Changes Coming to Local Rent Assistance Program

City and County government officials are alerting residents that changes are in store later this year for the Eviction Diversion and Defense Partnership (EDDP), the local initiative created at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to help lower-income renters who faced the threat of eviction.

EDDP relies upon several local organizations including the Tenant Resource Center, Community Justice Inc., Legal Action of Wisconsin, and the UW Law School to assist renter households with rent payments, legal representation, mediation services and other housing support. It is financed with money made available by the City of Madison and Dane County from funds they received through the Federal Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Program, part of Congress’ response to COVID-19.

Since its creation, EDDP has provided almost $26 million of financial assistance to nearly 3,000 renter households. However, most of the ERA funds that sustained it have been used up and what remains must be spent by September 30 or be returned to the federal government.  

As the ERA funding that supports EDDP begins to run out, local officials have sought other resources they can use to continue EDDP services for a while longer. Dane County has identified about $1 million of remaining American Rescue Plan funds that it will offer to the Tenant Resource Center to extend services through 2026. And, the Tenant Resource Center was recently awarded a $950,000 Eviction Prevention grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) that will enable it to continue many of the services currently provided under EDDP.

Still, local officials note, these two sources combined provide much less funding for EDDP services than what has been available from the ERA. Moreover, both are just one-time sources, and cannot be renewed. That means while some version of EDDP will be able to continue after ERA funds run out sometime this summer, it will not be able to serve as many households as in the past and it will not be able to offer the same level of benefits as the current program.

Tenant Resource Center officials are currently determining what program changes will be necessary, given reduced funding, and will share details of the revised EDDP as soon as they are available. While non-financial support is expected to continue without interruption, officials anticipate there will be a period of time after ERA funds run out during which help with rent assistance will not be available.

In the meantime, renters in eviction court or at imminent risk of eviction should continue to seek help from the Tenant Resouce Center under the existing EDDP program. New requests for rent assistance must be submitted by March 31 to ensure that rent assistance checks can be disbursed this summer and that all funds are spent prior to the September 30 ERA deadline. Tenants and landlords that have applications pending with the Tenant Resource Center will receive direct notification from the agency regarding the status of those requests. Those with questions or concerns are encouraged to contact the Tenant Resource Center.