Analysts fear the impact of the next few months as unemployment benefits adn eviction moratoriums expire
Analysts fear the impact of the next few months as unemployment benefits adn eviction moratoriums expire AFP / Eric BARADAT

The Supreme Court has partially blocked New York State’s eviction moratorium.

The Thursday ruling lifts a provision in the moratorium that allowed tenants to file a form claiming economic hardship. Now, they have to provide evidence of hardship in court.

"[The moratorium] violates the Court's longstanding teaching that ordinarily 'no man can be a judge in his own case' consistent with the Due Process Clause," the Supreme Court said in the ruling.

This new development, requested from a group of New York landlords, could leave tenants who are still behind on their rent at risk of eviction, especially in a state like New York where living expenses tend to be much higher than other U.S. states.

State Senator Brian Kavanagh, a Democrat and co-sponsor of the moratorium law, said this is a “very serious setback” to the state’s “ability to protect tenants in the middle of a pandemic,” as reported by the New York Times.

"While I respect the U.S. Supreme Court as a separate judicial entity, I am deeply disappointed in the injunction issued yesterday that invalidates eviction protections for hundreds of thousands of tenants and denies New Yorkers this still necessary public health measure," Kavanagh said in a statement.

It is not clear how many people could be affected by Thursday’s ruling.

National Equity Atlas' data found that more than 831,000 households in New York state are behind on rent, with a total estimated debt of more than $3.2 billion.

The state has $2.7 billion total in federal pandemic relief to help struggling tenants. However, only $100 million has been spent.

The ruling has only intensified eviction fears as New York’s eviction moratorium is set to expire on Aug. 31.