Bill Text: HI SB36 | 2021 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To Rental Discrimination.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2021-03-19 - Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on JHA with Representative(s) Okimoto voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Todd excused (1). [SB36 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2021-SB36-Amended.html
THE SENATE |
S.B. NO. |
36 |
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 |
S.D. 2 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
H.D. 1 |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO RENTAL DISCRIMINATION.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
SECTION
1. The legislature finds that the federal
housing choice voucher program, also known as section 8 of the United States Housing
Act of 1937, as amended, provides federally-funded, tenant-based vouchers to
low-income households that are responsible for finding appropriate rental units
in the private market. Once a household
receives a Section 8 voucher, the challenge is finding a landlord who is willing
to accept the voucher. The legislature
believes that renters who participate in housing assistance programs, such as section
8, should have an equal opportunity to find housing and should not be
discriminated against because their source of income includes funds from
housing assistance programs.
Studies
have shown that when there are laws that prevent discrimination against renters
with housing assistance vouchers, these renters are twelve per cent more likely
to find housing. The American Bar
Association adopted a resolution in 2017 that called for the enactment of laws
that ban housing discrimination based on lawful sources of income. The legislature notes that source of income
discrimination laws do not alter or restrict standard industry practices to vet
prospective renters. Rather, these laws
prohibit landlords from rejecting prospective renters who receive section 8 vouchers
or other housing assistance simply because of the voucher or assistance.
The
legislature further finds that ten states, the District of Columbia, fourteen
counties, and fifty-six major cities across the country have laws that prohibit
source of income discrimination in housing. Honolulu is one of the largest cities in the
United States that does not prohibit source of income discrimination in
housing.
The
legislature also finds that low-income individuals experience extreme
difficulty in finding affordable rentals in Hawaii. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, local and national
news reports documented that prospective tenants are often rejected by
landlords due to their use of section 8 vouchers or other forms of housing
assistance, or based on requirements for participation in a housing assistance program. This situation becomes all the more
frustrating when housing vacancy advertisements state "No section 8
accepted" or "Section 8 need not apply" in an effort to prevent
low-income individuals receiving housing assistance from being considered as
tenants.
The
legislature additionally finds that the COVID-19 pandemic and resulting
economic conditions have impacted many residents' ability to pay their
rent. An August 2020 survey of two hundred
seventy-one landlords and property managers statewide conducted by the University
of Hawaii economic research organization indicated that more than nine thousand
households were two months or more behind in rent, and more tenants were thirty
days behind in rent than prior to the pandemic.
The
legislature further finds that prior to the pandemic, nationally, eighty-three
per cent of households participating in section 8, were led by women. Currently, there are more than twenty-two thousand
single mothers in Hawaii. Ninety-two per cent
of fifty-five single mothers surveyed in Hawaii during the COVID-19 pandemic
reported that they have lost financial independence due to the economic crisis. Allowing landlords to consider a rental applicant's
source of income can also function as a proxy for discrimination against single
mothers.
The
purpose of this Act is to prohibit discrimination, including in advertisements for
rental property, in rental transactions based on participation in a section 8 housing
choice voucher program or any permanent supportive housing program or
requirements related to participation in these housing assistance programs.
SECTION
2. The Hawaii Revised Statutes is
amended by adding a new chapter to be appropriately designated and to read as
follows:
"CHAPTER
RENTAL
DISCRIMINATION BASED ON SOURCE OF INCOME
§ -1 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, unless the context
clearly requires otherwise:
"Housing
assistance program" means a section 8 housing choice voucher program or any
permanent supportive housing program.
"Rental
transaction" means any part of the process for the rental or lease of a
premises for residential purposes.
§ -2 Discriminatory
practices in a rental transaction based on source of income. (a) It shall be a discriminatory practice for
a landlord to:
(1) Indicate in any manner used to advertise the availability of a rental property that the landlord will not rent a property to a person participating in a housing assistance program;
(2) Discourage in any manner a
person from seeking to engage in a rental transaction based on the person's
participation in a housing assistance program;
(3) Refuse to engage in a rental transaction with
a person because of the person's participation in a
housing assistance program or requirements related to participation in a
housing assistance program; or
(4) Require rental conditions
that are different from those required for a person not participating in a
housing assistance program.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to
prohibit a landlord from determining in a commercially reasonable manner the
ability of a potential tenant to pay rent by:
(1) Verifying the source and
amount of income of the potential tenant; or
(2) Evaluating the stability,
security, and creditworthiness of the potential tenant or any source of income
of the potential tenant.
§ -3 Remedies. (a) Any
individual claiming to be aggrieved by an alleged unlawful discriminatory
practice by a landlord may bring a civil action in district court within one
year of the occurrence of the alleged violation for appropriate injunctive
relief and damages.
(b) In an action brought pursuant to subsection
(a), a district court may issue an injunction to enjoin a violation of this
chapter. If the court issues an
injunction, the court may also award damages not to exceed $2,500 to the person
bringing the action, and reasonable attorney's fees
and costs incurred in the civil action."
SECTION
3. This Act does not affect rights and
duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were
begun before its effective date.
SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2050.
Report Title:
Permanent Supportive Housing; Source of Income; Rental Discrimination; Prohibited Practices; Housing Assistance Program; Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers
Description:
Prohibits discrimination, including in advertisements for rental property, in rental transactions based on participation in a section 8 housing choice program or any permanent supportive housing program or requirements related to participation in these housing assistance programs. Effective 7/1/2050. (HD1)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.