A report from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) estimates that the $25 billion of emergency rental assistance allocated at the end of 2020, combined with the additional $25 billion in rental assistance proposed in the House COVID-19 relief bill, would assist four to six million low-income households. The report also notes that this amount would still fall short of helping all those in need: in early January, one in five renters were behind on their rent, amounting to 15 million adults.
Underscoring this need, the CBPP also reports that slow job recovery has especially impacted the lowest-wage workers and people of color. High-wage industries have seen a three percent decline in the number of jobs, while low-wage industries have seen an 11 percent decline. While white prime-age workers have seen employment drop 4 percent, Black and Hispanic prime-age workers have seen five and seven percent drops, respectively.
