Jim Schaafsma is the housing attorney at the Michigan Poverty Law Program (MPLP) where he works on a range of low-income housing issues, with an emphasis on the federally subsidized housing programs. Primarily with and for Michigan’s low-income residents and their advocates, he does case consultation and co-counseling, substantive and skills-based training, publication and media work, policy analysis and development, legislative, administrative, and court system advocacy, litigation, and advocacy coordination. Since the onset of the pandemic, he has devoted significant time to advocating for and helping develop, implement, and analyze state-level policies and programs protecting tenants and improving their housing opportunities, including eviction moratoriums, improved eviction court procedures, rental assistance and eviction diversion programs, and appropriation of federal pandemic relief funds. He is a member of numerous state and national committees, task forces, coalitions, and working groups.