By Major Martin J. Walsh | Commonwealth Magazine

THE ECONOMIC IMPACT of the coronavirus has hurt a lot of people, but few have been hit harder than low-income renters and communities of color. The Metropolitan Area Planning Council estimates that 61,000 households statewide don’t have enough money to pay their rent since the end of the extra unemployment benefit. In Boston, we project more than 15,000 households will have a hard time making rent.

Both the state and federal eviction moratoriums are important tools to keep families secure in the short term, but tenants who lost income will still owe rent. Once the moratoriums end, we expect a surge in eviction proceedings that will be devastating to families, neighborhoods, and our ability to contain COVID-19.

We must take action.

The pace of economic recovery and the prospect of more federal relief are uncertain. But there’s one concrete step that we could take here in the Commonwealth that would make a real difference: provide tenants with legal counsel in eviction proceedings.

The moral case is clear: it’s equal access to justice. We guarantee defendants in criminal cases free legal representation if they can’t afford a lawyer. It’s a fundamental right, because someone’s future is at stake. Shouldn’t people facing evictions in civil proceedings be afforded the same right?

Think about the trauma of being put out of your home by a court order. Families often become homeless after an eviction, severing their access to schools, health care, and food. Even if they get back on their feet, the legal, financial, and employment repercussions can follow them for the rest of their lives. Eviction was once seen as an outcome of poverty, but research now shows that evictions also cause poverty, trapping families in cycles of housing instability and financial chaos. They are an insidious aspect of systemic racism, harming Black and Latino people, especially women and children, at much higher rates.

And yet, the most vulnerable families routinely face these complex legal proceedings without representation. In Massachusetts, landlords have counsel in 78 percent of eviction cases, while tenants are represented in just 9 percent. That means more than 9 out of 10 tenants facing eviction do not have a lawyer for one of the most serious and damaging legal situations they will ever face. That’s not right.

We’ve worked hard in Boston to reduce our eviction rate to one of the lowest among American cities. We created an Office of Housing Stability to help tenants learn their rights and stay in their homes. This year alone, we’ve placed hundreds of people in permanent, affordable housing, including a special program for families of Boston Public School students. We were one of the first cities to establish our own rental relief fund, and we’ve extended the eviction moratorium at Boston Housing Authority properties until December 31, to protect our lowest income residents.

We’ve also spent two years working with our partners in the Legislature, including Sen. Sal DiDomenico and Rep. Chynah Tyler, on a statewide right to counsel law.

Now, the ongoing COVID-19 crisis presents a new level of danger. The economic fallout is threatening to spike housing instability, which could worsen the outbreak as more people seek shelter or crowd into apartments. Black and Latino families have already been hit the hardest by COVID-19, and they will be the most affected by evictions. The situation demands an urgent and targeted response.

That’s why concerned communities, including 22 mayors, have come together with legislators around a new plan. The Massachusetts Right to Counsel Coalition is asking the state to dedicate $6 million from federal CARES Act funds to establish a right-to-counsel pilot program for low-income tenants and homeowners in eviction proceedings.

This is not about stacking the deck against landlords, it’s about leveling the playing field. Evidence from other cities shows that providing tenants with representation not only keeps more people in their homes, it gets better results for both tenants and landlords. Counsel can help negotiate mutually beneficial outcomes, such as a realistic payment plan or time to find alternative housing.

It would also save the state money. A report by the Boston Bar Association found that providing legal representation in eviction proceedings pays for itself more than twice over, in savings on the shelter, health care, and foster care costs associated with homelessness.

We are facing multiple crises: a health crisis in COVID-19, the resulting economic crisis, and a crisis of systemic racism that’s existed for far too long. Giving low-income renters a fair chance in eviction proceedings helps on all three fronts.

By piloting a right to counsel at this pivotal moment, we can start to make good on our goal of building a new normal that’s better than before. This is an opportunity to provide Massachusetts families with help they desperately need, and I urge our state lawmakers to make it happen.

Martin J. Walsh is mayor of Boston.

Source: https://commonwealthmagazine.org/courts/tenants-facing-eviction-need-legal-representation/

BOSTON—Earlier this month, Governor Charlie Baker signed into law Senator Sal DiDomenico’s bill to fight childhood hunger and boost participation rates in school breakfast programs in schools with high percentages of students from low-income families in the Commonwealth. The bill, An Act regarding breakfast after the bell, requires all public K‑12 schools with 60 percent or more students eligible for free or reduced-price meals under the federal National School Lunch Program to offer breakfast after theinstructional day begins.

Senator DiDomenico has been a longtime champion of anti-hunger policies in the Massachusetts Senate and has sponsored this Breakfast After the Bell bill for the past two legislative sessions. Earlier in theyear, he was the recipient of the 2020 Breakfast Hero Award from the national anti-hunger campaign No Kid Hungry for his advocacy on Breakfast After the Bell and his work to end childhood hunger in theCommonwealth. This new law is the culmination of many years work and advocacy by Senator DiDomenico, his staff, and food security advocates from across the state. 

“As childhood hunger rates continue to spike due to the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, it has never been more important to increase our school breakfast participation rates and provide our students with the nutrition they need to start their day ready to learn,” said Senator Sal DiDomenico, theSenate sponsor of the bill. “I have seen the success of Breakfast After the Bell in my own community, and I am confident that this policy will help to ensure every child in the Commonwealth has access to a stigma-free and nutritious breakfast. Thank you to Senate President Spilka and Speaker DeLeo for making Breakfast After the Bell a legislative priority, as well as my partners Representative Vega, Representative Vargas, and the Rise and Shine Coalition for their tireless advocacy on this legislation.”

“When we first began advocating for this bill, 1 in 9 children in Massachusetts faced food insecurity and nearly 150,000 low income students were not accessing school breakfast. Today, 1 in 5 children is at risk of food insecurity, so now more than ever many more families will likely benefit from school meals,” said Catherine D’Amato, president and CEO of The Greater Boston Food Bank, which led thestatewide Rise and Shine Massachusetts coalition. “Passing this bill was a team effort by more than fifty organizations and school stakeholders across the state in coordination with our legislative champions. The Breakfast After the Bell legislation will help us move to a more equitable public education system, one in which all students get the nutrition they need to succeed for years to come.”

 “The COVID-19 crisis and resulting increase in food insecurity highlight the importance of child nutrition programs, such as school breakfast,” said Erin McAleer, President of Project Bread.

“Project Bread stands ready to support schools and districts in implementation of this legislation, working hand-in-hand to provide the most successful school breakfast program possible. We are grateful to thelegislature for their overwhelming support of Breakfast After the Bell, and especially to Senator DiDomenico and House sponsors, Representatives Vargas and Vega, for their commitment to ensuring that more Massachusetts students can start the school day with the nutrition they need to learn and thrive.”

Massachusetts currently requires all schools with high percentages of students from low-income families to provide breakfast to every eligible student. However, because breakfast is typically offered before thebell and in the cafeteria, participation levels are low—less than 40 percent—compared to 80‑90 percent participation for free and reduced lunch. Moving breakfast from before the bell to after the bell is a proven strategy to boost breakfast participation and ensure that all students have the nutrition they need to start their day ready to learn.

This law will require schools across Massachusetts serving low-income students to offer breakfast afterthe start of the instructional day through a variety of delivery models, including breakfast in theclassroom, grab-and-go, and second-chance breakfast. This flexibility allows school districts to select themodel that best fits their students’ needs.

As a federally reimbursed program, Breakfast After the Bell has the potential to provide up to $25 million statewide to Massachusetts school districts that increase participation rates to 80 percent and above. These payments are made directly to school nutrition departments, helping to support jobs, update kitchen equipment, and provide healthier menu options. 

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BOSTON – Senator Sal DiDomenico was recently honored as a 2020 Legislative Reception Award recipient by the Jewish Community Relations Council (JCRC) and the Massachusetts Association of Jewish Federations (MAJF). The Legislative Reception is an annual event that serves as an opportunity for leadership of the Jewish community to engage with state public officials and to advocate for their public policy and budget priorities, including standing with immigrants and refugees, criminal justice reform, economic justice and education. While this year’s Legislative Reception was cancelled in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, DiDomenico recently accepted the award from his home.

“It is an honor to receive this award from the Jewish Community Relations Council and theMassachusetts Association of Jewish Federations,” said DiDomenico. “Throughout my career, I have strived to lift up our Commonwealth’s most vulnerable, and I always know that I have trusted partnersin JCRC and MAJF. Whether it be fighting for justice for our immigrant and refugee community, providing support to low-income families, or working towards economic justice for all, I am always proud to stand with JCRC and MAJF. I am deeply grateful for their partnership and advocacy over the years, and I would thank them for this recognition.”

In selecting him as a 2020 Legislative Reception Award recipient, the JCRC and MAJF stated: “From his first term, Senator DiDomenico has been a trusted partner on many of our key priorities, most specifically the charge to provide a ladder to economic opportunity for all people. He was the Senate lead sponsor on the recently enacted “Lift the Cap on Kids” legislation to ensure that families in poverty have access to needed supports and has led efforts to provide job training opportunities for immigrants and refugees.”

JCRC is a coalition of organizations and individuals that represents and advances the values, interests, and priorities of the organized Jewish community in greater Boston. Their government affairs work is centered around advancing the Jewish community’s shared priorities by securing public funding and advocating for broad-ranging policy change on issues from civil rights to human services, economic opportunity to safety and security, and the protection of democratic values. The Massachusetts Association of Jewish Federations is a statewide government affairs office that strengthens the relationship between the Jewish community and elected officials, advocates for issues of concern to the community, and helps its members access public funding to provide services to its clients.

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