I 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 372 

To authorize funds to prevent housing discrimination through the use of 

nationwide testing, to increase funds for the Fair Housing Initiatives 

Program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 14, 2015 

Mr. AL GREEN of Texas (for himself, Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. LEE, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. HONDA, Ms. CHU of California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. RUSH, Ms. HAHN, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. HINOJOSA, Ms. 

MOORE, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, 

and Mr. ELLISON) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Financial Services 

A BILL 

To authorize funds to prevent housing discrimination through 

the use of nationwide testing, to increase funds for the 

Fair Housing Initiatives Program, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans, Women, 

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1 ities Housing Fairness Act of 2015’’ or the ‘‘Housing 

2 Fairness Act of 2015’’. 

3 SEC. 2. TESTING FOR DISCRIMINATION. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Housing and 

5 Urban Development shall conduct a nationwide program 

6 of testing to— 

7 (1) detect and document differences in the 

8 treatment of persons seeking to rent or purchase 

9 housing or obtain or refinance a home mortgage 

10 loan, and measure patterns of adverse treatment be11 cause of the race, color, religion, sex, familial status, 

12 disability status, or national origin of a renter, home 

13 buyer, or borrower; and 

14 (2) measure the prevalence of such discrimina15 tory practices across the housing and mortgage lend16 ing markets as a whole. 

17 (b) ADMINISTRATION.—The Secretary of Housing 

18 and Urban Development shall enter into agreements with 

19 qualified fair housing enforcement organizations, as such 

20 organizations are defined under subsection (h) of section 

21 561 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 

22 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(h)), for the purpose of conducting 

23 the testing required under subsection (a). 

24 (c) PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS.—The Secretary 

25 shall— 


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1 (1) submit to the Congress an evaluation by the 

2 Secretary of the effectiveness of the program under 

3 this section; and 

4 (2) issue regulations that require each applica5 tion for the program under this section to contain— 

6 (A) a description of the assisted activities 

7 proposed to be undertaken by the applicant; 

8 (B) a description of the experience of the 

9 applicant in formulating or carrying out pro10 grams to carry out the activities described in 

11 subsection (a); and 

12 (C) a description of proposed procedures to 

13 be used by the applicant for evaluating the re14 sults of the activities proposed to be carried out 

15 under the program. 

16 (d) REPORT.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban 

17 Development shall report to Congress— 

18 (1) on a biennial basis, the aggregate outcomes 

19 of testing required under subsection (a) along with 

20 any recommendations or proposals for legislative or 

21 administrative action to address any issues raised by 

22 such testing; and 

23 (2) on an annual basis, a detailed summary of 

24 the messages received by the Office of Fair Housing 

25 and Equal Opportunity of the Department through 


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1 its 24-hour toll-free telephone hotline, through elec2 tronic mail, and through its website. 

3 The Secretary may submit the reports required under 

4 paragraph (1) of this subsection as part of the reports 

5 prepared in accordance with paragraphs (2) and (6) of 

6 section 808(e) of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 

7 3608(e)) and section 561(j) of the Housing and Commu8 nity Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(j)). 

9 (e) USE OF RESULTS.—The results of any testing re10 quired under subsection (a) may be used as the basis for 

11 the Secretary, or any Federal agency authorized to bring 

12 such an enforcement action, or any State or local govern13 ment or agency, public or private nonprofit organization 

14 or institution, or other public or private entity that the 

15 Secretary has entered into a contract or cooperative agree16 ment with under section 561 of the Housing and Commu17 nity Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a) to com18 mence, undertake, or pursue any investigation or enforce19 ment action to remedy any discriminatory housing practice 

20 (as such term is defined in section 802 of the Fair Hous21 ing Act (42 U.S.C. 3602)) uncovered as a result of such 

22 testing. 

23 (f) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 

24 (1) DISABILITY STATUS.—The term ‘‘disability 

25 status’’ has the same meaning given the term 


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1 ‘‘handicap’’ in section 802 of the Civil Rights Act of 

2 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3602). 

3 (2) FAMILIAL STATUS.—The term ‘‘familial sta4 tus’’ has the same meaning given that term in sec5 tion 802 of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 

6 3602). 

7 (g) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.—Nothing in 

8 this section may be construed to amend, alter, or affect 

9 any provision of criminal law or the Truth in Lending Act 

10 (15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

11 (h) REGULATIONS.—Not later than the expiration of 

12 the 180-day period beginning on the date of the enactment 

13 of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop14 ment shall issue regulations that establish minimum 

15 standards for the training of testers of organizations con16 ducting testing required under subsection (a). Such regu17 lations shall serve as the basis of an evaluation of such 

18 testers, which shall be developed by the Secretary, and 

19 such regulations shall be issued after notice and an oppor20 tunity for public comment in accordance with the proce21 dure under section 553 of title 5, United States Code, ap22 plicable to substantive rules (notwithstanding subsections 

23 (a)(2), (b)(3)(B), and (d)(3) of such section). 

24 (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

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1 sions of this section $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

2 2015 through 2019. 

3 SEC. 3. INCREASE IN FUNDING FOR THE FAIR HOUSING INI4 TIATIVES PROGRAM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 561 of the Housing and 

6 Community Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a) 

7 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (b)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘quali10 fied’’ before ‘‘private nonprofit fair housing en11 forcement organizations,’’; and 

12 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘quali13 fied’’ before ‘‘private nonprofit fair housing en14 forcement organizations,’’; 

15 (2) by striking subsection (g) and inserting the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be 

19 appropriated to carry out the provisions of this sec20 tion $42,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2015 

21 through 2019, of which— 

22 ‘‘(A) not less than 75 percent of such 

23 amounts shall be for private enforcement initia24 tives authorized under subsection (b); 


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1 ‘‘(B) not more than 10 percent of such 

2 amounts shall be for education and outreach 

3 programs under subsection (d); and 

4 ‘‘(C) any remaining amounts shall be used 

5 for program activities authorized under this sec6 tion. 

7 ‘‘(2) AVAILABILITY.—Any amount appropriated 

8 under this section shall remain available until ex9 pended to carry out the provisions of this section.’’; 

10 (3) in subsection (h), in the matter following 

11 subparagraph (C), by inserting ‘‘and meets the cri12 teria described in subparagraphs (A) and (C)’’ after 

13 ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’; and 

14 (4) in subsection (d)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

17 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

18 (ii) in subparagraph (D), by striking 

19 the period and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

20 (iii) by adding after subparagraph (D) 

21 the following new subparagraph: 

22 ‘‘(E) websites and other media outlets.’’; 

23 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘or other 

24 public or private entities’’ and inserting ‘‘or 

25 other public or private nonprofit entities’’; and 


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1 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘or other 

2 public or private entities’’ and inserting ‘‘or 

3 other public or private nonprofit entities’’. 

4 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than the expiration of 

5 the 180-day period beginning on the date of the enactment 

6 of this Act, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop7 ment shall issue regulations that establish minimum 

8 standards for the training of testers of organizations fund9 ed with any amounts made available to carry out this sec10 tion for any of fiscal years 2015 through 2019. Such regu11 lations shall serve as the basis of an evaluation of such 

12 testers, which shall be developed by the Secretary, and 

13 shall be issued after notice and an opportunity for public 

14 comment in accordance with the procedure under section 

15 553 of title 5, United States Code, applicable to sub16 stantive rules (notwithstanding subsections (a)(2), 

17 (b)(3)(B), and (d)(3) of such section). 

18 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

19 It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of 

20 Housing and Urban Development should— 

21 (1) fully comply with the requirements of sec22 tion 561(d) of the Housing and Community Develop23 ment Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(d)) to establish, 

24 design, and maintain a national education and out25 reach program to provide a centralized, coordinated 


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1 effort for the development and dissemination of the 

2 fair housing rights of individuals who seek to rent, 

3 purchase, sell, or facilitate the sale of a home; 

4 (2) expend for such education and outreach 

5 programs all amounts appropriated for such pro6 grams; 

7 (3) promulgate regulations regarding the fair 

8 housing obligations of each recipient of Federal 

9 housing and community development funds to af10 firmatively further fair housing, as that term is de11 fined under title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 

12 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.); and 

13 (4) fully comply with the requirements of sec14 tion 810(a) of the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 

15 3610(a)). 

16 SEC. 5. GRANTS TO PRIVATE ENTITIES TO STUDY HOUSING 

17 DISCRIMINATION. 

18 (a) GRANT PROGRAM.—The Secretary of Housing 

19 and Urban Development shall carry out a competitive 

20 matching grant program to assist public and private non21 profit organizations in— 

22 (1) conducting comprehensive studies that ex23 amine— 

24 (A) the causes of housing discrimination 

25 and segregation; 


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1 (B) the effects of housing discrimination 

2 and segregation on education, poverty, and eco3 nomic development; or 

4 (C) the incidences, causes, and effects of 

5 housing discrimination and segregation on vet6 erans and military personnel; and 

7 (2) implementing pilot projects that test solu8 tions that will help prevent or alleviate housing dis9 crimination and segregation. 

10 (b) ELIGIBILITY.—To be eligible to receive a grant 

11 under this section, a public or private nonprofit organiza12 tion shall— 

13 (1) submit an application to the Secretary of 

14 Housing and Urban Development, containing such 

15 information as the Secretary shall require; 

16 (2) agree to provide matching non-Federal 

17 funds for 50 percent of the total amount of the 

18 grant, which matching funds may include items do19 nated on an in-kind contribution basis; and 

20 (3) meet the requirements of a qualified fair 

21 housing enforcement organization, as such term is 

22 defined in section 561(h) of the Housing and Com23 munity Development Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. 

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1 ing enforcement organization as a primary subcon2 tractor. 

3 (c) REPORT.—The Secretary of Housing and Urban 

4 Development shall submit a report to the Congress on a 

5 biennial basis that provides a detailed summary of the re6 sults of the comprehensive studies and pilot projects car7 ried out under subsection (a), together with any rec8 ommendations or proposals for legislative or administra9 tive actions to address any issues raised by such studies. 

10 The Secretary may submit the reports required under this 

11 subsection as part of the reports prepared in accordance 

12 with paragraphs (2) and (6) of section 808(e) of the Fair 

13 Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3608(e)) and section 561(j) of 

14 the Housing and Community Development Act of 1987 

15 (42 U.S.C. 3616a(j)). 

16 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

17 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the provi18 sions of this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

19 2015 through 2019. 

20 SEC. 6. LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS. 

21 None of the funds made available under this Act, or 

22 the amendments made by this Act, may be used for any 

23 political activities, political advocacy, or lobbying (as such 

24 terms are defined by Circular A–122 of the Office of Man25 agement and Budget, entitled ‘‘Cost Principles for NonVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:28 Jan 27, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H372.IH H372

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1 Profit Organizations’’), or for expenses for travel to en2 gage in political activities or preparation of or provision 

3 of advice on tax returns. 

Æ 


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