I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 232 

To amend the Fair Housing Act, to prohibit discrimination based on use 

of section 8 vouchers, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2019 

Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committees on Ways 

and Means, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined 

by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 

within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Fair Housing Act, to prohibit discrimination 

based on use of section 8 vouchers, 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 ‘‘Landlord Account5 ability Act of 2019’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds that— 

8 (1) the United States is in the midst of a hous9 ing crisis, as the homeownership rate has declined to 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 232 IH

1 64.4 percent, which is lower than it was 20 years 

2 ago, while rental demand has increased and pushed 

3 vacancy rates down to 7.1 percent; 

4 (2) the median rental asking price is $1,003, up 

5 from $708 ten years ago; 

6 (3) in June 2018, United States housing rents 

7 hit an all-time high of $1,405 per month; of the 250 

8 largest U.S. cities 88 percent experienced increases 

9 in housing rents over the previous year; 

10 (4) families and individuals that pay more than 

11 30 percent of their income for housing are consid12 ered cost-burdened and have difficultly affording 

13 other necessities like food, clothing, transportation, 

14 and medical care; 

15 (5) almost half of all renters in the United 

16 States, approximately 19.9 million households, are 

17 cost-burdened; 

18 (6) 9.7 million extremely low-income renters 

19 spend more than 30 percent of their income on rent; 

20 of those renters, 8 million are considered severely 

21 cost-burdened and forced to spend more than half of 

22 their income on rent; 

23 (7) the current rental environment makes rental 

24 assistance under the Section 8 Housing Choice 

25 Voucher Program of the Department of Housing 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 232 IH

1 and Urban Development vital to finding affordable 

2 housing for many families; 

3 (8) the Section 8 Program helps approximately 

4 4.5 million low-income families, the elderly, and the 

5 disabled afford respectable housing in the private 

6 market; 

7 (9) the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Pro8 gram assists our Nation’s most economically vulner9 able families—the average annual income for all 

10 voucher-funded recipients is only $14,444; 

11 (10) many of the individuals and families as12 sisted by the Section 8 Program would be at risk of 

13 homelessness without the program; 

14 (11) the Section 8 program caps the rental cost 

15 for eligible families and individuals at 30 percent of 

16 their incomes, which frees up their limited resources 

17 to pay for life’s other necessities; 

18 (12) although families and individuals assisted 

19 under the program are free to choose any available 

20 housing in their community, that has not prevented 

21 landlords from discriminating against low-income 

22 tenants; 

23 (13) public housing authorities are experiencing 

24 historically low ‘‘success rates’’ as measured by the 

25 percentage of families who are receiving housing 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 232 IH

1 vouchers that are actually able to use them in the 

2 private market; 

3 (14) given the strong connection between the 

4 classes currently protected under the Fair Housing 

5 Act, including race, gender, those with disabilities, 

6 familial status, and economic status, establishing a 

7 ban on income discrimination would further the 

8 goals of the Fair Housing Act and better protect 

9 these families and individuals; 

10 (15) for many years, landlords have relied on 

11 the Section 8 housing program to provide affordable 

12 housing to tenants in low-income areas, but as more 

13 urban areas have undergone rapid revitalization, 

14 property values have risen dramatically; 

15 (16) as a result of rising property values, there 

16 have been serious allegations that landlords are in17 tentionally allowing their federally subsidized units 

18 to deteriorate in an effort to drive voucher-users out 

19 and convert units to higher, market-rate apartments; 

20 (17) in addition, landlords are failing to meet 

21 the housing quality standards of the Department of 

22 Housing and Urban Development and improperly 

23 demanding rent in excess of 30 percent of voucher24 holders’ incomes; and 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 232 IH

1 (18) therefore, it is necessary to ban discrimi2 nation against source of income, discourage inten3 tional acts to disqualify dwelling units from Federal 

4 housing programs, and encourage proper mainte5 nance of multifamily housing in order to revive the 

6 Section 8 rental assistance program, affirmatively 

7 further fair housing policies, and address our na8 tional housing affordability crisis. 

9 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATION ON ACCOUNT OF 

10 USE OF SECTION 8 VOUCHERS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 804 of the Fair Housing 

12 Act (42 U.S.C. 3604) is amended by inserting after para13 graph (f) the following new paragraph: 

14 ‘‘(g) To discriminate in connection with the 

15 rental of a dwelling because the tenant or prospec16 tive tenant is the holder of a housing voucher.’’. 

17 (b) DEFINITION.—Section 802 of the Fair Housing 

18 Act (42 U.S.C. 3602) is amended by adding at the end 

19 the following new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(p) ‘Holder of a housing voucher’ means a 

21 holder of a voucher for rental assistance under sub22 section (o) or (t) of section 8 of the United States 

23 Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f).’’. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 232 IH

1 SEC. 4. PENALTIES FOR INTENTIONAL ACTS TO DIS2 QUALIFY DWELLING UNITS FROM ELIGI3 BILITY FOR FEDERAL HOUSING PROGRAMS. 

4 (a) VIOLATION.—An owner of a dwelling unit that 

5 is available for rental may not take any action, or fail to 

6 take any action, with the intent to make the dwelling unit 

7 insufficiently decent, safe, sanitary, or inhabitable, or 

8 cause such other physical condition, so that the dwelling 

9 does not qualify for assistance within the jurisdiction of 

10 the Department (as such term is defined in section 102(m) 

11 of the Department of Housing and Urban Development 

12 Reform Act of 1989 (42 U.S.C. 3545(m))). 

13 (b) CIVIL MONEY PENALTIES.—Any person who is 

14 found by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop15 ment, after notice and opportunity for a hearing in accord16 ance with section 554 of title 5, United States Code, to 

17 have violated subsection (a) shall be assessed a civil money 

18 penalty by the Secretary in the amount of $100,000 for 

19 each such action or failure to act. 

20 (c) LIABILITY TO TENANTS.—A tenant who, at the 

21 time of a violation under subsection (a), occupies the 

22 dwelling unit to which the violation relates may bring a 

23 civil action for damages in the following amounts: 

24 (1) $50,000 for each action or failure to act in 

25 violation of subsection (a). 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 232 IH

1 (2) Any actual damages and costs to the tenant 

2 resulting from the violation, including any costs of 

3 finding a replacement dwelling unit. 

4 SEC. 5. RESOURCES FOR RECEIVING AND RESOLVING COM5 PLAINTS REGARDING MULTIFAMILY HOUS6 ING PROJECTS. 

7 (a) INCREASED HUD STAFFING FOR COMPLAINT

8 CALL STAFFING.— 

9 (1) INCREASED STAFFING.—The Secretary 

10 shall, not later than the expiration of the 180-day 

11 period beginning on the date of the enactment of 

12 this Act, increase the staffing level for the Multi13 family Housing Complaint Line established and op14 erated by the Multifamily Housing Clearinghouse of 

15 the Department so that it is sufficient and appro16 priate to handle the volume of calls received without 

17 unreasonable waiting periods. 

18 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For 

19 carrying out paragraph (1), there are authorized to 

20 be appropriated to the Secretary such sums as may 

21 be necessary for each fiscal year for carrying out 

22 paragraph (1). 

23 (b) MULTIFAMILY HOUSING COMPLAINT RESOLU24 TION PROGRAM.— 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 232 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 

2 out a Multifamily Housing Complaint Resolution 

3 Program for receiving complaints about multifamily 

4 housing projects from voucher users who reside in 

5 such projects and local governmental officials, under 

6 which the Secretary shall provide for— 

7 (A) gathering of information regarding 

8 each such complaint; 

9 (B) determining whether there is a likeli10 hood that there is any violation of the require11 ments under the rental assistance voucher pro12 gram relating to such complaint; 

13 (C) informing the owner or landlord of the 

14 complaint and any violations; and 

15 (D) attempting to resolve the complaint 

16 and violations, including through mediation. 

17 (2) RESOLUTION.—The Secretary may provide 

18 for carrying out the activities required under para19 graph (1)(D) through regional or field offices of the 

20 Department or through such local or private organi21 zations or agencies as the Secretary determines have 

22 appropriate capabilities and expertise to carry out 

23 such activities. 

24 (3) FUNDING.—Amounts made available for ad25 ministrative fees under section 8(q) of the United 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 232 IH

1 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(q)) 

2 shall be available for carrying out the program 

3 under this subsection. 

4 (4) REGULATIONS.—Not later than the expira5 tion of the 12-month period beginning on the date 

6 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

7 issue any regulations necessary to establish the Pro8 gram required under this subsection. 

9 SEC. 6. HUD DISCLOSURE OF LANDLORD COMPLAINTS. 

10 (a) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.—The Secretary shall pub11 licly disclose, on a website of the Department and on a 

12 timely basis, information regarding each complaint re13 ceived under the Program establish pursuant to section 

14 5(b), which shall include for each such complaint— 

15 (1) the nature of the complaint; 

16 (2) the date on which such complaint was sub17 mitted to the Department; 

18 (3) the disposition, as of the time of such dis19 closure, of such complaint; and 

20 (4) information identifying the multifamily 

21 housing project to which such complaint relates. 

22 (b) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary of 

23 Housing and Urban Development shall submit a report 

24 annually to the Committee on Financial Services of the 

25 House of Representatives and the Committee on Banking, 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 232 IH

1 Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate summarizing 

2 the complaints described in subsection (a) that were re3 ceived by the Department during the preceding year and 

4 describing the disposition to such date of such complaints. 

5 SEC. 7. TAX CREDIT INCENTIVE FOR MAINTENANCE OF 

6 MULTIFAMILY HOUSING WITH VOUCHER 

7 USER TENANTS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart D of part IV of sub9 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

10 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

11 section: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 45T. LOW-INCOME HOUSING MAINTENANCE CREDIT. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 38, in 

14 the case of an eligible landlord, the low-income housing 

15 maintenance credit determined under this section for the 

16 taxable year is an amount equal to the amount of the tax17 payer’s low-income housing maintenance expenses for such 

18 taxable year. 

19 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) PER UNIT LIMITATION.—The credit al21 lowed under subsection (a) with respect to any tax22 payer for any taxable year shall not exceed the prod23 uct of $2,500 multiplied by the number of low-in24 come housing units owned by the taxpayer. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 232 IH

1 ‘‘(2) PER BUILDING LIMITATION.—The credit 

2 allowed under subsection (a) with respect to any tax3 payer for any taxable year shall not exceed the prod4 uct of $100,000 multiplied by the number of eligible 

5 low-income housing projects owned by the taxpayer. 

6 ‘‘(3) PER TAXPAYER LIMITATION.—The credit 

7 allowed under subsection (a) with respect to any tax8 payer for any taxable year shall not exceed 

9 $500,000. 

10 ‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE LANDLORD.—For purposes of this 

11 section, the term ‘eligible landlord’ means any taxpayer 

12 for any taxable year if— 

13 ‘‘(1) such taxpayer owns one or more eligible 

14 low-income housing projects during such taxable 

15 year, and 

16 ‘‘(2) either— 

17 ‘‘(A) each complaint that is filed, under 

18 the program under section 5(b) of the Landlord 

19 Accountability Act of 2019, during such taxable 

20 year with respect to a dwelling unit in an eligi21 ble low-income housing project owned by such 

22 taxpayer has been determined by the Secretary 

23 of Housing and Urban Development to have 

24 been remedied not later than the date which is 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 232 IH

1 30 days after the date on which such complaint 

2 is so filed, or 

3 ‘‘(B) no such complaint has been filed with 

4 respect to such a dwelling unit in such a hous5 ing project owned by such taxpayer during such 

6 taxable year. 

7 ‘‘(d) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 

8 section— 

9 ‘‘(1) LOW-INCOME HOUSING MAINTENANCE EX10 PENSES.—The term ‘low-income housing mainte11 nance expenses’ means the aggregate amount paid 

12 or incurred by the taxpayer during the taxable year 

13 for maintenance or improvement of low-income hous14 ing units. 

15 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBLE LOW-INCOME HOUSING

16 PROJECT.—The term ‘eligible low-income housing 

17 project’ means, with respect to a taxable year, a 

18 housing project— 

19 ‘‘(A) that consists of five or more dwelling 

20 units at least one of which was occupied during 

21 such year by a family who rented the dwelling 

22 unit using a voucher for rental assistance under 

23 section 8(o) of the United States Housing Act 

24 of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 1437f(o)); and 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 232 IH

1 ‘‘(B) with respect to which the eligible 

2 landlord has entered into such binding agree3 ments as the Secretary of Housing and Urban 

4 Development shall require to ensure that rents 

5 for dwelling units in the project do not, at any 

6 time after the taxable year in which a low-in7 come housing maintenance credit under this 

8 section is allowable, exceed the applicable fair 

9 market rental under section 8(c) of the United 

10 States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. 

11 1437f(c)) for the market area in which the 

12 project is located. 

13 ‘‘(3) LOW-INCOME HOUSING UNIT.—The term 

14 ‘low-income housing unit’ means a dwelling unit 

15 within an eligible low-income housing project. 

16 ‘‘(e) AGGREGATION RULE.—All persons treated as a 

17 single employer under subsection (a) or (b) of section 52 

18 or subsection (m) or (o) of section 414 shall be treated 

19 as one person for purposes of applying this section. The 

20 credit determined under subsection (a) (after application 

21 of subsection (b)) shall be allocated among such persons 

22 in such manner as the Secretary may prescribe. 

23 ‘‘(f) TERMINATION.—No credit shall be determined 

24 under this section with respect to any taxable year begin25 ning after December 31, 2029.’’. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 232 IH

1 (b) CREDIT TO BE PART OF GENERAL BUSINESS

2 CREDIT.—Section 38(b) of such Code is amended by strik3 ing ‘‘plus’’ at the end of paragraph (35), by striking the 

4 period at the end of paragraph (36) and inserting ‘‘, plus’’, 

5 and by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(37) in the case of an eligible landlord (as de7 fined in section 45S(c)), the low-income housing 

8 maintenance credit determined under section 45S.’’. 

9 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

10 for subpart D of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 

11 of such Code is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing new item: 

‘‘Sec. 45T. Low-income housing maintenance credit.’’. 

13 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

15 December 31, 2019. 

16 SEC. 8. PUBLIC DISPLAY OF TENANT’S RIGHTS AND COM17 PLAINT LINE. 

18 (a) REQUIRED DISPLAY.—An owner of a multifamily 

19 housing project in which three or more voucher users re20 side shall display, at all times and in clear and conspicuous 

21 location on each floor of such project that contains any 

22 dwelling unit, a written notice that includes— 

23 (1) a statement describing the rights under 

24 Federal law afforded to tenants of the project who 

25 are voucher users; 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 232 IH

1 (2) the phone number for the Multifamily 

2 Housing Complaint Line established and operated by 

3 the Multifamily Housing Clearinghouse; and 

4 (3) the phone number for a regional or local of5 fice of the Department which can provide tenants 

6 additional information regarding State and local re7 sources for tenants. 

8 (b) CIVIL MONEY PENALTY.—Any person who is 

9 found by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Develop10 ment, after notice and opportunity for a hearing in accord11 ance with section 554 of title 5, United States Code, to 

12 have failed to make a good faith effort to display notice 

13 complying with subsection (a) may be assessed a civil 

14 money penalty by the Secretary in the amount of $500 

15 for each day of each such failure, except that the Secretary 

16 shall waive such penalty in any case in which an owner 

17 cures such violation within the 5-day period beginning 

18 upon notice by the Secretary of such violation. 

19 (c) MODEL NOTICE.— 

20 (1) DEVELOPMENT.—Not later than the expira21 tion of the 12-month period beginning on the date 

22 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall de23 velop and publish in the Federal Register a model 

24 notice that fulfills the requirements under subsection 

25 (a)(1). 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 232 IH

1 (2) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary shall make 

2 copies of the notice developed pursuant to paragraph 

3 (1) available, upon request, to owners of multifamily 

4 housing projects. 

5 (d) APPLICABILITY.—Subsections (a) and (b) shall 

6 apply beginning upon the expiration of the 60-day period 

7 that begins on the date that the Secretary publishes notice 

8 in the Federal Register pursuant to subsection (c)(1). 

9 (e) REGULATIONS.—Not later than the expiration of 

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

11 of this Act, the Secretary shall issue regulations to carry 

12 out this section. 

13 SEC. 9. GRANTS FOR TENANT HARASSMENT PREVENTION 

14 PROGRAMS. 

15 (a) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may, to the extent 

16 amounts are made available for grants under this section, 

17 make grants to States, Indian tribes, units of local govern18 ment, and nonprofit, nongovernmental affordable housing 

19 organizations to develop, expand, or assist tenant harass20 ment prevention programs. 

21 (b) TENANT HARASSMENT PREVENTION PRO22 GRAM.—For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘tenant 

23 harassment prevention program’’ means any program or 

24 activities designed to protect, assist, or educate tenants 

25 of residential rental dwelling units regarding harassing or 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 232 IH

1 illegal behavior by their landlords intended to force the 

2 tenant to vacate the dwelling unit or surrender any of 

3 their rights as tenants. Such term includes programs and 

4 activities providing legal assistance, counseling, education, 

5 intervention, complaint processes. 

6 (c) FEDERAL SHARE.—The amount of a grant under 

7 this section for any tenant harassment prevention pro8 gram may not exceed 75 percent of the total costs of the 

9 program or activities to be carried out, including adminis10 trative costs. 

11 (d) APPLICATIONS.—The Secretary shall provide for 

12 eligible entities specified in subsection (a) to apply for 

13 grants under this section, which applications shall describe 

14 the tenant harassment prevention program to be assisted 

15 with grant amounts, the activities to be carried out under 

16 the program, and the projected costs of such activities; 

17 (e) SELECTION.—The Secretary shall select appli18 cants to receive grants based on criteria that the Secretary 

19 shall establish. 

20 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 are authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000 for each 

22 of fiscal years 2020 through 2024 for grants under this 

23 section. 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 232 IH

1 SEC. 10. DEFINITIONS. 

2 For purposes of this Act, the following definitions 

3 shall apply: 

4 (1) MULTIFAMILY HOUSING PROJECT.—The 

5 term ‘‘multifamily housing project’’ means a housing 

6 project consisting of five or more dwelling units. 

7 (2) RENTAL ASSISTANCE VOUCHER.—The term 

8 ‘‘rental assistance voucher’’ means a voucher for 

9 rental assistance made available under section 8(o) 

10 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 

11 U.S.C. 1437f(o)). 

12 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

13 the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. 

14 (4) VOUCHER USER.—The term ‘‘voucher user’’ 

15 means a family who is renting a dwelling unit using 

16 a rental assistance voucher. 

17 SEC. 11. REGULATIONS. 

18 The Secretary may issue any regulations necessary 

19 to carry out this Act. 

Æ 


pbinns on DSK79D2C42PROD with BILLS