Committee approves Sen. Carney bill to support tenants in eviction cases

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, the Legislature’s Judiciary Committee voted in favor of a bill from Sen. Anne Carney, D-Cape Elizabeth, to ensure tenants have access to legal representation in eviction cases. LD 1508, “An Act To Prevent Homelessness by Establishing an Eviction Mediation Program,” received a vote of 9-5.

“The eviction process is often highly traumatic, especially for Maine families with low income. It’s also lengthy and complicated for landlords. In the middle of a housing crisis and pandemic, we must do better at keeping people in their homes and preventing evictions when possible,” said Sen. Carney. “LD 1508 will help tenants get legal support and provides information about rental assistance programs that benefit landlords and tenants.”

The Maine Affordable Housing Coalition, in 2020, created an eviction tracking database and report. LD 1508 addresses one of the key findings of the report: “Tenants continue to lag far behind landlords in legal representation, and case outcomes continue to strongly correlate with this imbalance.” Landlords had legal representation in 80% of the evictions in the study; tenants had legal representation in only 20%. Unrepresented tenants were subject to eviction judgments in 73% of the cases. When tenants had legal advice, case outcomes split evenly.

LD 1508, as amended, would provide funding for legal services organizations to provide courthouse assistance to tenants and require plaintiffs in eviction cases to provide defendants with information about the eviction process and resources available to tenants.

LD 1508 now faces votes in the Senate and the House. 

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