About a third of funding will go toward affordable housing organizations in Northern Virginia. Pictured above is the Ramsey Homes complex in Alexandria.

Sasha-Ann Simons / DCist/WAMU

Virginia has announced $8,987,420 in grants to affordable housing organizations across the state. About a third of the funding will be directed to Northern Virginia.

The money comes from the federal government’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act.

“As housing insecurity continues to rise for many Virginians, now more than ever, Congress needs to offer critical assistance to those in need,” Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner (D-Va) said in a joint statement. “We’re pleased to announce these federal funds that will go directly towards supporting some of the most vulnerable communities right now.”

Congress allocated a total of $1.25 billion for rental assistance through the CARES Act. The funds will be directed toward programs that help low-income families, the elderly, and people with disabilities afford proper housing. Public housing authorities can use the money for administrative costs, rent subsidies for tenants, support for participating property owners, and other expenses.

By helping tenants with rent, the grants could also help slow the amount of eviction cases piling up in state courts. In late June, more than 12,000 eviction cases were pending in the Virginia court system.

The Virginia grants range from just over $12,000 to more than $1.3 million. Five of the 39 recipient organizations are in Northern Virginia:

  • Alexandria Redevelopment and Housing Authority: $384,750
  • Arlington County Dept. of Human Services: $382,489
  • Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority: $1,343,712
  • Loudoun County Department of Family Services: $141,428
  • Prince William County Office of Housing and Community Development: $467,993

HUD allocated funding based on a formula that factors in the number of Housing Choice Vouchers in use in the jurisdiction.

Leaders have been imposing temporary eviction bans throughout the pandemic, though some advocates say a longer-term solution is needed. Gov. Ralph Northam (D) issued an executive order banning evictions that expired in late June and has since declined to issue another, citing “legal complexities.”

On Friday, Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring announced the state’s Supreme Court had decided, by a narrow 4-3 vote, to temporarily stop evictions through Sept. 7. Northam requested the halt on evictions in late July, as federal efforts to provide support for renters during the pandemic stalled in Congress.

The four justices who signed the majority opinion cited the riskiness of travel during the COVID-19 pandemic and the virus’s disproportionate impact on low-income people as reasons why tenants need a reprieve from eviction court.

The new moratorium only applies to cases in which tenants fail to pay rent.

Northam has also invested $50 million in CARES funding into a rent relief program for people who have lost income due to the pandemic.

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