Washington State Court of Appeals rules against portions of Seattle’s eviction moratorium

A state appeals court issued a decision Monday, saying that parts of Seattle’s eviction moratorium are not legal.

Two parts of the moratorium, codified under council legislation, were struck down: that which allows tenants to avoid eviction for six months after the expiration of the eviction moratorium under the mayor’s civil emergency— which technically ended earlier in February; and a provision which bans the accrual of interest on unpaid rent during the civil emergency.

Seattle council upholds eviction moratorium expiration set for Feb. 28

In the court’s opinion, the judge writes that tenants do not have to prove financial hardship as the legislation is written. Ultimately, landlords will have the ability to challenge tenant claims of financial hardship were they to avoid eviction under laws passed by the council.

“Notably, the six-month eviction ban extension drops the requirement that the tenant prove they suffered a financial hardship during the COVID-19 civil emergency. While the tenant must submit a ‘self-certification’ to assert a financial hardship, there is no provision requiring the tenant to actually prove the existence of such a hardship,” the appeals court’s opinion reads.

“On summary judgment, … we conclude that the ordinance prohibiting a landlord from evicting a tenant for nonpayment of rent for six months after the end of the civil emergency, without affording the landlord the opportunity to challenge a tenant’s self-certification of a financial hardship, violates the landlord’s right to procedural due process. We otherwise affirm.”

The council legislation in question largely relates to ordinance 126075, which extended the mayor’s eviction moratorium for the six-month period following the end of the civil emergency. A subsequent ordinance, 126081, banned the accrual of interest on unpaid rent during that time, which the appeals court deemed unlawful Monday.

“We are grateful for the Court’s decision, which stops the cycle of debt for housing providers and residents trapped in Seattle’s ongoing COVID-19 eviction ban. 90 cents of every dollar of rent goes to the operating costs of a property – and Seattle’s laws that prevent timely rental payments have resulted in the loss of hundreds of rental homes from the marketplace. We applaud the court for seeing that the ordinances did not adhere to basic constitutional protections. We continue to examine our issues with Seattle’s winter eviction ban,” a statement from the Rental Housing Association of Washington reads.

Other portions of the eviction moratorium, including the winter eviction ban, remain intact.

“The challenged protections remain in place until final action by the appellate courts. The Mayor’s Office is in communication with the City Attorney’s Office on next steps as they evaluate this ruling and a potential appeal. Information about additional protections and resources for tenants and small landlords continues to be available at this website,” reads a statement on behalf of Mayor Bruce Harrell.

KIRO Newsradio’s Hanna Scott and Diane Duthweiler contributed to this report.