Illinois’ Pritzker wants additional $200M in federal rental assistance

Illinois is seeking an additional $200 million in rental assistance from the feds as the U.S. Treasury redirects aid from some rural states that haven’t used their funds.

Governor J.B. Pritzker requested some of that money for its Illinois Rental Payment Program, Crain’s reported, citing the Illinois Housing Development Authority. The program provides emergency funding for tenants who can’t pay their rent after losing their jobs because of the pandemic, or for extremely low-income households.

The Treasury said this week that it is redirecting unspent funding to places where it’s desperately needed. Officials didn’t specify which states and municipalities would gain or lose funds. The most populous, such as New York and Texas, are expected to benefit as they will exhaust their rental aid, while Illinois and California could soon be in a similar situation. The initial reallocation, which could exceed $800 million, is set to be unveiled early December.

“We are hopeful more aid will come to Illinois and to continue providing this necessary assistance,” an IHDA spokesman wrote in an email.

Montana distributed 11 percent of its $200 million in rental aid by the end of September while North Dakota gave out 4 percent, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The IHDA used more than $800 million in federal aid, $571 million through its Rental Payment Program and about $231 million through an earlier funding, the spokesman said.

The agency reviewed more than 111,000 applicants for assistance through the program as of October 20. More than 62,400 households received funding, which was paid directly to the landlords.

The maximum grant amount is $25,000, which can cover rents that are overdue and scheduled for the next three months. To qualify, applicants cannot earn more than 80 percent of their area median income.

[Crain’s]