Senate Bill Amending the Fair Housing Act Introduced
person
A.J. Johnson
today
07/14/2013
S. 1242, A Bill to Amend the Fair Housing Act, and for Other Purposes, was introduced in the Senate on June 27, 2013, and was referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The short title of the bill is "Housing Opportunities Made Equal Act of 2013," or the "HOME Act of 2013."
The bill, if passed into law, will amend the fair housing act as follows:
It will expand the protections for discrimination based on race or color to include both "perceived" and "actual" discrimination.
It will create four new protected classes:
Gender Identity, defined as gender-related identity, appearance, or mannerisms or other gender-related characteristics of an individual, with or without regard to the individual’s designated sex at birth;
Marital Status: The provision of housing or related services may not be based on whether someone is married, single, divorced, separated, or a widow(er). Different terms or conditions may not be placed on someone due to marital status (e.g., refusal to consider a wife's income relative to rent paying ability because she could decide to have children and no longer work);
Sexual Orientation: homosexuality, heterosexuality, or bisexuality; and
Source of Income: This would include receipt of Federal, State or local public assistance including medical assistance, or the receipt of Federal, State, or local housing subsidies, including rental assistance under Section 8 of the Housing Act of 1937 or other rental assistance or rental supplements.
Section 3 of the bill extends the definition of a discriminatory housing practice to an act that is unlawful under the law whether pre-or post-acquisition of a property and also would make failure of a recipient of federal housing funds to affirmatively further fair housing a discriminatory act.
Section 4 of the bill expands the definition of ‘familial status’ to anyone standing in ‘loco parentis’ (in place of a parent) of an individual or individuals under the age of 18.
Section 5 of the bill would amend both the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act to provide the Department of Justice (DOJ) with pre-litigation subpoena power. In this case, if the DOJ has reason to believe that any person may be in possession, custody, or control of any documentary material or information relevant to any investigation under the Fair Housing Act, the DOJ may, before commencing a civil action, issue a civil investigative demand (i.e., subpoena).
Section 7 of the bill would amend the Fair Housing Act to include the following language: "Discrimination against a person because of handicap includes the failure, in connection with a real estate-related transaction, to make reasonable accommodations for such person." This is very similar to current requirements, but makes clear that reasonable accommodations may be required for any activity related to a real estate transaction.
Section 8 of the bill would make a very significant clarification to existing law. It would codify that the failure to design and construct a dwelling as required by the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 shall be deemed to continue until such time as the dwelling conforms to the requirements of the law. This is important because some courts (but not all) have ruled that the two-year statute of limitations for filing a fair housing complaint precludes a complaint regarding the design and construction of covered housing if the housing was completed more than two years prior to the complaint. This change to the law would make it clear that such a violation would be considered "continuous" noncompliance. (HUD and DOJ have recently published a joint statement detailing the design and construction requirements under the Act, with important clarifications. I will be sending a memo to clients on this joint statement shortly).
Please note that this is a bill only, and there has been no change to the law. I will keep you informed on any changes, but please feel free to call me with any questions.