Governor Larry Hogan announced an additional $192.9 million in funding has been awarded to local governments and service providers through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. These federal funds will support local Maryland Eviction Prevention Partnership initiatives that assist tenants whose ability to pay rent has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The governor also announced that the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) will reopen its Assisted Housing Relief Program, which provides rental assistance to tenants in properties financed by the department.
“Throughout the pandemic, Maryland has had one of the strongest eviction moratoriums in the nation to keep renters safe and secure in their homes despite economic hardships related to COVID-19,” said Governor Hogan. “We continue to work at the state and local levels to help tenants and landlords bring rent payments current, giving them firmer footing on Maryland’s path to recovery.”
Based on the recommendations of a bipartisan advisory group, federal emergency rental assistance was allocated as part of a $1.08 billion supplemental budget submitted by the governor and passed by the General Assembly. This allocation included nearly $193 million for the Maryland Eviction Prevention Partnership. The partnership supports local rental assistance programs administered by 22 local jurisdictions and the United Way of Central Maryland.
Maryland Eviction Prevention Partnership: This funding is in addition to $143 million in federal assistance that was allocated directly to eight jurisdictions with populations over 200,000. Tenants wishing to apply for rental assistance should visit rentrelief.maryland.gov or call 877-546-5595 to find current program status and application information in their local jurisdiction. Most local programs are open or expected to open in spring of 2021. A full list of county allocations for Maryland Eviction Prevention Partnership awards is available here.
Assisted Housing Relief Program: DHCD will reopen the Assisted Housing Relief Program with a $40 million allocation. The program serves rental units in multifamily projects financed by the department’s Community Development Administration using state funds or federal resources. In 2020, the Assisted Housing Relief program paid $15.2 million and covered 18,430 months of rental payments.
Tenants in eligible properties should contact their property management company for application information. Tenant applications will be collected and compiled by the property management company and submitted to the department as one single program application for the property. Property managers will receive direct payments from the department to bring rental delinquencies current.
Future Funding: Some of the remaining federal emergency rental assistance will be reserved so that it can be rapidly allocated based on need as local programs are deployed and to support case management, administration, and outreach to ensure eligible landlords and tenants, including minority populations and those in especially hard-hit areas, are aware of the relief. For more information, visit rentrelief.maryland.gov.
