HUD Announces New Requirement For Grant Applicants To Comply With LGBT Non-Discrimination Laws

Today, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced that it is henceforth going to “require grant applicants seeking HUD funding to comply with state and local anti-discrimination laws that protect lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals.” Previously, HUD had required grant applicants to comply with fair housing and civil rights law, but this change explicitly ensures that those seeking HUD money follow laws protecting LGBT individuals:

“We‘re using every avenue to shut the door against discrimination,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “Today, we take an important step to insist that those who seek federal funding must demonstrate that they are meeting local and state civil rights laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.”

HUD also “intends to propose new regulations that will clarify that the term ‘family’ as used to describe eligible beneficiaries of HUD’s programs include otherwise eligible LGBT individuals and couples.”

Today, more than 20 states, as well as the District of Columbia, offer protection due to sexual orientation. And this is warranted because, as Rea Carey, Executive Director, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Action Fund, has pointed out, “studies have documented that when test callers described themselves as gay or lesbian, apartments were more likely to be described as unavailable. Testers who presented as homosexual received fewer call-backs and fewer invitations to pursue the property than their heterosexual counterparts.”

According to a 2007 study by the Michigan Fair Housing Centers, “same-sex couples were shown less desirable properties, were quoted higher rent prices, received less favorable customer service, or encountered outright refusal to sell or rent properties. There were also circumstances during which parties suffered verbal harassment from landlords, realtors, and lenders.”

While HUD’s change is a welcome step, Congress could also be doing more to ensure that fair housing standards extend to LGBT individuals. As Shanna Smith, President of the National Fair Housing Alliance, said, “we must see a serious commitment from Congress and the Administration to enforce the [Fair Housing] Act in a systemic way rather than allowing individual case files to gather dust. Existing laws must be enforced, and they must be strengthened to include sexual orientation, gender identity and source of income.”