On September 24, 2026, Director of the Wilkes Initiative for Housing Policy, Emilia Calma, was quoted in the Washington Times about eviction proceedings in the District:
Emilia Calma urged the city to hold in-person eviction hearings. She noted that the median rent owed in 12,700 eviction cases last year was just $4,851, meaning “early resolution” would benefit both renters and landlords.
“The statutory deadline for eviction hearings, while important, is not alone going to fix the current backlog that we currently see in the courts,” Ms. Calma said. “Predictable timelines are what we need to get back to.”
Read more: More than a third of D.C. landlords still can’t collect rent, survey finds
Additional reading: Clearer rules, fewer delays: Strengthening the Housing Investment Protection Act before markup