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California Governor Gavin Newsom immediately signed the COVID-19 Tenant and Landlord Protection Legislation, which was passed by the State Senate on Monday.

The approval of the COVID-19 Tenant and Landlord Protection Legislation comes a day before the Judicial Council’s moratorium on evictions and foreclosures is set to end.

Last month, California Supreme Court Chief Justice Canti-Sakauye urge the state Legislature to “act expeditiously to resolve the looming crisis” confronting struggling renters and property owners. She explained that “the judicial branch cannot usurp the responsibility” of the administrative and legislative branches of the state government “on a long-term basis to deal with the myriad impacts of the pandemic.”

On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom along with Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins and Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon announced that they reached an agreement on legislation to protect renters from eviction and small property owners from evictions.

The COVID-19 Tenant and Landlord Protection Legislation provide protection for renters and property owners experiencing hardships due to the COVID-19 pandemic. State Senators Anna Caballero and Steven Bradford as well as David Chiu (D-San Francisco) and Monique Limón co-authored the legislation

Under the legislation, struggling renters are protected from evictions until January 31, 2021, but they are still responsible for past due rents to landlords. Landlords may begin to collect unpaid rents on March 1, 2021. Small claims court jurisdiction will be temporarily expanded to allow landlords to recover unpaid rents. Landlords who do not follow the court evictions process will face increased penalties under the law.

The legislation also provides relief for small landlords by extending the Homeowners’ Bill of Rights’ anti-foreclosure protections. It also provides new accountability and transparency provisions to protect small landlord borrowers who request CARES-compliant forbearance and provides the borrower who is harmed by a material violation with a cause of action.

A “bridge to a permanent solution” to protecting renters and small landlords

In a statement, Gov. Newsom said, “This new law protects tenants from eviction for non-payment of rent and helps keep homeowners out of foreclosure as a result of economic hardship caused by this terrible pandemic. California is stepping up to protect those most at-risk because of COVID-related nonpayment, but it’s just a bridge to a more permanent solution once the federal government finally recognizes its role in stabilizing the housing market. We need a real, federal commitment of significant new funding to assist struggling tenants and homeowners in California and across the nation.”