Minutes 06-02-2020 Virtual Business Meeting

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6 Annette Moore presented the item, along with Caitlin Fenhagen, Criminal Justice Resource Director, and Emila Sutton, Housing Director: BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 Pandemic has had a devastating effect on the global economy. In February 2020, Orange County along with Buncombe County led the state with the lowest unemployment rate of 2.9%. Because of COVID-19, Orange County's unemployment rate in March 2020 increased to 3.4%. With the increase in unemployment, staff have seen an increase in requests for food and housing assistance, particularly in the communities that cannot receive government assistance. The Orange County Housing and Community Development Department (OCHCD) in particular has seen the number of requests for emergency housing assistance through the Housing Displacement Fund more than quadruple in April (table below) and calls to the Housing Helpline (aka Coordinated Entry) have increased sharply from 250 in April to more than 650 in May. The Housing Helpline receives approximately three to five calls per week from residents specifically seeking legal counsel for a housing issue, and this number is rising. Finally, the Clerk of Court's Office has seen a dramatic increase in eviction filings and is adding additional court hearing dates to address this increase. Eviction destabilizes the lives of families and has consequences for the entire community. Those most affected by evictions are the most vulnerable populations. Numerous studies show the negative impact of eviction on health, child development and achievement, and well-being.1 There is also research showing that preventing eviction can reduce costs to the health care system, lower costs and reduce the burden on shelter and other emergency housing programs, ease the administrative burden on the courts, reduce job loss, reduce negative educational outcomes, and prevent the decline of communities that occurs when people are displaced.2 A 2018 study by the Philadelphia Bar Association found that if the City of Philadelphia allocated $3.5 million per year to fund counsel for eligible low-income tenants facing eviction, the city would save $45.2 million per year, a return of$12 for every $1 spent.3 Research also shows that housing assistance, such as that provided through the Risk Mitigation and Housing Displacement Fund, reduces hardship and increases economic opportunity for low-income families.4 The Risk Mitigation and Housing Displacement Fund currently, and the Eviction Diversion Program when in operation, will provide cost savings to the community, help stabilize and preserve the housing market in Orange County5, and most importantly help Orange County residents remain in their homes and avoid the negative impacts of eviction. The Departments of Human Rights and Relations and Housing and Community Development have been working toward bringing forward a proposed Eviction Diversion Program to the Board of County Commissioners since last year. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impact on the community, there is a critical need for this program now. Eviction diversion programs were started around 2010 to address the number of evictions from the recession. The Human Rights and Relations, Housing and Community Development (HCD), and Criminal Justice Resource Departments, along with the Clerk of Court, the Chief Magistrate, Carolina Student Legal Services, NC Pro Bono Resource Center, Orange Chatham Legal Aid, Commissioner Mark Marcoplos and Jamie Paulen met to discuss the impending eviction crisis and potential solutions. The group determined an eviction diversion program would offer the best solution. The two most pressing issues are: (1) ensuring attorneys are available to meet the demand; and (2) identifying funds to enable tenants to stay in residence once they have demonstrated some financial capacity to meet rental obligations going forward and the landlord has agreed to let the tenant stay. The second aspect is currently being addressed by HCD's Risk Mitigation and Housing Displacement (RM-HD) fund in helping to pay for arrears so low-income renters stave off eviction and remain in their housing. In order to meet the first need, legal counsel needs to be