Weeks before the federal eviction moratorium is set to expire, the Denver City Council has approved an ordinance to provide income-eligible residents with free legal representation in eviction cases.

Beginning on Sept. 1, renters facing eviction who make less than 80% of the area median income will be eligible for free legal representation. Landlords will also be required to give tenants a copy of their rights and legal representation options when they move in and when a landlord files for eviction.

This ordinance, sponsored by council members Candi CdeBaca and Amanda Sawyer, passed unanimously without discussion during the City Council meeting Monday.

“Passage of this ordinance is a win for renters during a critical moment when pandemic protections are being lifted,” CdeBaca said in a statement. “Much more will be needed to correct the power imbalance between landlords and renters in this state, but this is a first step in the right direction.”

This ordinance comes as the national eviction moratorium is set to expire on June 30, clearing the way for the eviction of tenants unable to pay rent because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Denver City Council to vote on eviction legal defense, virtual meetings

Even with the federal and state eviction moratoriums, nearly 4,000 evictions were filed in Denver in 2020, 90% of which resulted in the tenants being evicted. In these cases, 95% of landlords had legal representation while only 1% of tenants did, according to Denver County Court data.

The new plan builds on Denver’s Eviction Defense pilot program, established in 2018. The program has represented over 1,000 tenants, 70% of whom moved out without putting the eviction on their record, and 28% of whom kept their housing through methods like setting up a payment plan.

Javier Mabrey, an attorney with the Colorado Eviction Defense Project, said in committee that though tenants often still have to leave, providing representation allows those facing eviction to negotiate better outcomes.

“What we provide is a translation service where we’re navigating people through the system and avoiding situations where people are signing documents where they are guaranteed to have an eviction on their record for the next seven years,” Mabrey said.

Mabrey announced in April that he was running for the Democratic seat in House District 1.

The ordinance will expand the pilot program, providing additional financial and staff resources and expanding public knowledge of the representation resource and how to access it.

The Eviction Legal Defense will cost $4 million annually for 4,750 eviction cases, outreach, education and staff. However, Sawyer said the program would save the city money by preventing residents from becoming homeless.

According to city data from 2012, each homeless person in Denver costs the city $26,000 annually in supportive programs and law enforcement response. If 3% to 5% of tenants represented by the Eviction Legal Defense avoid homelessness, the city would save nearly $12 million each year.

Before COVID-19 hit, Denver was already in the middle of a housing crisis, with a record 4,000 homeless people in the city and others pinched by high rents, according to city data.

Black and Latino people are significantly more likely to face evictions, with Black women renters being filed for eviction at double the rate of white renters. In Colorado, adults with children are also three times as likely to be behind on rent than those without children in September and October of 2020.

Of the tenants represented by Denver’s existing Eviction Defense pilot program, 41% were people of color, 40% had a disability and 31% were families with children, according to Denver County Court data.