BOISE — The national eviction moratorium ends at the end of July, but it remains to be seen if Idaho would see an increase in evictions.  

But that’s partially because evictions never stopped in Idaho, Jesse Tree Executive Director Ali Rabe said. Jesse Tree provides rental assistance and helps people with court dates. 

“There may be some landlords or property managers on the wings that are just waiting to file that we don’t know about,” Rabe said, sitting in her Boise office with her dog. “We just don’t know what’s going to happen.” 

A temporary eviction moratorium was initiated in March 2020 as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security, or CARES Act, and had seen several extensions. The initial moratorium ended in July 2020.

“In the context of a pandemic, eviction moratoria — like quarantine, isolation, and social distancing — can be an effective public health measure,” the original order said. “Eviction moratoria facilitate self-isolation by people who become ill or who are at risk for severe illness from COVID-19 due to an underlying medical condition.” 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention eviction moratorium went into effect on Sept. 4, 2020, and was originally effective through Dec. 31, 2020. In December, the moratorium was extended until Jan. 31. The Biden administration extended it through June and then for "one final month" until July 31. 

To use the moratorium, tenants have to meet certain criteria, including being under certain income levels. Then, they have to “demonstrate and certify under penalty of perjury and sign a self-declaration,” saying they meet the criteria, Rabe said. They have to provide the self-declaration to their landlord, and if they go to court they have to pay $160 to file the document with the court, she added.  

But Rabe said the moratorium lacks teeth. Jesse Tree said they saw one person successfully assert the declaration, she added, and they eventually got evicted. The person lived in Boise, she said.

“The main issues were that it was really broad and vague and didn’t have any enforcement guidance, so the courts didn’t know how to or whether to enforce it,” Rabe said. “The other issue was just awareness and capacity of tenants to utilize it.” 

Even if the moratorium lacked teeth as Rabe described it, many local experts expect to see a dramatic rise in eviction proceedings once it ends.

Idaho Legal Aid Services Statewide Advocacy Attorney Martin Hendrickson said the nonprofit had success with the moratorium, but some tenants didn’t follow the process correctly and some judges didn’t apply it.  

“It was better than nothing,” Hendrickson said. “But the way that it was set up and the way it was implemented was very cumbersome and problematic.” 

At this point, it’s hard to say how many evictions are on hold, he added, but the organization is expecting it will be a “significant number.”  

“We’re very concerned about what is going to happen on Aug. 1,” Hendrickson said. “I think there are a lot of tenants who know that it’s coming.”  

Evictions seemed to have been lower statewide with the moratorium in place, said Nate Poppino, court communications manager for the Idaho Supreme Court, but there were so many factors during the pandemic it’s hard to point at just one factor like the moratorium.  

“It's hard to tell how many evictions have not been filed because of this,” he said. “It’s safe to say from the data we have that we are concerned that there will be additional ones showing up.” 

On July 7, the Idaho Supreme Court launched a pilot program in Ada County that allows landlords and tenants to resolve cases online. Part of the reason for the pilot program's creation was because of the upcoming end of the moratorium. The pilot program gives the parties another option for resolution if there is a large number of cases filed all at once. 

Only people involved in eviction cases for nonpayment of rent can participate in the pilot program.

“We are choosing to exercise caution and expect that there may be an increase,” Poppino said. “At the same time, this is an attempt just to provide possibly another option for resolving these.” 

The hope is to have a tool which can help  landlords and tenants beyond the pandemic.  

The tool will direct landlords and tenants to a web page with links to financial resources, said Magistrate Judge Adam Kimball, who is assigned to the 4th Judicial District Court in Ada County. 

The pilot program can allow for scheduling flexibility, Kimball said, rather than requiring specific times for court or mediation.  “We don’t really know what’s going to happen with the volume of filings when the moratorium expires, if there is a flood of cases,” Kimball said. “Even if there’s not a large increase in the number of cases, I still think the flexibility can be a beneficial thing.” 

Personally, Kimball has not seen any tenants file a declaration or use the moratorium.  

“It may be that that happens on the front end and so I just don’t see those cases where it would be inappropriate to go forward,” Kimball said.  

Even without the moratorium there are ways to help resolve eviction issues, Rabe said. For a tenant, it’s important to maintain a good relationship with the landlord.  

The best way to do that is to pay them,” Rabe said, laughing. “To pay and communicate effectively … we’ll provide pre-court mediation from our case management team and we also do participate in mediation in court and then we’ll pay back the rent that they owe.” 

As of July 5, 1.4 million Americans who were behind on rental payments said they very likely faced eviction in the next two months and 2.3 million said eviction was somewhat likely, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey. 

Beyond the pandemic, Rabe said evictions dog people throughout their lives and their ability to find work and housing. 

Evictions can also affect credit scores through collection accounts. If a landlord felt a tenant owed them money, they could sell the debt to a collection agency. 

“If they get evicted, they have an eviction on their record, which in Idaho can never be expunged,” she said. “It’s public record, so any employer, any landlord can look it up and so it can preclude somebody from job and housing opportunities for the rest of their lives.” 

Our Path Home Connect Program Director Sara Busick said the moratorium has gone on for so long, many landlords are choosing to just not renew the leases of affected renters. This is part of why it’s hard to tell what will happen Aug. 1, she said.  

The organization runs a housing crisis hotline and connects people to appropriate resources. For example, some are connected to the housing authority and some with Jesse Tree.  

“We’re actually not really sure (if more people would come for help),” Busick said. “I hope not … it’s really hard to say at this point.”