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3 <br /> solutions. The group determined an eviction diversion program would offer the best solution. <br /> The two most pressing issues are: (1) ensuring attorneys are available to meet the demand; and <br /> (2) identifying funds to enable tenants to stay in residence once they have demonstrated some <br /> financial capacity to meet rental obligations going forward and the landlord has agreed to let the <br /> tenant stay. <br /> The Orange County Eviction Diversion Program would bring together Legal Aid of North <br /> Carolina ("Legal Aid") and pro bono attorneys to represent tenants in court and to act as in court <br /> mediators to negotiate agreements between tenants and landlords to avoid eviction. Legal Aid <br /> has an income limit threshold, so it would only be able to assist tenants meeting its income <br /> threshold requirements. County staff are working with Legal Aid and the NC Pro Bono Resource <br /> Center to assist with identifying local pro-bono attorneys, including bi-lingual attorneys, to meet <br /> additional community needs. Referrals to the program would come through the existing Orange <br /> County Housing and Community Development Department ("OCHCD") and the Orange County <br /> Partnership to End Homelessness' Housing Helpline (aka Coordinated Entry). Every person <br /> who calls into the Housing Helpline goes through a needs assessment that is best practice and <br /> evidence based. <br /> County staff will use funds the Board has already allocated for rent stabilization for this project <br /> through the Risk Mitigation and Housing Displacement Fund (the sub-fund called "Emergency <br /> Housing Assistance", formerly "Housing Stabilization Fund"). The Board approved a one-time <br /> transfer of funds ($100,000) from the Local Rent Supplement Program into the Housing <br /> Displacement Fund on April 7, 2020. Since that time, approximately forty thousand ($40,000) in <br /> emergency housing assistance has been utilized by Orange County residents experiencing a <br /> housing crisis through the Housing Helpline (a.k.a. "Coordinated Entry"). <br /> Since January, as illustrated in the table below, over seventy thousand dollars ($70,000) in <br /> assistance has been funded. There are approximately $53,000* in Emergency Housing <br /> Assistance funds remaining, but with new requests coming in every day, this estimate changes <br /> daily — and sometimes dramatically. At this time, a large majority of requests are coming from <br /> low-income residents who have been out of work due to COVID-19 and business closures. The <br /> Urban Institute estimates that more than 5,000 Orange County residents lost employment due to <br /> COVID-19, and most of those jobs are in the food service, retail, and accommodation <br /> industries6, which make up a significant portion of the County's economic base.7 <br /> Current Emergency Housing Assistance fund criteria is as follows. Full policies can be found <br /> here: https://www.orangecountVnc.gov/2359/Risk-Mitigation-and-Housing-Displacement <br /> Assistance is available to households in Orange County that (1) earn no more than 60% of the <br /> area median income (AMI)*, (2) can demonstrate urgent need for housing assistance, and (3) <br /> do not have adequate savings to cover their housing costs. <br /> To be referred for assistance, households must either: <br /> Be assessed through Coordinated Entry as at risk of or currently experiencing <br /> homelessness and who have identified safe, decent, and affordable housing OR <br /> 6 Urban Institute (2020, April 24). Where Low-Income Jobs Are Being Lost to COVID-19. <br /> https://www.urban.org/features/where-low-income-mobs-are-being-lost-covid-19 <br /> Orange County Consolidated Plan. Market Analysis (MA-45): Non-Housing Community Development Assets. <br /> http://orangecountync.gov/DocumentCenter/View/10806/Orange-County-NC-Consolidated-Plan-Final-Draft?bid ld= <br />