To increase timely, critical and equitable support to cities as they look toward responding, recovering and rebuilding during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, the National League of Cities (NLC) and Stanford Legal Design Lab (Legal Design Lab) have selected five cities to participate in the Emergency Rental Assistance (ERA) Technical Assistance Program.  

Over the course of this hands-on assistance initiative, the National League of Cities and Stanford Legal Design Lab will serve as strategic thought-partners in the creation or improvement of local ERA programs and will support cities in the areas of: 

  • Data analysis or support
  • Communication, outreach, or engagement strategies
  • Program development
  • Program improvement
  • Program evaluation 

This program was made possible by the generous support of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.

Program Participants

Through a competitive application process, open to only cities participating in the 2021 Eviction Prevention Learning Lab, five cities from four states were accepted into the ERA Program, including:   

  • Chattanooga, Tennessee  
  • Chicago, Illinois 
  • Kankakee, Illinois 
  • Milwaukee, Wisconsin 
  • Thornton, Colorado  

Program Benefits

Cities and their local ERA program partners will receive a range of benefits and support through the delivery of individualized hands-on assistance, including:  

  • Improving disbursement processes that accelerate the delivery of emergency rental assistance to households in need. 
  • Utilizing data to improve targeted community outreach strategies and increase the number of “hard-to-reach” households that are served by emergency rental assistance programs. 
  • Increasing emergency rental assistance program participation rates among landlords that own or manage ten properties or less. 
  • Evaluating the outcomes of local emergency rental assistance programs. 
  • Providing stabilization strategies for households not served by emergency rental assistance programs due to the exhaust of funding or eligibility challenges. 
  • Providing a dedicated project manager to facilitate discussions and sessions with internal and external municipal stakeholders. 

Questions?

If you have additional questions about the Emergency Rental Assistance Technical Assistance Program, please contact epll@nlc.org.