Thomas Breen file photo
State housing chief Seila Mosquera-Bruno.
Gov. Ned Lamont announced Wednesday afternoon that the state has set aside $12.5 million for a new “Eviction Prevention Fund” that will provide eligible applicants with up to $5,000 to pay back rent.
That’s according to an email press release sent out by the governor’s office.
The press release states that the $12.5 million in funding comes from UniteCT and the “Rent Bank.”
To apply, tenants must call the UniteCT Call Center at 1 – 844-864‑8328 and be screened for eligibility. Eligible applicants will then be directed to a “local UniteCT Resource Center,” where they’ll have to complete an application.
“In our many efforts to mitigate the growing number of evictions, we are establishing this fund to continue to assist our renters that face financial hardship,” state Department of Housing Commissioner Seila Mosquera-Bruno is quoted as saying in the press release. “With these resources, we expect to assist individuals and families to remain housed, while also providing landlords with some financial relief.”
The announcement of this newly funded rental assistance program comes roughly a year after the state stopped accepting new applications to the UniteCT pandemic-era renter assistance program.
Wednesday’s press release continues: “Launched in early 2021, UniteCT has served as the state’s premier program providing rent and utility assistance for households financially impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic,” the press release reads. “UniteCT has been funded by several streams of emergency allocations released by Congress, including from the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act. It provides qualified households with payments for up to 12 months of rental and electric arrearage assistance. Payments are typically made by the state directly to landlords and utility companies on behalf of tenants. To date, UniteCT has provided assistance to more than 11,300 landlords on behalf of 47,939 households that received nearly $330 million dollars in back rent, 95% of whom earn below 50% of their town’s area median income. Among those households, roughly 1,100 tenants had active eviction proceedings within the court system, and the UniteCT assistance helped the tenant remain housed and prevent the eviction.”