LOS ANGELES — A week before California's eviction moratorium was scheduled to expire, top Democrats in the Legislature announced a proposal on Thursday to extend COVID-19 pandemic protections for tenants by another three months so the state can finish sending out rent relief payments.
Assembly Bill 2179 would move the date on which landlords may initiate eviction proceedings from April 1 to July 1, as long as an application is submitted by March 31 to a rent relief program. Democratic legislative leaders said the extension would give applicants more time to receive the help and avoid losing their homes.
"We need to protect eligible renters who have applied for relief funds, but haven't received them yet, or who will apply before the March 31 deadline," Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood) said in a statement. "We made a commitment to those who are in line and they shouldn't be harmed because of how long the process is taking. That's why AB 2179 will receive quick action in both the Assembly and Senate."
