Federal grants to guarantee free lawyers for tenants facing eviction
H.R. 4761 — Eviction Right to Counsel Act of 2025 · Filed by Summer Lee (D-PA) · 11 cosponsors · Introduced Jul 25, 2025 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill establishes a $100 million annual federal grant fund (2026–2030) to help state and local governments pay for legal representation of low-income tenants (those earning ≤200% of federal poverty line) facing eviction or loss of housing subsidies. Eligible governments must have enacted or be implementing laws guaranteeing free legal counsel in eviction cases; the bill prioritizes funding for jurisdictions with stronger tenant protections (limits on eviction causes, notice periods, rental assistance, diversion programs) and those investing in attorney training.
Why we flagged it
The bill's core mechanism is a federal grant program funding state and local implementation of right-to-counsel laws for low-income tenants in eviction proceedings. It is a direct public investment in legal access and housing stability, not a tax measure, deregulation, or private-sector carve-out.
What the text implies
- The bill conditions federal funding on state/local enactment of right-to-counsel legislation, effectively using the grant as leverage to standardize tenant legal protections across jurisdictions—a form of conditional federalism that may face state sovereignty objections.
- By prioritizing jurisdictions with eviction diversion programs and rental assistance, the bill incentivizes bundled housing-stability interventions, potentially shifting local budget priorities toward prevention rather than enforcement.
- The $100M annual authorization (2026–2030) is modest relative to the scale of eviction filings nationally (~3.7M annually pre-pandemic); actual impact will depend on appropriations and how funds are distributed across eligible entities.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
Low-income tenants gain access to legal representation in eviction proceedings, a historically unmet need that increases their ability to defend against wrongful evictions, negotiate settlements, and understand their rights. The bill's prioritization of jurisdictions with additional tenant protections (notice periods, diversion programs, rental assistance) amplifies the public benefit by incentivizing comprehensive housing stability measures.
Who stands to gain
- State and local governments (grant recipients)
- Legal aid organizations and law firms (contracted to provide representation)
- Attorney training programs
Named in the bill
Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), State governments, Local governments, Indian Tribal governments, Legal aid providers, Low-income tenants
Where it stands
11 cosponsors: 11 Democrats.
- Jul 25, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Jul 25, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (3,513 characters) on Jun 3, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 16,222 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-10-20.
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