KC’s Tenants Right to Counsel begins today for those facing eviction. Here’s what to know
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Kansas City’s Right to Counsel program
KC’s Right to Counsel program guarantees a tenant has legal representation when a landlord sues for eviction. It was passed by City Council in December 2022.
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Organizers who pushed for a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction gathered in front of City Hall to celebrate as the policy went into effect Wednesday — and to call for more accountability from city officials.
Kansas City’s Tenants’ Right to Counsel legislation was passed in December and provides tenants facing eviction with free legal representation in court.
Organizers said they are excited to see eviction counsel implemented, but that the city hasn’t done enough to notify people who are facing eviction that free legal help is available.
“We’re here to celebrate, but there’s still work to do,” said Terrence Wise, a co-founder of Stand Up KC, which represents fast food and retail workers in Kansas City.
Director of Housing Jane Brown said the new policy will have a “life altering impact” on those facing eviction.
“Those tenants in the past have walked into the courtroom alone, or at least most of them did,” Brown said. “Now, they won’t be alone.”
The end result, Brown said, will be that tenants will have an advocate to help positively resolve the eviction or resolve it in a way allowing the tenant to move.
It’s launching with $700,000 to fund contracts with three legal organizations: Legal Aid of Western Missouri, the Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom and the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
The city is spreading the word about the new policy by notifying tenants facing eviction directly and through social media.
Opponents of the legislation have said funds should go to rental assistance instead.
Stand Up KC co-founder Kenya Banks, who spoke at the rally Wednesday, has faced eviction twice. The first time, she didn’t have access to a lawyer and she was removed from her apartment.
“I felt alone,” Banks said. “I had no idea where to go.”
During the pandemic, she faced eviction again. But this time, she got assistance from advocacy groups like KC Tenants and the Heartland Center for Jobs and Freedom, which helped her keep her housing. She said without legal counsel, she wouldn’t have been able to avoid the eviction.
“It’s the difference between keeping a roof over your head and homelessness,” Banks said.
In 2016, the Eviction Lab at Princeton, which at the time compiled data on evictions as far back as 2000, found that Kansas City was the 65th most evicting city in the country, out of 3,776.
That is a little over 10 households every day and 4 out of 100 rental properties every year.
Kansas City, now part of a larger movement across the country to guarantee legal representation for tenants facing eviction, is the 13th city to pass a right to counsel program.
Organizers criticized the city on Wednesday because leaders have missed implementation deadlines since the ordinance was passed in December.
“What does that tell you about the city’s priorities?” said Sabrina Davis, a member of KC Tenants who spoke at the rally.
The few deadlines that were missed, Brown said, “won’t make a difference.”
The city is still hiring for a director of the program and an additional tenant advocate who will also work on rental resources.
Eleven people have been confirmed, with another three awaiting confirmation, to the Tenants’ Right to Counsel Committee, according to the mayor’s office.
Davis is one counsel member who has already been confirmed.
“We got together and wrote our rights into existence,” Davis said.
City Councilwoman Andrea Bough, who represents the sixth district, spoke at the rally in support of the right to counsel.
“The fight doesn’t stop here,” Bough said. “We’re one step closer, but we have many steps to take.”
To get help for an eviction case, call 816-474-5112 and you can find more information here.
This story was originally published June 1, 2022 at 1:40 PM with the headline "KC’s Tenants Right to Counsel begins today for those facing eviction. Here’s what to know."
