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 res-
olution; 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 discrimi-
nation 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, dis-
ability, and religion, particularly during the COVID– 
19 pandemic. 
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•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 Amend-
ments Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–430; 102 Stat. 
1619); 
Whereas the Chicago Freedom Movement, led by the Rev-
erend 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 Dis-
orders, 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 un-
equal’’; 
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 Mar-
tin Luther King, Jr.; 
Whereas the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the 
International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cul-
tural Rights recognize adequate housing as a human 
right; 
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•HRES 946 IH 
Whereas the original Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimina-
tion in housing and housing-related transactions on the 
basis of race, color, national origin, and religion; 
Whereas the mission statement of HUD reflects this commit-
ment to ‘‘build inclusive and sustainable communities free 
from discrimination’’; 
Whereas the United States Commission on Civil Rights re-
ported 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 De-
velopment 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 protec-
tion on the basis of familial status and disability, created 
an important enforcement mechanism, and expanded the 
definition of ‘‘discriminatory housing practices’’ to in-
clude interference and intimidation, requiring HUD to 
issue regulations to implement and interpret the Fair 
Housing Act and report annually to Congress on the na-
ture and extent of housing discrimination; 
Whereas the intent of Congress in passing the Fair Housing 
Act was broad and inclusive, to advance equal oppor-
tunity 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 prac-
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•HRES 946 IH 
tices that appear facially neutral but have a discrimina-
tory 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 discrimina-
tory effect on protected classes; 
Whereas fair housing testing has revealed that discrimination 
on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity ex-
ists 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 cou-
ples, and when same-sex couples are approved for a mort-
gage, they pay an average of $86,000,000 more in com-
bined 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 pro-
grams and other legal sources of income, and that fair 
housing protections against source-of-income discrimina-
tion must be provided to all people; 
Whereas there continues to be widespread discrimination in 
the housing industry against Black, Latinx, and Asian- 
American 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; 
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•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 oppor-
tunities, 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 discrimina-
tion exist on online housing platforms and in lending that 
uses artificial intelligence for advertising and decision- 
making purposes; 
Whereas the majority of Americans support neighborhood in-
tegration, and numerous studies have shown the uni-
versal 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 pro-
tected classes, and fair housing testing continues to un-
cover 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 re-
ported each year; 
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•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 discrimi-
nation and train local housing providers on how to com-
ply with the Fair Housing Act; 
Whereas, in 2018, there were a total of 31,202 housing dis-
crimination 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 discrimina-
tion 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 elimi-
nating housing discrimination, families with children, 
women, people with disabilities, people of color, religious 
minorities, immigrants, LGBTQ+ individuals, and low- 
income people receiving public assistance, among others, 
still face discriminatory barriers to housing; 
Whereas fair housing education and enforcement play a piv-
otal role in increasing housing choice and home owner-
ship 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 evic-
tions and hate crimes; 
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•HRES 946 IH 
Whereas reports of sexual harassment have increased by 300 
percent in some communities during the COVID–19 pan-
demic, 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, tele-
phone, print, and all other mediums of housing informa-
tion, notices, and resources during the COVID–19 pan-
demic 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 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) supports the goals and values of the 52d 
anniversary of the enactment of the Fair Housing 
Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.) and the 32d anniver-
sary of the enactment of the Fair Housing Amend-
ments Act of 1988 (Public Law 100–430; 102 Stat. 
1619); 
(2) supports efforts to strengthen and increase 
fair housing enforcement, education, and protec-
tions, particularly during the COVID–19 pandemic; 
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•HRES 946 IH 
(3) supports activities to recognize and cele-
brate the important historical milestones represented 
by the anniversaries of the enactments of the Fair 
Housing Act and the Fair Housing Amendments Act 
of 1988; and 
(4) encourages all people and levels of govern-
ment to rededicate themselves to the enforcement 
and the ideals of fair housing laws. 
Æ 
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