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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A $24 million rental aid program Gov. John Bel Edwards announced in July for people facing eviction because of the coronavirus has so far committed less than one-third of the assistance promised.
The slow pace of aid is drawing criticism from Republican state Rep. Jack McFarland. He called program management by the Louisiana Housing Corporation “disastrous.”
Only 160 tenants have seen money paid to their landlords, out of thousands that applied.
About $400,000 in rental payments have been made. Edwards spokeswoman Shauna Sanford says that’s misleading. She says $7 million has been obligated and is protecting 3,000 families from eviction even if the dollars haven’t yet been paid to landlords.