New Orleans Renters Rights Assembly is deeply concerned about the abrupt suspension of the Emergency Rental Assistance Program from the Office of Community Development. Using money allocated by the Department of Treasury during the pandemic to cities around the country, this $82 million dollar program helped 28,000 households in New Orleans facing eviction since 2020. The suspension of this program brings a grim future for our city; for many tenants who found themselves unable to afford rent, this program meant the difference between sleeping on the street saddled with rent debt and barred from future housing opportunities due to an eviction on their record and being able to stay in their apartments and return to some form of stability after financial hardship. The sudden end of this program with no plan in place to address the fallout from this will be catastrophic for tenants in this city who now have no other social safety net to rely on. We are calling on city council to immediately pass and fully fund a permanent emergency rental assistance program while we simultaneously work towards more affordable housing and sustainable long term solutions for our city.