LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Louisville residents facing eviction for failing to pay rent will get an additional seven days before being forced from their homes and information about rental-payment assistance programs available through Metro Government.
The new requirements are part of an “Eviction Diversion Pilot Project” announced Tuesday by Kentucky Chief Justice John Minton, who oversees the state court system.
The project seeks to address concerns about a flood of evictions of tenants who are behind of the economic collapse caused by the coronavirus.
“Hopefully, we can avoid the catastrophe of having 25,000 households evicted all at once,” said Stewart Pope, advocacy director of the Louisville Legal Aid Society, a nonprofit organization that represents poor tenants in court and plays a role in the program announced Tuesday.
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Evictions have been held back since March because of Gov. Andy Beshear’s indefinite moratorium, but the state Supreme Court appears to have effectively ended that policy over Beshear’s objection.
Seeming to disregard Beshear’s moratorium, the court last month gave landlords clearance to file evictions for nonpayment of rent once again on Aug. 1.
Beshear has said his order would still prevent sheriffs and other local law enforcement from enforcing evictions, but questions have been raised about whether that’s practical.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office told WDRB last week that it would enforce any court order and could not “pick and choose” which evictions comport with Beshear’s order.
The program announced Tuesday implements a new, seven-day period between a landlord and tenant’s initial court appearance and final judgment on the eviction. The waiting period doesn’t apply to tenants who don’t show up to the court hearing.
The program also requires information about rental assistance to be provided with the formal eviction notice and during the initial court hearing.
A paralegal from the Louisville Legal Aid Society will be present at every eviction hearing to help renters and landlords determine whether they might qualify for Metro government’s assistance.
“In that seven days, it sets up a chance for the parties to mediate and work out a payment plan,” Pope said. “Hopefully, Metro will be able to cover all of the rent that’s behind and the landlord will be made whole.”
Court records indicate at least 40 evictions for nonpayment of rent have been filed in Jefferson County since the Aug. 1 clearance. Those cases will start reaching judges next week.
The order Minton signed Tuesday does not take effect until Aug. 24. Minton’s office did not immediately explain how the earlier cases will be handled.
