Landlords in Texas are welcoming the U.S. Supreme Court ending the Biden administration's latest eviction moratorium. Most landlords say the high court's ruling Thursday was long overdue. Robert Henneke, general counsel with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, agrees.
“It’s been a brutal year and a half. The landlords have had to continue to bear the cost of their property: their property taxes, their utilities, their mortgage payments,” Henneke said.
The Supreme Court's opinion said it's Congress, not the CDC, which would need to approve a moratorium law. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki appeared to concede that point on Friday.
“If there were enough votes to pass an eviction moratorium in Congress, it would have happened. It hasn’t happened,” Psaki told reporters during a press briefing.
However, she says the administration will look into other ways to keep Americans from being evicted in mass.
“Our objective is to keep as many people around the country in their homes as possible,” Psaki explained.
Henneke says he doesn't want to see Americans evicted, but he argues it's Biden’s policies that triggered the problems.
“This has cost billions of dollars nationally in terms of unpaid rent at the expense of landlords through no fault of their own,” Henneke said.
Officials with the Texas Apartment Association have stated there are plenty of programs to help people struggling to pay their rent.