Birmingham City Council

Birmingham Applies for $2.6 Million in Federal Grants for Eviction Prevention Services, Police Tech Equipment

Councilor Carol Clarke speaks before the Birmingham City Council voted Tuesday to apply for a federal grant offering services to residents facing eviction. (Source: Birmingham City Council livestream)

The Birmingham City Council on Tuesday voted to apply for two federal grants: one to help residents facing eviction and another for computer equipment for the police department.

The first application is for $2.5 million through the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Eviction Protection Grant Program.

“I’m really excited to see that we’re applying for something to be able to provide relief, especially in a state where the landlord-tenant laws are very slanted toward the landlord.” Councilor Carol Clarke said before the vote, which passed unanimously.

Cory Stallworth, senior deputy director for Birmingham’s Department of Community Development, gave the council details about the grant program.

He said the city hopes to help about 500 people if it gets the grant. The grant would pay for legal services and micro loans, which would be provided by third parties that go through an approval process with the council.

Stallworth said residents would qualify based on income. The benchmark is the area median income, he said, so a family of four would need to make no more than $70,000 annually.

According to a press release from HUD, the grant program provided assistance to 5,000 households in 2022, its first year of implementation. As of March 31, grantees had provided legal assistance to more than 35,000 households.

The department anticipates making 25 awards of $500,000 to $2.5 million each, with a total of $40 million available.

Stallworth said the application deadline is Aug. 20, and he expects to hear news on Birmingham’s approval two months later.

Alabama often is named among the most landlord-friendly states. It’s ranked second by RealWealth, which offers educational resources for people building real estate portfolios.

“Alabama law prohibits cities from enacting rent control ordinances, meaning landlords can raise rents at their discretion. And in Alabama, landlords are required to give tenants a 7-day Notice to Pay Rent or Vacate the Premises before filing an eviction lawsuit,” an article from the site states.

Meanwhile, ConsumerAffairs.com ranked Alabama 27th in a list of best states for renters, based on financial data such as rental amounts, income and power costs.

Tech Support for Law Enforcement

The second grant application the council applied for Tuesday is for the U.S. Department of Justice’s Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant. If approved, the city would get $150,000 to put toward “technological enhancements for the ballistics unit, laptops, iPads for the department, property room and digital forensics,” according to the council’s agenda.

The grant is named in honor of a New York City police officer killed in the line of duty in 1988. Byrne was in his patrol car guarding the home of a witness when two gunmen opened fire, hitting him five times in the head. According to a Department of Justice release, the killing took place on the orders of a local drug kingpin. The two shooters and their two lookouts were captured six days after the shooting. All were sentenced to 25 years to life.

Neither the DOJ nor HUD grants require a local match.