Fair Housing Laws
The Fair Housing Act (FHA) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination when people rent or buy a home. The FHA also protects individuals who are involved in other housing-related activities, such as obtaining homeowner’s insurance or asking for an accommodation to a no-pet policy when a tenant has a disability and needs an assistance animal. The law was passed in 1968 to protect groups of people who are members of a “protected class” from housing discrimination. Protected classes include race, color, national origin, religion, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), family status, and disability. The FHA is administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Complaints of housing discrimination may be filed with HUD.
For Tribal members living off Tribal lands:
The Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA) was passed in 1971 and prohibits discrimination on the basis of protected class in employment, housing, places of public accommodation, education, and extension of credit. The MHRA’s protected classes regarding housing are race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, and religion. The fair housing section of the MHRA provides rights and remedies that are nearly identical to those provided by the FHA, and you may also file complaints of housing discrimination with the Maine Human Rights Commission. For contact information, please see below.
For Tribal members living on Tribal lands:
Tribal members living on Tribal lands or in Tribal housing still have rights against discrimination. However, you most likely must pursue your claims in your community’s Tribal Court and/or with your community’s Housing Authority. Some claims may be brought to HUD if they involve a housing program that receives federal funding. Additionally, the claims you can pursue will be under your Tribe’s laws, codes, or policies, and the federal Indian Civil Rights Act (ICRA) and other federal housing statutes and regulations, rather than through the MHRA.
Fair Housing Testing
Pine Tree Legal Assistance (PTLA) receives HUD funding to represent people who are experiencing housing discrimination and to coordinate fair housing testing. Testers are community members who receive training from PTLA and who accept assignments to make housing inquiries and document their interactions with housing providers. The assignments are identified by PTLA and are based on referrals and research. Testers are assigned income and background information so that they are not using their own identities. Testers who are assigned protected characteristics are paired with “controls,” who are not assigned protected characteristics, so that treatment can be compared. Testing does not take a lot of time and testers are paid a small stipend for completed tests once they have been trained. Please email [email protected] to learn more about PTLA’s fair housing testing program.
Disparate Treatment or Disparate Impact?
Housing discrimination can take the form of “disparate treatment” or “disparate impact.”
Disparate treatment is treating people who are members of one or more of the protected classes differently than people who are not members. To prove disparate treatment, discriminatory intent needs to be shown. Testing helps prove discriminatory intent because it provides a controlled method of recording objective evidence of discriminatory statements, advertisements, and actions. Examples of disparate treatment include:
- A rental housing provider routinely and falsely tells members of a protected class that apartments are not available.
- A landlord starts eviction proceedings because of a tenant’s religious or cultural practices.
- A housing provider posts a sign that states “No Children,” thereby eliminating families with children from consideration.
- A housing management company steers people to different buildings or building areas in an attempt to segregate races.
Disparate impact occurs when a housing policy, practice, or standard appears to be neutral but is not a legitimate business necessity and disproportionately affects people who belong to one or more protected classes. Disparate impact discrimination does not require proof of discriminatory intent and is established by gathering data on how a particular practice, policy, or standard operates on those who are affected by it. Examples include:
- A policy requiring rental applicants to have full-time employment, which discriminates against people with disabilities, who receive income from the Social Security Administration, or Veterans, who receive income from the Veterans Administration.
- A policy that rejects tenant applicants on the basis of criminal history without asking for clarification. Because of widespread racial and ethnic disparities in the U.S. criminal justice system, the policy could have a discriminatory effect on applicants who are members of those protected classes.