Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings says the county is in the process of setting up an eviction diversion program.

.@OCFLMayor: The Orange County Eviction Diversion Program, a new program designed to assist individuals who are in imminent danger of being evicted due to COVID-19, will be reviewed by the Board of County Commissioners on 8/11: https://t.co/ldpIfxyPkQ. pic.twitter.com/3jnl2b8DmG

— Orange County FL (@OrangeCoFL) August 3, 2020

Demings said plans for the program will be presented to the Board of County Commissioners on August 11. 

He said it will use CARES Act money to help tenants to pay for full or partial rent.

“But the goal is to create the opportunity for residents who may not be able to pay current or past rent payments to have the ability to pay either all or a portion of that.”

He said some evictions have already begun in the county as the governor’s latest extension of the moratorium only applies to renters who were adversely impacted by the pandemic. 

“We will use CARES Act dollars to assist our residents, Orange County residents with that, and hopefully avert the potential that filing of the eviction would occur so we want to divert that.”

Demings said the county will work closely with the courts, Orange County Bar Association, Legal Aid Society, and landlords to set up the program.

The statewide moratorium is in effect through September 1.

.⁦@GovRonDeSantis⁩’s recent extension of the moratorium on evictions and foreclosures was NOT the same as previous months, and actually creates an avenue for both evictions & foreclosures to be filed.

See more below 👇🏽 1/ https://t.co/M1jgtvlWOj

— Rep. Anna V. Eskamani 🔨 (@AnnaForFlorida) August 3, 2020

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