Biden Tries to Revive His Eviction Moratorium through Back Door

The federal overreach that was part of the Covid pandemic response included a ban on residential evictions, ordained by, of all agencies, the Centers for Disease Control. Ultimately, the Supreme Court slapped down a Biden-administration effort to extend the ban — which had no serious public-health basis. But that has not stopped the White House from taking steps based on the dubious view that tenants nationally are at the mercy of oppressor landlords — and from taking backdoor steps through the federally chartered mortgage-finance companies to enforce this view.

The regulation of landlord–tenant relations — like housing and building-code enforcement — has historically been a matter for localities, the units of government by far the closest to housing markets. Cities and towns have long had a variety of policies, ranging from the non-zoning of Houston to the price regulation of rents in New York City.

About the Author

Howard Husock

Howard Husock is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and the author of The Projects: A New History of Public Housing.

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The federal overreach that was part of the Covid pandemic response included a ban on residential evictions, ordained by, of all agencies, the Centers for Disease Control. Ultimately, the Supreme Court slapped down a Biden-administration effort to extend the ban — which had no serious public-health basis. But that has not stopped the White House from taking steps based on the dubious view that tenants nationally are at the mercy of oppressor landlords — and from taking backdoor steps through the federally chartered mortgage-finance companies to enforce this view.

The regulation of landlord–tenant relations — like housing and building-code enforcement — has historically been a matter for localities, the units of government by far the closest to housing markets. Cities and towns have long had a variety of policies, ranging from the non-zoning of Houston to the price regulation of rents in New York City.