Millions of tenants could get evicted again in 7 days, but Biden may extend the ban through at least July

• Biden may extend the ban on evictions through at least July, sources told The Washington Post.
• The current moratorium is set to expire in a week, and Americans are still struggling to pay rent.
• Many Americans have not yet received needed stimulus aid due to implementation delays.

The federal eviction moratorium that President Joe Biden extended on his first day in office is set to expire in seven days, but two people familiar with the matter told The Washington Post that the White House may extend the ban through at least July.

This would help the Americans who have not yet received stimulus aid.

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, one in five renters is behind on rent, and over 10 million Americans have fallen behind on mortgage payments since COVID-19 began. That's why Biden's stimulus plan included more than $40 billion in assistance for homeowners and renters behind on payments. But due to implementation delays, many Americans haven't yet received direct payments from the government, putting them at risk of eviction.

Sources told The Washington Post on Wednesday that the Biden administration is considering extending the moratorium eviction through at least July to buy more time for stimulus aid to be distributed, and it's also considering minor policy changes to the moratorium, like implementing an education campaign to inform renters that the policy exists, along with taking a greater role in enforcing the moratorium against landlords who don't oblige.

This follows a press call in February during which a Housing and Urban Development administration official said that while an eviction moratorium extension was not included in the stimulus bill, further extensions would remain under consideration.

In terms of implementation delays, many Americans and lawmakers have expressed concern over lapses in aid being distributed. Stimulus changes from both December and March caused the IRS to face delays in processing nearly 7 million tax returns, and customers of major online tax preparers, like TurboTax and H&R Block, were told to wait to file an amended return while the companies updated their software.

As a result, top House Democrats sent a letter to the Internal Revenue Service and Social Security Administration on Monday, urging the agencies to address the delay in stimulus aid.

"This evening we are demanding immediate answers from the IRS and Social Security Admin why they're taking so damn long sending stimulus payments to many Social Security, SSI, and VA recipients," Rep. Bill Pascrell of New Jersey said on Twitter. "This money needs to go out NOW."

-Bill Pascrell, Jr. (@BillPascrell) March 22, 2021

The $900 billion stimulus package that Congress passed in December included $25 billion for rental assistance, but a White House fact sheet said Americans still owe $25 billion in back rent and require more aid.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently oversee the eviction moratorium, and the White House and the CDC have not yet confirmed any details regarding an extension.

"The CDC is in the process of trying to determine what is the appropriate way forward," HUD Secretary Marcia Fudge said at a press briefing last week.

A CDC spokesperson told Insider that a decision has not been made to extend the ban on evictions.