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The Fair Housing Act (FHA) prohibits discrimination in housing
based on disability, race, color, religion, national origin, sex
and familial status. The U.S. Department of Housing (HUD) and
Justice (DOJ) share responsibility for enforcing the FHA. HUD is
the agency with the primary responsibility to investigate
individual complaints of discrimination. The Secretary of HUD, on
her own initiative, may file complaints alleging discrimination. In
addition, the U.S. Attorney General may commence a civil action in
federal court when she has reasonable cause to believe that
person(s) are engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination or
that a group of persons has been denied rights protected by the
FHA.
In 2006, the single most common housing discrimination complaint
involved access for disabled persons (4,110 complaints, or 40% of
all complaints filed). Overall, about 4 in 10 complaints are
dismissed for lack of evidence, and a roughly equal amount are
resolved through private settlement. Just 2% of complaints
eventually result in a legal charge or the involvement of the DOJ
(since 2001, the DOJ has filed 244 cases to enforce the FHA, 115 of
which have alleged discrimination based on disability).
According to an analysis of HUD data by the Gannett News Service,
seven states and the District of Columbia averaged more than 10
housing discrimination complaints per 100,000 households between
2002 and 2006. The highest was Nebraska, followed by Kansas, Iowa,
Missouri, North Dakota, Hawaii and Wyoming. States with the lowest
average complaint rates included Alaska, Minnesota, West Virginia
and Wisconsin.
Additional Fair Housing Act resources:
 Fair Housing First
Specific Design-related Information at Fair
Housing First
HUD Office of Fair Housing and Equal
Opportunity
Searchable Database of Fair Housing Complaints, By
County
Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities:
Barriers at Every Step (123 page report prepared by HUD in
June 2005)
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