Evictions: Judge says CDC doesn’t have authority to issue a moratorium. It’s unclear what happens next

CNN — A federal judge in Washington on Wednesday declared that the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s moratorium on eviction – a key element of the federal government’s efforts to aid those hit hardest by the Covid pandemic and its economic effects – must be set aside. The ruling from Judge Dabney Friedrich says the Public Health Service Act does not give CDC the legal authority to impose the moratorium, which was first issued last year. “The question for the Court is a narrow one: Does the Public Health Service Act grant the CDC the legal authority to impose a nationwide eviction moratorium? “Having now agreed to hear the case on an expedited basis, the Eleventh Circuit is poised to be the first federal appeals court to strike down the moratorium and protect housing providers across the country who have been forced to provide unlimited free housing to their tenants.” Moratorium ordered by Trump The CDC’s moratorium stems from an executive action signed by former President Donald Trump last August shortly after a previous moratorium on evictions lapsed, as Congress proved unable to come to a deal to extend the provision. “The home has been sort of the focal point of people social distancing and building sort of a safe space for themselves over the past few months.” The official also said people “may end up in overcrowded congregated living facilities or homeless shelters, and that is a potential recipe for a big spread of Covid-19.” In March, the CDC extended the ban to June 30, the third time the deadline had been pushed back.