A judge has ruled the California Department of Housing and Community Development must stop denying applications for COVID-19 rent relief money, amid a lawsuit filed by tenants’ advocates, who argue the state has unfairly withheld money from low-income renters.
More than 85,000 renter households are waiting for their applications to be reviewed in California's emergency rental assistance program and close to 158,000 have been denied, according to an analysis of state data. It comes days before eviction protections are set to expire.