With much of Los Angeles out of work during the COVID-19 emergency, the Board of Supervisors is seeking to create a rental assistance program for County residents.
The proposal, initiated by a motion from Supervisors Hilda Solis and Janice Hahn, calls for using additional Community Development Block Grant funding approved in the $2-trillion CARES Act approved by the U.S. Congress to support families facing unemployment, food insecurity, and housing instability.
"There is a unique opportunity to leverage the funding to implement a Countywide Emergency Rental Assistance Program utilizing CARES Act funds," reads the motion. "This Program can subsidize the rent for those families who were recently laid off from retail and service industry jobs."
Noting that another distribution of block grant funding is scheduled to be issued to cities and counties within the coming weeks, the motion directs the Los Angeles County Development Authority and other departments to secure additional CARES Act funds for the proposed rental assistance program, and to also solicit private and philanthropic funding.
A report back would be expected in 19-to-30 days.
The Board of Supervisors is also expected to vote this week to strengthen an existing moratorium on evictions for Los Angeles County residents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
