Clyburn Demands Documents from Corporate Landlord Following Unnecessary Pandemic Evictions

Washington, D.C. (November 8, 2021)— Today, Rep. James E. Clyburn, Chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, sent a letter to Stephen Siegel, Chief Executive Officer & President of the Siegel Group, reminding the Siegel Group of its duty to comply with the Select Subcommittee's July 19, 2021 requests for documents and information regarding the company's eviction practices and compliance with pandemic eviction moratoria and federally funded rental assistance programs. The Siegel Group has failed to produce key documents and information necessary for the Select Subcommittee to complete its investigation.

"The Siegel Group's failure to fully respond to the Select Subcommittee is deeply concerning," said Chair Clyburn. "Despite repeated conversations with Select Subcommittee staff, the Siegel Group has not meaningfully responded to the Select Subcommittee's document and information requests, citing inappropriate privilege assertions and its own insufficient recordkeeping practices."

The Select Subcommittee launched its investigation into pandemic evictions after several public reports and court records showed that certain large corporate landlords – including the Siegel Group – moved to evict tens of thousands of residents despite the eviction moratorium issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the availability of federal emergency rental assistance.

Publicly available information suggested that the Siegel Group had not significantly decreased its rate of filing for evictions from pre-pandemic levels despite the eviction moratorium, that the company appeared to be pretextually characterizing eviction claims as "no cause" to evade the moratorium's prohibition on many evictions for nonpayment, and that the company may have monitored tenants' mail to challenge their CDC moratorium declarations.

In response to the Select Subcommittee's requests, the company claims not to possess basic records indicating the total number of tenants it has moved to evict during the pandemic, the number of tenants it moved to evict within 120 days of receiving rental assistance, and other records documenting the company's eviction practices during the pandemic. Due to the Siegel Group's refusal to fully respond, key questions raised at the start of the investigation remain unanswered.

Chairman Clyburn continued, "The Siegel Group's failure to respond in a meaningful fashion suggests that the company does not adequately monitor weighty legal proceedings that can lead to families losing their homes, as it fails even to maintain accessible records reflecting its recent legal actions. Further, the Siegel Group's purported inability to produce basic information about the number of tenants it has moved to evict during the pandemic raises broader concerns about the accuracy of representations the company has made to the Select Subcommittee about its eviction practices."

Chairman Clyburn has called for the company to fully respond to the Select Subcommittee's requests by no later than November 23, 2021. The letter states that the Select Subcommittee may be forced to consider alternative measures to obtain compliance should the Siegel Group fail to comply by this date.

Click here to read Chairman Clyburn's letter to Stephen Siegel, Chief Executive Officer & President of the Siegel Group.

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