DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. — DeKalb County Superior Court Chief Judge Asha Jackson signed an emergency judicial order on Friday, July 30, creating a countywide eviction moratorium for 60 days following the expiration of the CDC moratorium.
The news comes as millions of Americans face being forced from their homes now that a moratorium on evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic has expired.
On Aug. 3, DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond will present to the DeKalb Board of Commissioners a revised rental reimbursement proposal that would pay landlords 100 percent of all past due rent up to 12 months and three months prospective rents for eligible tenants.
“This emergency order is a Godsend,” CEO Thurmond said in a statement. “Without this local extension to the CDC moratorium, thousands of DeKalb residents faced the stark reality of having their belongings set out on the street in the midst of surging COVID-19 infection rates.”
According to Judge Jackson’s order, the judicial emergency declaration in the Stone Mountain Judicial Circuit is authorized because of the “continued COVID-19 public health emergency and cyberattack on the TLAC (Tenant-Landlord Assistance Coalition) program which delayed relief targeted at parties to dispossessory proceedings.”
“I am aware that this extension will increase the financial burden and stress on landlords, especially our mom-and-pop owners.” Thurmond added.
The current TLAC policy caps the amount of past due rent that can be paid to landlords at 60 percent of the arrearages up to $10,000 and two months of prospective rent. If adopted by the Board of Commissioners, this revision will address a major complaint that has been raised by some landlords and tenant advocates.
Originally launched in February, TLAC designed to provide financial relief to DeKalb renters threatened by eviction and landlords facing revenue losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
On March 24, DeKalb County’s Department of Innovation and Technology was informed by federal agents of an international cyberattack that impacted TLAC.
Due to the cyberattack and the ongoing federal investigation, the county did not have access to pending applications, emails or documents submitted to TLAC prior to the date of the attack.
The TLAC application process was reopened on a more secure platform on June 21, according to a release sent to 11Alive.
As of July 29, TLAC has distributed $3.45 million, or 11 percent, of the $31 million that was allocated for rental and utility assistance to 763 DeKalb households. Since the relaunch, the county has paid out approximately $460,000 per week in assistance.
There are currently 1,657 pending applications that have submitted by tenants and landlords.
According to the Georgia Department of Public Health, as of July 30, 1,366 cases of COVID-19 were detected in DeKalb County in the last two weeks, nearly tripling over the two weeks ending July 23 when there were 496 cases.
In Georgia, there were 21,995 new COVID-19 cases in the past two weeks, up from 11,859 cases over the previous 14-day period ending July 23.
