Nevada Housing Rights Coalition calls for moratorium on evictions

CARSON CITY, Nev. — The Nevada Housing Rights Coalition is calling on local governments to protect those who may suffer layoffs during the coronavirus epidemic by enacting a moratorium on evictions and ending camping ban enforcement.

Wesley Juhl of the American Civil Liberties Union said a letter has been sent to a number of Nevada cities and counties urging swift action to protect people.

He said Nevada has some 7,600 homeless people on any given night and that more than half of them are in crowded shelters or unsheltered locations where they are at risk to exposure to the virus.

He said those people also often have disabilities that make them more vulnerable.

The letter to local officials says Nevada should follow the lead of other states and use emergency funding to put unsheltered people in vacant hotels and motels.

In addition, the coalition urged local officials to immediately stop enforcing any ban on camping and stop the clearing and disposal of tents and other such materials to make sure the homeless don't lose what may be their only shelter.