Residential and commercial evictions filed before March 13 can resume in Miami-Dade County, the mayor’s office announced on Friday.
On one of his last days in office, Mayor Carlos Gimenez directed the Miami-Dade Police Department to begin enforcing writs of possessions for all cases filed on or before March 12, when the mayor declared a state of emergency due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Mayor-elect Daniella Levine Cava will be sworn into office Nov. 17. Gimenez won election to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Florida’s 26th congressional district.)
In mid-September, the police department announced that pre-pandemic evictions could resume, but by the end of that day, Gimenez reversed the decision until a review was completed.
Florida’s ban on residential evictions and foreclosures expired Oct. 1, following multiple monthly extensions, and records show hundreds of evictions have been filed in Miami-Dade alone. The state’s moratorium applied only to the final action of foreclosures and evictions, and only for those who were not able to pay their mortgages or rent because of the pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control’s mandated federal eviction ban is in effect through the end of December, and prevents tenants from being evicted if they submit a valid declaration to their landlords regarding their inability to pay rent.
Gimenez’s announcement said the resumption of evictions is subject to the CDC’s order.