Press Releases
08/25/2021
Attorney General Tong Supports Housing Protections Against Discrimination
(Hartford, CT) — Attorney General William Tong today joined a coalition of 23 states in urging the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to reinstate a rule on disparate impact liability that would protect people from housing discrimination.
“Housing discrimination doesn’t just impact where a family lives — it can affect educational opportunities, employment opportunities, health and safety,” Attorney General Tong said. “So much of the time, housing discrimination doesn’t openly declare itself, so we need to look not just at the expressed intention but also at the discriminatory effect of housing laws, rules, and practices. The U.S. Department of Housing must restore teeth to the disparate impact liability rule, to protect Americans from this subtle, yet harmful discrimination.”
The disparate impact rule, established originally in 2013 under the Fair Housing Act, protects consumers against housing and lending practices that end up harming people based on their race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, and familial status. HUD is proposing to re-establish the 2013 rule and revoke an unlawful 2020 replacement that had serious legal defects, failed to provide specific protections for people who were being discriminated against, and made it more difficult for many valid legal claims to proceed.
Attorneys general rely on the disparate impact rule to combat discrimination, challenge housing policies that have a discriminatory effect, and ensure more equal housing opportunities.
In their comments, the attorneys general contend that the reinstated rule better aligns with the Fair Housing Act and judicial precedent. The attorneys general also suggest that HUD should consider further strengthening the rule in the future and consider the additional discriminatory effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic hardships on people across the country.
Attorney General Tong is joined in sending today’s comments by the Attorneys General of North Carolina, the District of Columbia, New York, Washington, and California, Colorado, Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Virginia.
A copy of the comment letter is available here.
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Media Contact:
Elizabeth Benton
elizabeth.benton@ct.gov
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