Texas Tribune, January 21, 2022, Texas eviction filings among the nation’s highest as millions of rent relief dollars go unspent
Eviction filings in several Texas cities are among the highest in the nation — even as millions of federal dollars aimed at helping struggling renters have sat unspent so long in some counties that the federal government is taking the money back.
As the omicron surge is again forcing many workers to choose between a paycheck and the risk of COVID-19 exposure, the U.S. Treasury Department seized $1.9 million in unspent rent relief from five Texas counties — Jefferson, Brazoria, Hays, El Paso and Nueces — as well as the city of Laredo because local officials didn’t spend the money fast enough, the agency said earlier this month.
