Tenants who lost their income due to the pandemic will have slight relief after Gov. Andrew Cuomo extended the eviction moratorium for another 30 days.
Cuomo's executive order extends the moratorium until Sept. 4, which gives the courts time to stop the proceedings.
"No evictions as long as we are in the middle of the epidemic," Cuomo said.
Cuomo's executive order is covered under the Tenant Safe Harbor Act, which provides protection against eviction to tenants who are unable to pay rent due to the health crisis.
The initial executive order that paused evictions during the pandemic expired midnight and could have forced thousands of evictions for failure to pay the rent. The Office of Court Administration is now reviewing the governor's executive order to determine whether to extend the moratorium through early September.
"We signed legislation, passed by both houses, codifying our previous executive action making it clear that New Yorkers couldn't be evicted due to a COVID-related hardship," Caitlin Girouard, New York Press Secretary, said. "The order signed last night continued provisions giving the courts and litigants the leeway to suspend deadlines related to civil litigation. How and if they use this authority when it comes to eviction proceedings is up to them."
However, advocates fear that tenants already facing eviction before the pandemic are not covered by that law, which could include 14,000 New York City households.
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Mayor Bill de Blasio on Thursday encouraged New Yorkers at risk of losing their homes to call 311, where they can get free legal help.
On Thursday morning, a multitude gathered for a rally outside Brooklyn Civil Court with tenants calling for rent to be canceled.
