Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski announced Monday that he is allocating additional funds to support residents struggling to pay rent due to COVID-19. 

Last month, the county set aside $1 million of its federal and state emergency assistance funds to prevent evictions. After receiving 1500 applications, the county is now allocating an additional $1 million in federal CARES Act funding. 

The county is also allocating $2 million in grant funding for Phase 2 of its eviction prevention program.

In a press release today, Olszewski said that families across the county continue to face “significant financial challenges” because of the pandemic.  

“These additional funds will help more families avoid homelessness and provide a bridge while they get back on their feet,” Olszewski said. “We will continue to identify ways to provide resources that help our families weather this storm.” 

Terry Hickey, the Deputy Director for Housing and Community Development, said that these funds can support applicants who were not approved when the program launched. 

“We didn’t want to see them go through a whole new application process unless it was necessary,” he said. 

But Hickey said that the county may need more relief funds to help deter mass evictions. 

“The money committed by the state at this point is just mathematically not close to adequate even coupled with what local governments have had to do,” he said. 

In addition to funding, the county is partnering with the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition’s Fair Housing Action Center to provide services to residents like financial counseling, referral to legal assistance and help with renters’ tax credit applications.