The following can be attributed to Alison Goebel, Executive Director,
Greater Ohio Policy Center
The Greater Ohio Policy Center thanks the Governor, Ohio Senate, and Ohio House for establishing a range of programs to support Ohio residents and businesses. In particular, we appreciate the $50 million program that will provide emergency relief for families with overdue rental, mortgage, sewer and water bills, as a result of COVID.
GOPC has worked closely with local advocates and practitioners through the spring and summer to sound the alarm on the need for emergency rental assistance for Ohioans and the communities they live in. This is a much-needed resource: by September 2020, 290,258 households, or 19% of all renting households in Ohio, were behind on monthly rent. We know that the economic effects of the pandemic are disproportionately affecting low-income workers, a population previously experiencing high levels of housing cost-burden.
We hope the Governor, Legislature, and federal officials will follow this investment with additional dollars to address the increasing rent shortfall anticipated in Ohio and across the country; experts estimate Ohio landlords may see a rent shortfall of $544 million to $792 million by January 2021.
Maintaining stable families is critical to maintaining stable neighborhoods and keeping infection rates down in Ohio. |
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