IV 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 946 

Promoting and supporting the goals and ideals of the Fair Housing Act 

and recognizing April 2020 as Fair Housing Month, which includes 

bringing attention to the discrimination faced by everyday Americans 

in the United States in housing and housing-related transactions on 

the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, familial status, disability, 

and religion, particularly during the COVID–19 pandemic. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 1, 2020 

Mr. GREEN of Texas (for himself, Ms. WATERS, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, 

Mrs. DINGELL, Ms. MOORE, Ms. NORTON, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Ms. 

BASS, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. 

CLAY, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Ms. 

PRESSLEY, Mr. GONZALEZ of Texas, Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. LOWENTHAL, 

Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. SIRES, Mr. LYNCH, Ms. 

ADAMS, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. 

COHEN, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, and Ms. FUDGE) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

RESOLUTION 

Promoting and supporting the goals and ideals of the Fair 

Housing Act and recognizing April 2020 as Fair Housing 

Month, which includes bringing attention to the discrimination faced by everyday Americans in the United States 

in housing and housing-related transactions on the basis 

of race, color, national origin, sex, familial status, disability, and religion, particularly during the COVID– 

19 pandemic. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•HRES 946 IH 

Whereas, April 11, 2020, marks the 52d anniversary of the 

congressional passage of title VIII of the Civil Rights Act 

of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.), commonly known as 

the Fair Housing Act; 

Whereas, September 13, 2020, marks the 32d anniversary of 

the congressional passage of the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–430; 102 Stat. 

1619); 

Whereas the Chicago Freedom Movement, led by the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr., expanded the 

fight for civil rights from the South to the North, raised 

the national consciousness about housing discrimination, 

and shaped the debate that led to the landmark fair 

housing legislation, the Fair Housing Act; 

Whereas the National Advisory Commission on Civil Disorders, appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson and 

commonly known as the Kerner Commission, found on 

February 29, 1968, that ‘‘our nation is moving toward 

two societies, one black and one white—separate and unequal’’; 

Whereas Congress passed the Fair Housing Act as part of 

the Civil Rights Act of 1968, and President Lyndon B. 

Johnson signed the Act into law on April 11, 1968, one 

week after the assassination of the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr.; 

Whereas the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 

International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights recognize adequate housing as a human 

right; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•HRES 946 IH 

Whereas the original Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in housing and housing-related transactions on the 

basis of race, color, national origin, and religion; 

Whereas the mission statement of HUD reflects this commitment to ‘‘build inclusive and sustainable communities free 

from discrimination’’; 

Whereas the United States Commission on Civil Rights reported that in 2019 the Office of Fair Housing and 

Equal Opportunity of the Department of Housing and 

Urban Development (HUD) had the lowest staffing levels 

it has had since 1981; 

Whereas in section 808 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 (Public Law 93–383), Congress 

amended the Fair Housing Act to include protection on 

the basis of sex, including gender; 

Whereas the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 passed 

by overwhelming margins in Congress, included protection on the basis of familial status and disability, created 

an important enforcement mechanism, and expanded the 

definition of ‘‘discriminatory housing practices’’ to include interference and intimidation, requiring HUD to 

issue regulations to implement and interpret the Fair 

Housing Act and report annually to Congress on the nature and extent of housing discrimination; 

Whereas the intent of Congress in passing the Fair Housing 

Act was broad and inclusive, to advance equal opportunity in housing and achieve racial integration for the 

benefit of all people in the United States; 

Whereas the intent of Congress in passing the Fair Housing 

Act was to prohibit discrimination in all housing and 

housing-related transactions, including policies or pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:37 May 02, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR946.IH HR946

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•HRES 946 IH 

tices that appear facially neutral but have a discriminatory effect on protected classes; 

Whereas the Supreme Court of the United States of America 

has reaffirmed the use of the disparate impact doctrine 

to challenge policies or practices that have a discriminatory effect on protected classes; 

Whereas fair housing testing has revealed that discrimination 

on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity exists and that fair housing protections must be extended 

to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer 

(LGBTQ+) community; 

Whereas same-sex couples are 73 percent more likely to be 

denied a home mortgage compared to heterosexual couples, and when same-sex couples are approved for a mortgage, they pay an average of $86,000,000 more in combined annual interest and fees; 

Whereas fair housing testing has revealed that discrimination 

exists against people who use publicly available housing 

assistance, including support from the Housing Choice 

Voucher and Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing programs and other legal sources of income, and that fair 

housing protections against source-of-income discrimination must be provided to all people; 

Whereas there continues to be widespread discrimination in 

the housing industry against Black, Latinx, and AsianAmerican home buyers by real estate agents; 

Whereas owner-occupied homes located in majority-Black 

communities are undervalued by a cumulative 

$156,000,000,000 when compared to owner-occupied 

homes in similarly situated communities that have very 

few or no Black residents; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•HRES 946 IH 

Whereas over 60 percent of people experiencing homelessness 

in America are Black or Latinx; 

Whereas an individual’s housing conditions impact his or her 

health, educational attainment level, employment opportunities, and personal wealth; 

Whereas borrowers of color lack equal access to quality and 

affordable credit compared to similarly situated White 

borrowers; 

Whereas research shows that Black and Latinx borrowers 

pay $765,000,000 more in combined mortgage interest 

each year compared to similarly situated White borrowers 

due to discriminatory factors in mortgage lending by the 

government-sponsored housing finance enterprises; 

Whereas research shows that algorithmic bias and discrimination exist on online housing platforms and in lending that 

uses artificial intelligence for advertising and decisionmaking purposes; 

Whereas the majority of Americans support neighborhood integration, and numerous studies have shown the universal benefits of residential integration; 

Whereas there are estimated to be over 4,000,000 violations 

of fair housing laws each year against people of all protected classes, and fair housing testing continues to uncover a high rate of discrimination in the rental, sales, 

mortgage lending, and insurance markets; 

Whereas 68,000,000 adults in the United States believe they 

have experienced unequal treatment in their housing 

search due to their status as a member of a protected 

class under the Fair Housing Act; 

Whereas less than 1 percent of fair housing violations are reported each year; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•HRES 946 IH 

Whereas private nonprofit fair housing organizations funded 

by the Fair Housing Initiatives Program (FHIP) serve 

as the front line in the effort to resolve housing discrimination and train local housing providers on how to comply with the Fair Housing Act; 

Whereas, in 2018, there were a total of 31,202 housing discrimination complaints reported nationwide, of which 

over 75 percent, or 23,407 complaints, were filed with 

local private nonprofit fair housing organizations; 

Whereas the Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) 

funds State and local civil and human rights enforcement 

agencies to investigate and process housing discrimination complaints, conduct special enforcement projects, 

and take part in training and other projects designed to 

enhance HUD’s administration and enforcement of fair 

housing law; 

Whereas while our Nation has made great strides in eliminating housing discrimination, families with children, 

women, people with disabilities, people of color, religious 

minorities, immigrants, LGBTQ+ individuals, and lowincome people receiving public assistance, among others, 

still face discriminatory barriers to housing; 

Whereas fair housing education and enforcement play a pivotal role in increasing housing choice and home ownership opportunities for members of protected classes and 

combating predatory lending; 

Whereas amid a global health and economic crisis, housing 

discrimination against health care workers and persons 

who have been infected by COVID–19, or are perceived 

as having been infected, is contributing to increased evictions and hate crimes; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•HRES 946 IH 

Whereas reports of sexual harassment have increased by 300 

percent in some communities during the COVID–19 pandemic, with incidents disproportionately being reported 

by women of color and transgender women; 

Whereas immigrant and limited English proficient (LEP) 

communities must have in-language access to online, telephone, print, and all other mediums of housing information, notices, and resources during the COVID–19 pandemic to prevent predatory and discriminatory housing 

and lending practices; 

Whereas persons with disabilities must have equal access to 

online, telephone, print, and all other mediums of housing 

information, notices, and resources during the COVID– 

19 pandemic to prevent predatory and discriminatory 

housing and lending practices; and 

Whereas the Fair Housing Act is an essential component of 

our Nation’s civil rights legislation: Now, therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 

2 (1) supports the goals and values of the 52d 

3 anniversary of the enactment of the Fair Housing 

4 Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.) and the 32d anniver5 sary of the enactment of the Fair Housing Amend6 ments Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–430; 102 Stat. 

7 1619); 

8 (2) supports efforts to strengthen and increase 

9 fair housing enforcement, education, and protec10 tions, particularly during the COVID–19 pandemic; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•HRES 946 IH 

1 (3) supports activities to recognize and cele2 brate the important historical milestones represented 

3 by the anniversaries of the enactments of the Fair 

4 Housing Act and the Fair Housing Amendments Act 

5 of 1988; and 

6 (4) encourages all people and levels of govern7 ment to rededicate themselves to the enforcement 

8 and the ideals of fair housing laws. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS