2021 Eviction Prevention and Rental Assistance Services Annual ReportCity of Boulder
2021 Eviction Prevention and Rental
Assistance Services Annual Report
Contents
Program Overview 4
Eviction Trends 4
First Year Snapshot 5
EPRAS Services 6
Legal Services Program 6
Rental Assistance 7
Mediation 7
Outcomes 7
Next Steps 8
4 City of Boulder Land Acknowledgement Creative Brief
Ordinance 8412: Legal Representation
Provided in Cases of Eviction was
approved by Boulder electors in
November 2020 and the Eviction
Prevention and Rental Assistance
Services (EPRAS) Program was
implemented in January 2021. The
program helps meet the needs
of community members facing
a potential eviction through legal
services, rental assistance and
mediation. This program is funded
through an excise tax paid by
landlords on each property they
operate with a rental license. The
EPRAS Program is part of the city’s
Community Mediation and Resolution
Center which works with community partners to provide landlord-tenant mediation across Boulder
County and maintains resources for landlords and renters.
Since the inception of the EPRAS program, EPRAS staff, mediators from the City of
Boulder and Longmont Mediation Services and contracted attorneys from Bridge to
Justice have supported tenants at all stages of the eviction process. Tenants eligible for the program
who are facing an eviction have different avenues to access the program; they can contact EPRAS
directly through the online form, email or phone, or they can contact Bridge to Justice directly. Staff
prioritized implementation of the program components (e.g., outreach, rental assistance, navigation,
mediation, legal services) at the start of 2021 and then focused on refinement of the data collection
and setting up the Tenant Advisory Committee as the year progressed.
Eviction Trends
Many federal, state, and local actions, undertaken in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, have
provided useful tools to aid in the prevention of evictions. Although all protections have now
expired, rental assistance provided through the Coronavirus Relief Fund, American Rescue Plan
Act, and the Emergency Rental Assistance Program have enabled renters who lost income or
employment to remain housed and this funding continues to be a critical support to ensure
housing stability in our community. Although many financial supports are available, tenants who
find themselves at eviction court may not have qualified for the rental assistance, may not have
accessed rental assistance, or the cause for the eviction action may be due to a lease violation
unrelated to rent.
Program Overview
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In typical years, eviction filings at the Boulder courthouse are around 1,000 per year. With eviction
protections and financial supports in place to support tenants through the pandemic, eviction
filings remained low at 392 for 2020 and 557 for 2021. However, eviction filings have steadily
increased (see chart below) and are now in line with pre-pandemic levels. As we enter 2022, we
anticipate a rate of eviction filings at levels similar to pre-pandemic years. It is important to note
that eviction filings, when the suit is filed and a tenant is notified of the hearing, is not the same as
eviction judgments, when a tenant must leave the property. In the window of time between eviction
filings and the time of court, the EPRAS program supports tenants with a range of services to ideally
prevent an eviction judgment.
First Year Snapshot
•EPRAS team formed, and legal services contract initiated with Bridge to
Justice.
•390 tenants contacted EPRAS to access services before or at court.
•Evictions prevented in 63% cases at eviction court, a 26% increase compared
to pre-EPRAS.
•Tenant Advisory committee was seated and began quarterly meetings.
•$168,536 in rental assistance distributed to 82 households.
•July 2021 ordinance update included clarifying language and program
enhancements.
•Researched and created a more robust mechanism for data collection in
preparation for 2022.
•Application of the racial equity tool to assess services and avoid
disproportionate impacts on people of color community members.
Updated on Feb. 15, 2022
6 City of Boulder Land Acknowledgement Creative Brief
To initiate services, a tenant can
contact the EPRAS team, either prior
to court or at court. The coordinator
assesses the tenant’s situation to
determine which combination of
services (mediation, legal or rental
assistance) may be utilized to
best assist the tenant. There may be
circumstances when rental assistance is
sufficient to resolve the situation, or the
tenant simply needs legal guidance at
court to fully understand their
options. However, in many instances,
a combination of services is the most
effective. In 2021, 390 tenants contacted EPRAS to access services either before or at court.
At court, the EPRAS team observed 501 cases. Of these, 88 cases were known to be city of Boulder
residents. EPRAS staff attempts to reach all city of Boulder residents who are on the docket which
presents some challenges since there is limited contact information available. EPRAS was able to
reach 68 tenants on the eviction docket and connect them with services.
Legal Services Program
The city of Boulder has contracted with Bridge to Justice to provide legal services to tenants at all
stages of an eviction process. Bridge to Justice relies on current staff and four contract attorneys
with extensive housing experience to interview, refer, advise, represent and negotiate for tenant
clients.
Tenants can contact the EPRAS program as soon as they have received a notice of compliance
prior to any formal legal action, however, many tenants engage with services for the first time when
they appear in eviction court. The legal team will consider the nature of the situation, reason for the
eviction risk and stage in the process to determine how best to advocate for the tenant. In 2021,
EPRAS referred 204 clients to Bridge to Justice to receive legal services to prevent an eviction.
Rental Assistance
For the first half of 2021, the EPRAS program relied on existing local financial assistance agencies,
Housing Helpline and Emergency Family Assistance Agency, to support tenants in need of rental
assistance. As the eviction moratorium lifted, unemployment benefits expired and wait times for
rental assistance grew longer, there was a greater need for an expedited process for tenants to
access rental assistance funds to avoid eviction. Towards the second half of 2021, EPRAS developed
a rental assistance process, including eligibility criteria and an application process in order to
EPRAS Services
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quickly dispense funds to those facing a potential eviction. As word got out, funding requests
steadily increased (see chart below). Since July 2021, $168,536 in rental assistance have been
distributed to 82 households, an average of $2,022 per household.
In recognition that tenants may also seek assistance through existing financial resource centers,
EPRAS has strengthened its partnership with the Emergency Family Assistance Association (EFAA)
and has directed EPRAS dollars to support tenants seeking assistance through EFAA. Looking
forward to 2022, tenants in need of rental assistance will be able to access EPRAS dollars through
either agency (EPRAS or EFAA) to facilitate easy access and eliminate barriers for tenants. Tenants
facing an imminent eviction will be directed to EPRAS for expedited assistance.
Mediation
In many cases, mediation is a useful tool to reach an agreement between the landlord and tenant in
order to avoid an eviction. The parties might agree on a payment plan, how the tenant will address
a lease violation, or to develop a timeline for moveout that works for all parties. Mediators are
available both prior to court and at court. In 2021, 51 cases were referred to mediation.
Outcomes
Eviction was prevented in 68 of the 88 City of
Boulder cases observed at eviction court. For
those case that resulted in an eviction (in
orange), the tenant either never responded to
EPRAS’ attempts to contact or didn’t appear in
court resulting in a default eviction. If a tenant
is unable to remain in their property, EPRAS
staff works to connect tenants with community
resources to assist in their housing transition.
Updated on Feb. 15, 2022
8 City of Boulder Land Acknowledgement Creative Brief
Data collection refinement has been a major focus for the program over the course of 2021. EPRAS
staff has worked closely with the Housing Solutions Lab at the New York University Furman Center,
a national housing policy and research agency to help revise program metrics, along with the Tenant
Advisory Committee’s data subcommittee and other EPRAS partners.
In 2022, EPRAS will launch a new streamlined intake form that captures in-person contacts as
well as online referrals. EPRAS will also implement a survey to follow up with clients three to six
months after they have interacted with the program to better quantify outcomes. The EPRAS team
looks forward to compiling more meaningful outcome data that will ensure better assistance for
community members at risk of losing their housing. EPRAS also plans to publish a data dashboard
about evictions in Boulder that will be available on the city’s website.
Next Steps