MONTGOMERY — The Alabama Senate on Thursday unanimously gave final passage to HB 231, sending the bill to Governor Kay Ivey’s desk.
This comes after the bill unanimously passed the House last week. Ivey is expected to sign the legislation.
Sponsored in their respective chambers by Rep. Steve Clouse (R-Ozark) and Sen. Greg Albritton (R-Atmore), the supplemental appropriations legislation would allocate over $263 million in rental assistance funds to the people of Alabama.
The appropriation utilizes federal funds deriving from COVID-19 relief legislation passed by Congress in December.
“Many folks were unable to pay rent and utilities due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” stated Ivey. “Like other federal coronavirus funds, The Emergency Rental Assistance program will fully utilize these resources for the benefit of the citizens of our state, and we are working as quickly as possible to put programs in place.”
The federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program set aside $25 billion nationwide for tenants and housing providers. The Alabama Association of Realtors and local realtor associations have worked with Ivey’s office and eligible local governments to encourage participation in the program.
These efforts resulted in the Yellowhammer State receiving over $326 million to cover rent, back-rent and utilities for those eligible Alabamians affected by COVID-19. Of the total, just over $263 million was received by the state and the remainder was received by local governments as follows:
$6,686,362.30 to Baldwin County
$6,272,092.60 to the City of Birmingham
$6,007,644.10 to the City of Huntsville
$13,502,417.90 to Jefferson County
$5,223,224.50 to Madison County
$12,376,572.40 to Mobile County
$6,783,767 to Montgomery County
$6,270,654.90 to Tuscaloosa County
Alabama Realtors CEO Jeremy Walker explained the organization’s continued advocacy efforts and earnestly expressed appreciation to the Ivey administration for pursuing relief opportunities for Alabamians.
“Alabama REALTORS® has been vocal in advocating for a robust rental assistance program in Alabama utilizing CARES Act Funds to help both tenants and housing providers who are struggling through this pandemic,” said Walker. “COVID has had a devastating toll on families across Alabama, and this rental assistance will help families avoid eviction while also ensuring property owners can continue to provide housing to Alabamians. We applaud Governor Ivey and the Legislature in their efforts to make this a reality.”
The Alabama Housing Finance Authority (AHFA) will administer the state’s emergency rental assistance program. Although applications are not yet available, AHFA has preliminary information on its webpage here.
Sean Ross is the editor of Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
