The rights of tenants in DC, particularly those most at-risk of unsafe and inhumane living conditions, are at risk of being all but erased in the Rebalancing Expectations for Neighbors, Tenants, and Landlords (RENTAL) Act. Bread for the City stands with more than 25 other leaders of long-standing organizations that have served hundreds of thousands of DC residents for decades, who have signed onto the letter below. 

We object in the strongest possible terms to tipping the legal scales even further in landlords’ favors by allowing an eviction to be filed after only ten days, making defense nearly impossible for tenants who require time off work, childcare, and transportation arrangements. We are speaking out to protect the housing rights of domestic violence survivors, which are at risk as the RENTAL Act allows landlords to file an expedited eviction claim against victims of violent crimes. We stand strong with families who could be evicted under the proposed Act if any family member is accused (you read that right–not convicted, but accused) of breaking the law, which would further perpetuate the racism we know exists in the criminal justice system. 

For DC residents who are doing their best to survive, who perpetually live paycheck to paycheck, the RENTAL Act moves us in the wrong direction. You can help move DC in the right direction by calling your councilmember and urging them to prevent the RENTAL Act and instead forge ahead with evidence-based, tenant-centered laws. 

Organizations and Individuals who have signed on:

Baldwin House
Black Swan Academy
Children’s Law Center
DC Action
DC Bar Pro Bono Center
DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence
DC Fiscal Policy Institute
DC Jobs with Justice
Empower DC
Equal Rights Center
Fair Budget Coalition
First Congregational United Church of Christ of DC
Grassroots DC
House of Ruth
Legal Aid DC
Legal Counsel for the Elderly
Metro DC DSA
Miriam’s Kitchen
Movement Matters
National Family Violence Law Center
Open City Advocates
Positive Force DC
Rising For Justice
Save Chinatown Solidarity Network
The Festival Center
The Playtime Project
The Safe Sisters Circle
The Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless
Tzedek DC
Volunteer Legal Advocates (formerly DC Volunteer Lawyers Project)
Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs
We Are Family Senior Outreach Network
Yachad
Andrew Budzinski, American University Washington College of Law Civil Advocacy Clinic
Andy Wassenich, Director of Policy, Miriam’s Kitchen
Deborah Epstein
Donald Whitehead
Philicia Majors, House of Ruth
Laquita Stagg
Leigh Higgins, Senior Attorney at D.C. Tenants’ Rights Center
Rachel Camp
Rev. Darryl! LC Moch, Innergy, Incorporated & Justice and Witness Committee of the Potomac Association United Church of Christ
Samantha Lee
Samantha Schatko
Selma Siddig