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Dozens of medical experts and organizations, including some of the largest names in the state’s health care landscape, urged Beacon Hill power players to revive a stalled proposal that would ensure tenants facing eviction have legal representation.
In a letter to Gov. Charlie Baker and legislative leaders, authors representing a range of hospitals and public health organizations threw their support behind establishing a $6 million emergency pilot program that would provide counsel to low-income tenants and homeowners during eviction proceedings.
They argued that keeping residents safely housed during the COVID-19 is a vital public health strategy, pointing to higher rates of behavioral and mental health problems, less access to health care, and dangerous childhood health effects among people experiencing homelessness.
“For vulnerable tenants who face court evictions, having a lawyer to translate what is happening, to interpret complicated laws and procedures, to file legal pleadings that help them tell their side of the case, to stay on top of fast moving deadlines, and to defend them in court makes a difference,” authors wrote in their Sept. 2 letter. “In New York City, 84% of the tenants who receive an attorney under their right to counsel law stay housed.”
Organizations who supported the letter include Boston Medical Center, Mass General Brigham, Boston Health Care for the Homeless Program, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, the Massachusetts Public Health Association and the Massachusetts Association of Community Health Workers.
Citing data from a City Life / Vida Urbana study, the groups warned that fewer than one in 10 Massachusetts tenants have legal counsel during eviction proceedings, compared to 78 percent of landlords – an “unfair mismatch” for which authors warned “the consequences can be devastating.” Landlord groups argue the measure typically only prolongs eviction processes instead of defeating illegal or questionable ones, raising costs for small landlords in particular.
Legislative efforts to implement a so-called “right to counsel” in eviction cases have been unsuccessful.
Bills filed at the start of the 2019-2020 lawmaking session – well before the pandemic hit – died in committee. During debate on an economic development bill in July, Cambridge Rep. David Rogers filed an amendment on the topic but withdrew it without seeking a vote.
