The Supreme Court denied a request by a group of landlords to lift the residential eviction moratorium put in place by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The decision overturns a lower court ruling that found the CDC lacked the authority to enact a nationwide ban on evictions.
The decision was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joining the three liberal justices, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor, and Elena Kagan. Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett all said they would eliminate the moratorium.
While the High Court did not explain its reasoning, Kavanaugh wrote a concurring opinion in the case. He said that while he felt the CDC overstepped its authority, he agreed to keep the ban in place because it is set to expire on July 31, following a “final” extension. If the agency wants to extend the deadline again, it would have to be authorized by Congress.