It's the first of the month, and rent is due for millions of Americans for the first time since the coronavirus outbreak turned the economy upside down. Governor Doug Ducey is urging Arizonans to be understanding and reasonable as people and businesses face April 1 due dates for bills such as mortgages, rent, utilities and internet service.
Ducey on Wednesday posted on Twitter that “the world has changed since March 1" and that bills previously paid routinely “are now a struggle for many people and small businesses." The Republican governor said he wants and expects that no family, individual or business should face eviction or lose critical services because of hardships caused by the coronavirus.
Ducey also said people and businesses should pay their bills if they can afford to do so and that people who can't should talk to their landlords or lenders.
Most states and local governments have stopped evictions to give time for unemployment benefits and federal stimulus checks to arrive.
But there is still plenty of worry that even if April's payment is delayed, the rent will still come due before many industries are up and running again.
Nearly 3.3. million people in the U.S. filed unemployment claims for the week of March 16, as the shutdown from the virus started.
