The Emergency Rental Assistance Program or ERAP was created to help renters dealing with financial challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic. For eligible households, the program offers rental and utility assistance to help Pennsylvanians avoid eviction or loss of utility service.
ERAP was established by the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021. Governor Wolf signed Act 1 of 2021 into law on February 5, 2021, allowing the Department of Human Services (DHS) to implement and administer ERAP in accordance with federal law.
United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley has partnered with Carbon County to administer ERAP funds to eligible households in need of assistance. Applications for the program will be made available to Carbon County renters coming this September 2024.
Frequently Asked Questions
ERAP helps Carbon County tenant households with paying rent, past-due rent balances (also known as arrears), utility and home energy costs, utility and home energy cost arrears and other expenses related to housing detailed below.
Rent expenses include rent, rent arrears, rental costs for trailers and trailer lots and may include long-term housing hotels, motels and boarding homes.
Utilities include separately stated electricity, gas, water, sewer, trash removal and energy costs, such as fuel oil.
Carbon County residents can apply for themselves as tenants, or a landlord can apply on behalf of current tenant(s).
A household must be responsible to pay rent on a residential property, and:
- One or more people within the household have qualified for unemployment benefits, had a decrease in income, had increased household costs or experienced other financial hardship due, directly or indirectly, to the COVID-19 pandemic.
- One or more individuals in the household can show a risk of experiencing homelessness or housing instability; AND
- The household has an income at or below 80 percent of Area Median Income (AMI).
Household income at or below 80 percent of the area median.
2024 Carbon County AMI:
1 Person: under $55,100
2 Person: under $62,950
3 Person: under $70,800
4 Person: under $78,650
5 Person: under $84,950
6 Person: under $91,250
7 Person: under $97,550
8 Person: under $103,850
- Personal identification information for the head of household.
- Income information for all household members over the age of 18.
- Your lease and something to show the amount of rent you owe.
- Landlord’s name and contact information.
- Utility expenses like electric, water, oil, natural gas, etc.
- Utility provider information.
Please be prepared to provide documents that prove your information. This may include:
- Personal identification such as a driver’s license, state-issued ID card, passport, etc.
- Unemployment determination letter or proof of a decrease in household income due to COVID-19 (paystubs or a letter from your employer).
- Proof of income for all household members over age 18
- Paystubs, W2s, other wage statements, tax filings, direct deposit records or attestation from an employer.
- Documentation of earned income such as unemployment benefits, social security benefits, retirement benefits, child/spousal support, etc.
- Document(s) showing rent and/or rental arrears due.
- Document(s) showing utility and/or utility arrears due.
- Document(s) showing other housing-related expenses experienced due, directly or indirectly, to COVID-19.
Please Note: If you do not have official documents, you may provide signed letters from an employer, landlord or utility company, etc. Instead. United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley will work with you to get necessary documents or written attestations as needed.
For Carbon County, this program begins in September 2024. Please visit pa211.communityos.org/erap or click the Apply Now button below.
Assistance will be provided until the available grant funds are exhausted or the program’s end date of September 30, 2025, whichever comes first.
Applications will be made available online in September 2024. Please visit pa211.communityos.org/erap or click the Apply Now button below.
ERAP assistance is paid directly to the landlord or utility provider. If a landlord or utility provider does not want to participate in ERAP, a direct payment may be made to the tenant. A payment received by a tenant must be forwarded to the landlord or utility provider to reduce the tenant’s obligation.
No. ERAP is only available to households who pay rent or utilities on a residential dwelling.
Yes. A tenant that lives in federally subsidized residential or mixed-use property may be eligible to receive ERAP assistance as long as ERAP funds are not applied to costs that have been or will be reimbursed under any other federal assistance. This would include Section 8 housing.
The ERAP assistance may only be applied to the tenant-owed portion of rent or utilities.
ERAP assistance can cover rent, rental arrears, utility costs, utility arrears or other housing-related expenses for up to 18 months total, inclusive of any ERAP assistance previously received.
No. If a tenant meets the eligibility criteria but is not late on rent or utilities, they may receive assistance for future rent and utilities for up to three months at a time.
No. Citizenship is not required to receive assistance.
Demonstrated proof of rental payment history such as bank statements and checks or a lease if available.
If the roommates are on one lease, they are considered one household and must apply together. Roommates with separate leases can be considered separate households and apply individually.
Applicants can receive assistance with the following utilities:
- Electricity
- Gas or fuel oil
- Sewage
- Trash Removal
- Water
No. Funding cannot be used to reimburse a tenant for rent they already paid. However, eligible applicants may receive up to three months of rent in advance at a time.
Yes. ERAP funds can be applied to pay back rent on a property the tenant no longer lives in.
