Dear Governor Tom Wolf, 

We, working tenants, homeowners, seniors, low-wage workers and families living across the State of Pennsylvania, are facing a public health and economic crisis that is bringing many of us to the brink of homelessness, joblessness, death and desperation. Therefore, we are calling on you to protect our homes and the potential spread of this disease for our health, safety and welfare.

With 4,000 confirmed cases of coronavirus, a stay-at-home order that extends to April 30th, over half a million Pennsylvanians filing for unemployment in the past week, and many more cases of unemployment and underemployment that go uncounted in this moment, millions of the people of our state face imminent eviction and foreclosure. Renters and homeowners struggled to maintain rents and mortgage payments before this crisis. If we do not act now to protect our people from eviction and homelessness, the high cost of housing and homelessness will become higher physically, emotionally, and economically. For this matter, we ask that you immediately docket our Crisis, Recovery, and Resilience Housing Emergency Ordinance to protect all Pennsylvanians like us at risk of hardship or death during this crisis. Our demands include:

1. Cancellation of Rent and Mortgage Payments:  Many Pennsylvanians live paycheck to paycheck, and the coronavirus has severely impacted their ability to make ends meet. Therefore, we call on the State to recognize our Freedom to Stay by immediately suspending and fully forgiving rent & mortgage payments during the Emergency Declaration and through the end of the recovery period. This should extend to all private and public homes, buildings and residential dwellings.

2. An Immediate Moratorium on ALL Evictions and Foreclosures:  The State must guarantee a moratorium on all foreclosures and evictions in both public and private housing that covers all homes & dwellings, as well as small business commercial leases. The moratorium should call on the courts and sheriffs from across the State to place a halt on carrying out any evictions. The moratorium should extend through the declared state of emergency and throughout the entire recovery period.

3. An Immediate Moratorium on Utility Shut-offs:  The economic fallout from the coronavirus has led to increased numbers of people falling behind on bills, which puts them at risk of having their water, gas, electricity, and other basic utility services shut-off.  All public and private utilities doing business in the state should halt all utility shut-offs through the duration of the declared state of emergency and the entire recovery period. 

4. An Emergency Housing Fund:  The State must guarantee emergency rental and mortgage payment assistance for the unemployed, underemployed, and working families impacted by this crisis from now until the end of the recovery period.  

5. Shelter for the Houseless:  In this crisis, it is critical that we house---and not criminalize---the population most vulnerable to the spread of this virus. We are calling on the State to take unprecedented action to identify publicly and privately owned buildings to use as temporary shelter and self-quarantine sites for the unsheltered and unhoused. 

These bold actions for housing justice and security provide necessary structural support in crisis and through recovery, and will ultimately help our communities to maintain resilience by containing the spread of COVID-19 and alleviating the health and financial burden on working families and our most vulnerable citizens.