On March 11, Jacob Frey, Mayor of Minneapolis, announced a proposed $1 million investment in rental assistance to residents.
If approved by the City Council, the City would distribute the funding through its partnership with Hennepin County. The funds would not require an eviction filing for residents to access.
This announcement comes in a busy month for eviction and rental ordinances, which have become a hot topic in the wake of Operation Metro Surge. Supporters of eviction moratoriums and rental-assistance funds have said aid is needed to help families who are struggling to pay rent in the wake of Operation Metro Surge. Some community residents have reported income loss and fear amidst operations.
According to a Minnesota Star Tribune analysis of court filings, eviction filings in Minnesota recently reached their highest level this decade, although it’s still unclear how much Operation Metro Surge impacted those figures.
In early March, the Minneapolis City Council passed the “Pause Evictions, Save Lives ordinance,” (PESL) a measure that would extend the pre-eviction notice period from 30 to 60 days. The measure passed on a 7-5 vote.
Council Member Linea Palmisano, who opposed the measure, said pauses in eviction moratoriums “ultimately (put) more people on the street” and “greatly disrupt the housing ecosystem.”
On March 10, elected officials from Minneapolis — including State Senator Doron Clark, D-60 and Representative Sydney Jordan, D-60A — sent a letter to Jacob Frey, Mayor of Minneapolis, urging him to sign the measure.
“Your work to increase funding for immigration legal services, rental assistance, and creating a small business resiliency fund has shown how elected officials can meet the moment,” they wrote. “Signing Pause Evictions Save Lives is the next step in helping our residents recover and ensure none of them are left behind.”
Mayor Jacob Frey at a press conference. The city of Minneapolis has estimated that Operation Metro Surge impacted the city’s economy by approximately $203.1 million. The estimate says that $15.7 million in “additional rent assistance (is) needed due to lost household income since Dec. 2025.” (Provided)
The mayor’s alternative
On March 11, Jacob Frey announced he was planning to veto the ordinance. An email from the City of Minneapolis says the policy “could ultimately make housing instability worse and undermine Minneapolis’s progress as a national leader on affordable housing.”
Cecil Smith, President and CEO of the Multi-Housing Association, said that “Rent payments have remained stable on a year-over-year basis and through each month of the first quarter, despite recent events that affected many households.”
Ward 3 Council Member Michael Rainville, who voted against PESL, praised Frey’s decision.
“Adding to the rental assistance fund is the common-sense way to help those affected by the ICE operation without financially hurting our nonprofit housing operators and their clients,” he said.
In a March 11 email, Ward 1 Council Member and Council President Elliott Payne, who voted in favor of the measure, wrote that he was disappointed in Frey’s decision and described PESL as a “bare-minimum policy that would show that he could move beyond cuss words and take real action to provide material support for our neighbors.”
In a March 12 call with the Northeaster, Sen. Clark expressed support for both Frey’s proposal and for the PESL. “Everybody needs to be doing more,” he said. He said landlords and neighbors have been “stepping up,” adding that he expects Minneapolis and Minnesota to do the same.
“The fastest way to fix (rent issues) is ICE out: Let people get back to work. The second is more money to pay rent. The third is that we need to extend things like the pre-eviction moratorium. A million (dollars) is a good step. We need more.”
Clark said “about $25 million dollars per month” are needed across the state. He added that mutual-aid networks in connection to eleven schools in Minneapolis are spending $1.3 million each month in rent relief.
The $1 million rental-assistance investment currently waits for approval or denial from the Minneapolis City Council.