The Legal Aid Society, with just 10 days left before New York State’s eviction moratorium expires, called on Governor Andrew Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Andrew Stewart-Cousins, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and other Albany lawmakers to extend the critical protection immediately, reports the Queens Daily Eagle.

 This past December, Albany lawmakers enacted legislation that froze all eviction proceedings until March 1, 2021, and through April 30, 2021 for those tenants who submitted a hardship form with the New York State Office of Court Administration (OCA).

According to The New York Times, New York City is still at a high risk of exposure to COVID-19, and as of April 21, 2021, hundreds of New Yorkers were still testing positive each day for the virus, and the positivity rate has now plateaued at roughly six percent.

“It would be a tragedy if people were evicted who qualify for the rent relief program because it isn’t authorized and the eviction moratorium is lifted,” said Ellen Davidson, Staff Attorney with the Civil Law Reform Unit at The Legal Aid Society.