Rent aid program for needy Nebraskans “on track,” with much of the $48M still available • Nebraska Examiner

LINCOLN — A once-controversial emergency rent aid program has distributed about $11 million to eligible Nebraskans, leaving more than three-quarters of $48 million available following its September launch.

Except  for a funding bottleneck at the beginning, administrators are pleased with the rollout of the latest round of pandemic-related Nebraska Emergency Rental Assistance, said Shannon Harner, executive director of the Nebraska Investment Finance Authority.

“We’re pretty happy,” said Harner, whose NIFA team is leading the ERA II effort. “The flow of getting funds out continues to speed up. That is also positive.”

Given that the federally-provided funding had been shut off for a year, pent-up demand led to some challenges early on, Harner said. Extra staffing helped get the process to a better pace and smoother disbursement of funds, she said.

Since late September, about 1,800 applicants who represent almost all of Nebraska’s 91 smaller, more rural counties have received funding, according to an update provided by NIFA.

Renters in the state’s largest two counties of Douglas and Lancaster are not eligible for this pool of funds, but each of those counties was able to apply for and distribute its own ERA aid.

Overall, the average amount of assistance delivered to households in the eligible counties has been about $6,262. Sarpy County has had the most participants. 

The bulk of financial help has been directed at rent — about $7 million for past-due bills and $3.8 million for future payments. However, a slice also has gone toward utilities and to help renters catch up on overdue internet bills.

Harner said that NIFA and its “community collaborative partners” have been working diligently to distribute the emergency aid to households who prove they had financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We understand the relief and stability this program has provided to so many families across the state, and we continue to encourage anyone who believes they may qualify to apply,” she said.

Under program guidelines, funds are to be distributed until they run out or until September 2025, and they do not have to be paid back.

NIFA’s hope, Harner said, is to get at least 75% of the $48 million spent by the year’s end. “We believe we are on track,” she said.

Once that 75% point is reached, she said, the program guidelines allow remaining funds to be directed toward building affordable housing.

“We look at that as having a better long-term impact,” said Harner.

She said it was too early to know how many dwellings might be created or in what form they would be built. 

But she said it was likely such remaining dollars would be directed toward the low-income housing tax credit program administered by NIFA.

A sample of representatives who work with low-income families across the state said this ERA II process has gone smoother, especially in comparison with the previous one.

Many advocates, renters and landlords had voiced complaints to lawmakers and state officials about the management of the first round of emergency rental aid to the 91 counties.

They said the previous contractor, Deloitte, an audit and financial services firm, had created a cumbersome online application process that kept many needy Nebraskans from accessing the aid.

Low participation rate was among reasons cited by then-Gov. Pete Ricketts when he refused to tap the second round of rent aid dollars that the federal government had set aside for the 91 Nebraska counties. Ricketts said that the pandemic was over and that Nebraska should guard against becoming a “welfare state.”

State lawmakers stepped in but the Legislature fell one vote short of overriding a gubernatorial veto on a bill that would have forced Ricketts’ hand in accepting the aid.

Gov. Jim Pillen, after he was elected, bucked Ricketts’ stance and accepted what was left of the original $120 million that was to go to the state’s 91 smaller counties. By then, certain deadlines had been missed, and much of the original allocation went back to the federal government and was redirected to other states.

NIFA was tapped to lead the second ERA phase — which Harner said will be the last tranche for those American Rescue Plan Act emergency rental and utility funds.

Tanya Gifford of Lift Up Sarpy County said she has seen improvement in the program after early sluggishness in getting the rental aid distributed.

“It started out bumpy. They were obviously not staffed adequately,” she said of the call center. 

Now, Gifford said, clients are seeing a three- to four-week processing time, which she said is fair.

NIFA officials, she said, have been “super responsive.”

Araceli Santos-Ayala of the McCook area Community Action Partnership of Mid-Nebraska said most landlords she has dealt with have been patient. The landlords must participate, and are the receivers of the rent aid.

“We might have a hiccup here or there — but knowing there is someone to email, ask questions of or get clarification is great,” she said. “I haven’t had anybody get denied at this point. I tell them it can take time and try to ease them by explaining the process.”

Harner said fraudulent applications also have slowed the process at times. Most have been discovered prior to money being disbursed, so not many applicants have been turned over to the state authorities, she said.

Sandy Nation is a housing advocate who assists ERA applicants in northeast Nebraska.

“The ERA program has helped so many families get past a really difficult time, especially in rural communities where housing is in short supply,” Nation said. 

“I’ve spoken to people who think they may not qualify, but I always say, you don’t know unless you apply, Nation said. “The ability to get caught up on past-due payments and build a cushion for future needs relieves a lot of stress and provides a sense of stability.”