Eviction

Since launching last June, right to counsel has helped hundreds of tenants avoid eviction, proof to advocates that the program is working.

With the end of pandemic-era housing protections, Midwest states are ramping up evictions again, which is causing a growing public health crisis. Since March 2020, the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has increased nearly 18% percent in Missouri.

Missouri’s program is accepting applications into 2023. The program for renters will cover up to 18 months of total assistance.

Republican Kris Kobach promises to sue the federal government every chance he gets if he’s elected Kansas attorney general. Plus, how a new program in Kansas City is already helping hundreds of tenants facing eviction.

Since Kansas City's right-to-counsel program took effect on June 1, a group of attorneys collectively have taken on 139 new cases of tenants facing eviction. Kansas City sees an average of 9,000 evictions every year.

The City Council passed an ordinance in December guaranteeing free legal representation to tenants in eviction court by June 1. But some of the requirements outlined in the ordinance haven't been fulfilled yet.

State Rep. Chris Brown, R-Kansas City, is sponsoring a measure that would prohibit any county, municipality, or political subdivision from imposing or enforcing a moratorium on eviction proceedings unless specifically authorized by state law.

Missouri Rep. Cori Bush is teaming with two other Democrats hoping to provide a legislative lifeline to tenants facing eviction. But their bill faces some steep hurdles in Congress.

A previous pilot program funded by Kansas City showed that the vast majority of renters who received legal representation were not evicted. The newly-approved ordinance would provide representation to tenants, regardless of income.

Only about 3% of Kansas City tenants receive legal representation in eviction court. KC Tenants and other housing rights groups have proposed a Tenants' Right to Counsel, which would provide that help free through the city.

The Tenant Representation Initiative, created by the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, has saved hundreds of tenants from eviction through what it says is much needed legal counsel. “It’s like a bus had just been removed off my body," said one client, "because I felt like I was being ran over by a bus."

Staffed by Truman Fellows, the Tenant Representation Initiative was started to keep clients in their homes during the pandemic