LOC News
Portal for Emergency Rental Assistance Reopens
This week, Oregon Housing and Community Services (OHCS) announced that the Oregon Emergency Rental Assistance Program is now accepting new applications. **The portal has opened to a strong showing of interest by Oregonians. Heavy traffic may cause momentary delays.**
This will be a limited reopening for a minimum of three weeks. As a reminder, applications submitted in 2022 will not be immediately processed, as SB 891 requires that applications submitted prior to December of 2021 be prioritized. New applications will not be processed on a first-come, first-served basis. OHCS has provided the following information to help promote the program and inform tenants:
- Tenants may prepare their application materials using this simple checklist.
- Social media tiles, downloadable paper applications, and the online portal are available in English, Spanish, Russian, Simplified Chinese and Vietnamese here.
- During testing, OHCS has identified sections in non-English applications where the translation from English is not complete. OHCS is working with the vendor to correct this issue. All applications are fully functional, and applications can be submitted, but applicants may note phrases which are not fully translated. Paper applications in languages other than English are fully translated. Applicants may also contact 2-1-1 with questions or to be connected to interpretation services.
For more information on the safe harbor tenant protections recently passed in SB 891 (2021), please see the Oregon Law Center’s presentation in English and Spanish, or view a webinar recording of the presentation in English here and in Spanish here.
Tenants at immediate risk of eviction should apply for rental assistance right away to access safe harbor protections and may request legal assistance through:
- Oregon Law Center’s Eviction Defense Project: 888-585-9638 or evictiondefense@oregonlawcenter.org
- Oregon State Bar: 503-684-3763 or legalhelp@oregonstatebar.org
Contact: Ariel Nelson, LOC Lobbyist – anelson@orcities.org
Last Updated 1/28/22