By Alden Woods | Arizona Republic
After months of delays, the Arizona Department of Housing has quietly rolled out a limited version of its eviction prevention program, marking the state’s first significant step to stem a relentless cycle of evictions.
The pilot program is designed to stop evictions before they reach a courtroom, providing emergency cash grants to low-income households who have missed rent and received a five-day “pay or vacate” notice. Households will also receive 90 days of case management.
“This is not a program that’s just a one-shot payment,” said Cathy Chiang, a program manager for Maricopa County’s Community Action Program, which is operating a portion of the pilot. “All I know is we’re very, very excited about having a program that’s designed to help people through their crisis as opposed to just paying for their crisis.”
