer-term housing stability for some renters. This success would not have been possible without your incredible advocacy and the unwavering leadership of congressional champions!
We can’t stop now – we have so much more work to do. We will continue to urge President Biden and his administration to extend, strengthen, and enforce the federal eviction moratorium. We will continue to track, analyze and share best practices for ensuring ERA is distributed to households most in need and is used to advance racial equity.
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Stay tuned for additional updates as implementation gets underway. We have an extraordinary opportunity with this legislation and we know we have much work to do to make the biggest impact possible here in Western Massachusetts. Let’s get ready!
