D.C. Council Advances Eviction Reform Amid Unpaid Rent Crisis

The D.C. Council advanced a bill on Tuesday, amended at the last minute, that would make it easier for landlords to evict tenants due to unpaid rent. The bill would effectively codify temporary eviction legislation approved in October.

The Emergency Rental Assistance Reform Amendment Act of 2025 is a version of the October bill, giving judges more leeway to accelerate eviction proceedings for tenants who have large unpaid rent balances, while also preventing tenants from automatically delaying those proceedings by applying for rental assistance. It also would ensure that tenants who do qualify for emergency rental assistance (ERAP) can stay in their homes. 

The vote was the first of two required before the final bill goes to Mayor Muriel Bowser’s desk.

The version considered Tuesday did not pass the 13-member council unanimously, but there were zero nay votes. Wendell Felder, representing Ward 7, Zachary Park, representing Ward 5 and Kenyan McDuffie, council member at-large, all voted present, with the remaining members voting in favor. 

Changes to the bill were introduced Monday night from Councilmember Matthew Frumin to clarify a landlord’s responsibilities in the ERAP process, and to extend the 30-day window in which landlords have to respond to ERAP applications to 45 days. Frumin plans to introduce more amendments before the bill is brought to a final vote.

The bill is an attempt to permanently alleviate the city’s landlords of an ongoing unpaid rent crisis, stemming from the pandemic and the various rent moratoriums passed by the city since 2020. The legislation comes alongside Bowser’s Rebalancing Expectations for Neighbors, Tenants and Landlords (RENTAL) Act, proposed in February, that would add further protections for landlords and developers. 

Roughly $147 million of unpaid rent is due citywide, with an average of $2,207 of unpaid rent per unit, according to the city’s Office of Deputy Mayor of Planning and Economic Development and D.C.’s Committee on Human Services. Both figures are currently the highest in the nation. 

Yet the bill isn’t an extension or a copy-paste re-creation of the temporary measure passed in the Fall. Landlord groups such as the Apartment and Office Building Association initially supported permanent passage of the October bill. But recent changes by the council’s Committee on Human Services at the behest of tenant advocates prompted some landlord groups to flip in opposition, arguing the changes are both confusing and would further delay the eviction process. 

Bowser apparently wasn’t a fan of the changes, either. The mayor sent a letter to Council Chairman Phil Mendelson Tuesday morning, according to Bisnow, saying she was concerned the committee’s changes would indeed “result in further delays in reducing the backlog of cases.”

It was not immediately clear when the council would hold its second vote on the proposed legislation. Representatives for Mendelson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for Bowser declined to comment further. 

Nick Trombola can be reached at ntrombola@commercialobserver.com.