January 14, 2021

The DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs recently launched the Landlord Violations Tool, which allows renters to read building reviews and complaints against landlords. The database includes more than 40,000 inspection violations, including failure to provide extermination services and failure to maintain and repair appliances. “With this new, free resource, we’re arming District renters with critical information about landlords before they ever sign a lease,” states Ernest Chrappah, director of DC Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.

In December, the Central Falls Housing Authority—located in one of the most underresourced cities in Rhode Island—became the first organization in the state to administer the COVID-19 vaccine. It offered the vaccine exclusively to its residents, staff, and housing choice voucher holders. “It’s important to center equity in all dimensions of COVID response and use data to guide decisions, which is why and how the state came to the decision to prioritize Central Falls and other hard-hit communities for vaccinations,” stated a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Health.

The San Antonio Housing Authority (SAHA) plans to demolish and redevelop the city’s oldest and largest public housing development into a mixed-income development. The plan faces fierce opposition from critics, who say it threatens to displace low-income Latinx homeowners in the surrounding area, places housing authority residents at risk for homelessness, and disregards the current housing development’s historic designation. “This is [our] last big public housing development and when it’s gone, it’s gone forever,” said Sofía López, a housing justice activist who served on the SAHA board until last fall and opposed the redevelopment.

The Baltimore City Council introduced a series of bills aimed at providing temporary assistance to homeowners and renters during the coronavirus pandemic. The housing legislation would suspend late fees for people receiving public housing subsidies, provide alternatives to traditional security deposits, and close an eviction loophole that allows landlords to evict tenants for unpaid rent. Any legislation passed will expire 90 days after the state’s public emergency is order is lifted.