The information provided on this post does not, and is not intended to, represent legal advice. All information available on this site is for general informational purposes only. If you need legal help, you should contact a lawyer. You may be eligible for our free legal services and can apply by calling our Covid Legal Hotline at 1-844-244-7871 or applying online here.

If a debt collector is trying to evict you, Southeast Louisiana Legal Services may be able to help. Call our Covid-19 Helpline at 1-844-244-7871 to apply for free legal assistance or fill out our online application here. If you have been unable to pay your rent due to Covid-19, your landlord may decide to hire a debt-collection company or a lawyer to try to recover the money you owe. Your landlord will tell the debt collector how to get in touch with you and how to report the debt on your credit report. You have certain legal rights if your debt is turned over to a debt collector. Debt collectors must obey a law called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Please note, the FDCPA does not apply to your landlord or to your landlord’s employees who may try to collect your past-due rent (like a building or property manager). Under this law, debt collectors cannot harass or deceive you. Here are some examples of behavior that would violate this federal law:

• Calling you at unreasonable hours
• Cursing at you or calling you vulgar names.
• Calling over and over to annoy you
• Lying to you about what the debt collector plans to do to you.
• For example, a debt collector can’t threaten to sue you unless the debt collector plans to sue. A debt collector can’t threaten to garnish your wages unless the debt collector sued you over the debt and got the court to issue a judgment against you. .

Debt collectors (a collections company or attorney your landlord has hired) have more responsibilities toward you when taking action during the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions’ Eviction Moratorium. The “moratorium” is the period during which people with COVID-related hardships have more protections against eviction, foreclosure, and some debt collection practices.  

• Through at least June 30, 2021, debt collectors cannot file an eviction against you for non-payment of rent without first providing clear, written notice about the protections under the eviction moratorium. You can still be evicted for some reasons other than nonpayment of rent.

• This notice must be provided on the same date as the eviction notice. It also has to be in writing, on paper. Phone calls or electronic notice such as text messages or emails are not enough.

• Debt collectors are also prohibited from misrepresenting that you are ineligible for protections under the eviction moratorium.

In order to qualify for protection under the moratorium you must fill out a declaration form and provide it to your landlord. You can download a copy of the declaration form in English here. More information on the eviction moratorium and rental assistance can be found here.

  *Please note, our services are only available for residents of the following parishes: Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge Parish, East Feliciana Parish, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Washington, West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana

The information provided on this post does not, and is not intended to, represent legal advice. All information available on this site is for general informational purposes only. If you need legal help, you should contact a lawyer. You may be eligible for our free legal services and can apply by calling our Covid Legal Hotline at 1-844-244-7871 or applying online here.

If you have been unable to pay your utilities during the Covid-19 crisis, you may be eligible for assistance to help cover your past-due bills. If you are applying for the statewide Louisiana Emergency Rental Assistance Program, you can also apply for assistance to cover past-due utilities, including: electricity, gas, water and sewer, trash removal and fuel oil.

• If you are still in the process of applying for the Rental Assistance Program, you can add your utility requests directly to your application. Instructions are available here.

• If you have already submitted your application, you can request utilities assistance by submitting a "Utilities Assistance Ticket" using your online application portal. Instructions can be found here. This must be done by June 7, 2021.

Eligible renters can get help paying overdue utility bills as far back as April 2020. Assistance is available for current utility charges, past-due utility bills, and for reconnection and late fees. You can get assistance covering up to 15 months of bills in total.

*If you are a resident of Caddo, Calcasieu, East Baton Rouge, Jefferson, Lafayette, Orleans or St. Tammany Parish, you cannot apply for the statewide program and must apply directly to the program in your parish. East Baton Rouge Parish residents can apply for rental assistance here. Information on whether utilities assistance will also be provided through this program will be added as it becomes available. Jefferson Parish residents can apply for rental assistance here.  Utilities assistance is not available this time, but may become available in the future. Orleans Parish residents can apply for rental assistance here. Information on whether utilities assistance will also be provided through this program will be added as it becomes available. St. Tammany Parish residents can apply for rent and utility assistance. To apply, you must schedule an appointment by calling 985-898-3016 or emailing STRAP@stpgov.org.

You may be eligible for the statewide rental assistance program if you meet all of the following:

• You reside in a rental unit in one of the 57 parishes covered by the state-administered program and meet certain income requirements for your area.
• At least one individual in your household qualified for unemployment benefits or experienced a reduction in household income, incurred significant costs, or experienced other financial hardship due directly or indirectly to COVID-19.
• You have received a past-due rent notice, a past-due utility notice, or an eviction notice.

What if I am not applying for rental assistance or the parish I live in is not currently providing utilities assistance? Are there other programs I can get utilities assistance from? Yes. You may be eligible for utilities payment assistance through the federally-funded program, Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). In general, you may be eligible for the program if your household income is equal to or less than these amounts:

Number of People in Your Household	Annual Household Income	Average Monthly Income
1	$24,792	$2,066
2	$32,424	$2,702
3	$40,056	$3,338
4	$47,676	$3,973
5	$55,308	$4,609
6	$62,940	$5,245
7	$64,368	$5,364
8	$65,796	$5,483
9	$67,224	$5,602
10	$68,664	$5,722

You will also need to provide:

• Recent copies of your utility bills
• Copies of the last four consecutive check stubs for employed household members
• Proof of other benefits you receive, including: Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, and Pension Funds.
• Disconnect notice (if you received a shut-off notice from your energy company)
• Proof of present address (rent receipt, lease or deed, etc.)
• Driver’s license or picture ID of head of household and their Social Security card
• Proof of total members living in your household and their Social Security cards
• Additional information may be required

Assistance is not guaranteed. More information on the program, including where to apply, can be found here. Additional assistance may also be available through this program for those who are experiencing difficulty paying their utility bills due to Covid-19. Eligible applicants will receive a $600 benefit for their heating and cooling bills. To apply, contact your local community action agency. You can find a list of local agencies here. You will also need to provide the identification and income documents listed above and a copy of your heating and cooling bills for one month (not older than six months).

If you live in New Orleans, you may be able to get a deferred payment plan from Entergy, which will allow you up to a year to pay your current bill and/or your unpaid balance. You can request a payment plan by calling 1-800-368-3749 or by making the request online on your “myEntergy” account.

If you live in Jefferson Parish, you may be able to get utilities assistance from the Jefferson Community Action Programs. To apply, you must submit: Your Louisiana driver’s license or State I.D. Each household member’s Social Security card Copies of the last four consecutive check stubs for employed household members Proof of other benefits you receive, including: Food Stamps, Social Security, Unemployment Insurance, and Pension Funds. Proof of address, such as a current utility bill or any other bill from the last 30 days You can apply by scheduling an appointment at these locations: Dorothy B. Watson Community Center 1300 S. Myrtle Street Metairie, LA 70003 Telephone: (504) 736-6480 Hazel Rhea Hurst Community Center   1121 S. Causeway Blvd. Jefferson, LA 70121 Telephone: (504) 838-4277

If you live outside of Baton Rouge or New Orleans and are behind on your utility bills, your provider should be contacting you to establish a reasonable repayment plan. Please note, if your utilities provider is unable to get in contact with you, you will still be responsible for the past-due amount and your utilities may still be disconnected. Your utilities provider cannot charge you late fees or interest for bills that were unpaid from March 20, 2020 through July 16, 2020. Your provider is also prohibited from making negative credit reports for these unpaid balances. These measures, particularly about late fees, interest, and negative credit reporting, have not been established in Baton Rouge and New Orleans at this time.

Can my utilities be cut off if I haven’t been able to pay due to Covid? Yes. If you are behind on your payments, your utilities may be disconnected. You should try to work out a payment plan with your utilities provider and get any payment plan in writing. Once you are able to, be sure to pay your utility bills on time to avoid a disruption in service. For those living in New Orleans, the Sewerage & Water Board is moving towards resuming shut offs for non-payment. While a plan isn't in place yet, the Swerage & Water Board will be offering payment plans if you are far behind on your past due water bills.

The information provided on this post does not, and is not intended to, represent legal advice. All information available on this site is for general informational purposes only. If you need legal help, you should contact a lawyer. You may be eligible for our free legal services and can apply by calling our Covid Legal Hotline at 1-844-244-7871 or applying online here.

The state may drop pandemic unemployment benefits.

At least 26 states have decided to stop paying the federal unemployment that has helped millions of American workers during the pandemic. This includes $300 a week that is currently being added to unemployment checks. It also can include “PUA”—the benefits for workers who are not usually eligible for unemployment benefits (like people whose earnings are not reported on W2, people with little work history, and people caring for children due to Covid closures).

Governor Edwards will end at least the extra $300 a week in Louisiana on July 31.

There are also other reasons why your unemployment benefits may end.

Your unemployment benefits may end if you are offered a job, but refuse it.

You can lose unemployment benefits if you do not have a very good reason for refusing to accept work when it is offered to you, whether it is your old job or a new one.

If your employer calls you to return to work and you refuse, they can report you to the Louisiana Workforce Commission. The agency makes this easy for employers to do. This may disqualify you from receiving unemployment benefits. You may also have to pay back any benefits you received in the time after you refused to return to work.

You can appeal and seek representation from Southeast Louisiana if the work offer does not pay close to what you recently earned or is otherwise not “suitable” for you given your background. Call our Covid-19 Helpline at 1-844-244-7871 to apply for free legal assistance or fill out our online application here.

A job should be considered not suitable if it is not following Covid-related health and safety requirements, such as social distancing or not requiring those who may have Covid to stay home.

Your unemployment benefits may end if the Louisiana Workforce Commission determines you are and always have been ineligible for benefits.

The Louisiana Workforce Commission is going back on hundreds (and maybe even thousands) of people’s unemployment claims and determining they have always been ineligible for benefits and should not have been awarded any. In these cases, the agency is also requiring claimants to pay back all of the money they received—usually over $10,000.

The agency should not cut off your benefits without sending you a notice (a letter sent to your HIRE account or hardcopy letter to the address you have on file) and without offering you a hearing.

Southeast Louisiana Legal Services can often help on these cases, but it can take several months to get these issues corrected. You can apply for free legal assistance by calling our Covid-19 Helpline at 1-844-244-7871 or by filling out an online application here.

In the meantime, you can appeal any decision that you should not get unemployment or that you have been “overpaid.”  Appeal right away to protect your rights! You only have 15 days form an agency notice to submit your appeal. Your notice will include the date you must submit your appeal by. If you miss the deadline, you will lose your right to appeal.

The letter will provide instructions on how to appeal. You can find more information on appeals here.

The hearing on your appeal may be months away.

If your unemployment benefits were stopped, SLLS may be able to help, even before the hearing. Call our Covid-19 Helpline at 1-844-244-7871 to apply for free legal assistance or fill out our online application here.

 

*Please note, our services are only available for residents of the following parishes: Ascension, Assumption, East Baton Rouge Parish, East Feliciana Parish, Iberville, Jefferson, Lafourche, Livingston, Orleans, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Terrebonne, Washington, West Baton Rouge, West Feliciana