Julia Orduña, Texas Housers regional director in Houston, was joined by Jay Malone from Texas Gulf Coast Area Labor Federation and Jordan Everett from the Center for Civic & Public Policy Improvements on September 27th session of Harris County Commissioners’ Court to advocate for the rights of tenants to access legal assistance in eviction court hearings.
“While we are encouraged by the allocation of $4 million over four years for legal aid by Harris County Commissioners Court, this funding does not match the scale of the eviction crisis we currently face.”
While the funding amount is historic, it is on par with the $1 Million allocated last year for this initiative. As rents skyrocket, Harris County has seen eviction filing rates above the historical average every month in 2022 and is ranked second highest for number of eviction filings of any county in the nation. We hope Harris County continues to fund access to justice and move towards establishing a true Eviction Right to Counsel in our courts to address the displacement crisis and keep working families in their homes.
Watch testimony below from Harris County Commissioners Court and read about our visit to Commissioners Court in the Houston Chronicle and Community Impact.
If Harris County is to be successful with a functional Right To Counsel program, we will need more than what is currently funded. We’ve taken the first step, so let’s make a fully funded program a reality! pic.twitter.com/MEelDyQfEJ
— Texas Housers (@TexasHousers) September 28, 2022
