Sponsored by:
Senator TROY SINGLETON
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Provides funding for clinical program to provide legal services for low- and moderate-income tenants in need of housing assistance; appropriates $2 million.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning clinical programs to provide legal services for certain tenants in need of housing assistance, supplementing P.L.1996, c.52 (C.22A:2-51 et al.), and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. The lack of affordable housing in New Jersey forces low- and moderate-income households to spend a disproportionate share of their income toward rental payments, which dynamic has resulted in an eviction crisis throughout the State.
b. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened existing economic disparities and exacerbated the economic insecurity of many low- and moderate-income households, thereby worsening the State s eviction crisis to a critical level.
c. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a Statewide moratorium on evictions was put in place pursuant to Executive Order No. 106 and P.L.2020, c.1 (C.2A:18-59.3); however, this moratorium will soon expire, placing many low- and moderate-income households at risk of eviction.
d. It is estimated that as many as 300,000 rental households in New Jersey will become subject to an eviction proceeding after the eviction moratorium ends, which would be double the average annual number of proceedings filed before the pandemic.
e. These evictions are expected to disproportionately impact Black and Latino residents of New Jersey, as these communities account for a large percentage of the State s rental population.
f. Additionally, many landlords have increasingly filed legal actions against tenants to seek monetary relief rather than eviction, thereby putting low- and moderate-income tenants at risk of damaged credit ratings and further economic hardship.
g. The State and federal governments have established rental assistance programs to assist low- and moderate-income tenants who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, which programs include the COVID-19 Emergency Rental Assistance Program administered by the Department of Community Affairs.
h. However, these novel State and federal programs may be complex, making it difficult for some tenants to apply for and receive all of the benefits to which they are entitled under these programs.
i. Although these rental assistance programs may provide tenants with the means to pay some or all of their rental obligations, many tenants may still lack the ability needed to effectively negotiate with their landlords toward solutions that avert further legal proceedings.
j. Furthermore, when governmental assistance cannot prevent the filing of an eviction proceeding, the vast majority of tenants cannot afford to hire an attorney; in contrast, most landlords are represented by an attorney during these proceedings, given that many landlords are corporations, which are required to have counsel.
k. Consequently, the provision of free legal services to low- and moderate-income tenants who are in need of housing assistance, including those who are at risk of eviction and those who are entitled to governmental rental assistance, is one of the most effective ways to address the ongoing eviction crisis.
l. It is therefore in the public interest and a valid public purpose for the Legislature to appropriate monies to the Seton Hall Law School, Rutgers Camden Law School, and Rutgers Newark Law School to establish clinical programs that provide free legal services to low- and moderate-income tenants who are in need of housing assistance.
2. a. The Legislature shall annually appropriate monies for the Seton Hall Law School, Rutgers Camden Law School, and Rutgers Newark Law School to establish clinical programs that provide free legal services to low- and moderate-income tenants who are in need of housing assistance. The clinical programs shall be implemented according to guidance issued by the Seton Hall Law School, subject to the limitations of this section.
b. (1) The clinical program shall include, but not be limited to, the provision of the following services, free of charge, to low- and moderate-income tenants:
(a) legal counsel and representation in landlord-tenant-related litigation, including, but not limited to, eviction proceedings and actions for unpaid rent;
(b) assistance applying for benefits under any State or federally funded rental assistance program, or any other program providing financial assistance to tenants impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic;
(c) legal counsel and assistance related to pre- and post-litigation negotiations with landlords; and
(d) any additional services that the Seton Hall Law School may deem appropriate.
(2) The clinical program shall assist low- and moderate-income tenants residing throughout the State; provided, however, that the clinical program shall prioritize qualifying tenants who are in need of housing assistance as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The clinical program may partner with legal services organizations to conduct tenant outreach.
(3) The Seton Hall Law School may designate one or more legal services organizations through which a law school may implement the clinical program, provided that the legal services organization shall have experience providing free legal services to low- and moderate-income tenants who are in need of housing assistance.
(4) The clinical program may include pro bono components in which one or more services may be provided by volunteer students who do not receive course credit for participating in the program.
c. (1) If a law school elects to implement the clinical program, the law school shall designate a licensed attorney in good standing, with experience in landlord-tenant law and civil litigation matters, to supervise the clinical program. The law school may hire such administrative staff as may be needed to support the program. The law school may also hire one or more licensed attorneys in good standing, with experience in landlord-tenant law and civil litigation matters, to support the operations of the clinical program.
(2) If a law school elects to implement the clinical program through a designated legal services organization, then subject to the availability of funds, the law school shall provide subgrants to the legal services organization to defray the costs of the program. When implementing the clinical program, the designated legal services organization shall allow all students selected by the law school to participate in the program.
d. Before the clinical program may commence operations, the law school may submit an appropriate application, as required under the Rules of Court, in order to become a certified clinical program under those rules. Alternatively, the law school may provide some or all services through an existing clinical program, which has already been certified under the Rules of Court. In either circumstance, the clinical program shall comply with all requirements of the Rules of Court concerning the implementation of a clinical program and the representation of litigants by law stu