Title: Fair and Equal Housing Act of 2019
Policy area: Housing and Community Development

Summary:
Fair and Equal Housing Act of 2019
This bill prohibits discrimination, in the context of various housing practices, against individuals based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1246 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1246

To extend the protections of the Fair Housing Act to persons suffering 
 discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 30, 2019

    Mr. Kaine (for himself, Ms. Collins, Mr. King, Ms. Hassan, Mr. 
 Blumenthal, Mr. Whitehouse, Ms. Baldwin, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Menendez, 
Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Cortez Masto, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Smith, Mrs. Feinstein, 
 Mr. Booker, Mr. Merkley, Ms. Harris, and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To extend the protections of the Fair Housing Act to persons suffering 
 discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, 
                        and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Fair and Equal Housing Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. HOUSING.

    (a) Fair Housing Act.--The Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et 
seq.) is amended--
            (1) in section 802 (42 U.S.C. 3602), by adding at the end 
        the following:
    ``(p) `Race', `color', `religion', `sex', `sexual orientation', 
`gender identity', `handicap', `familial status', or `national origin', 
used with respect to a person, includes--
            ``(1) the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, 
        gender identity, handicap, familial status, or national origin 
        of another person with whom the person is, or has been, 
        associated; and
            ``(2) a perception or belief, even if inaccurate, 
        concerning the race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, 
        gender identity, handicap, familial status, or national origin 
        of the person.
    ``(q) `Sexual orientation' means homosexuality, heterosexuality, or 
bisexuality.
    ``(r) `Gender identity' means the gender-related identity, 
appearance, mannerisms, or other gender-related characteristics of an 
individual, regardless of the individual's designated sex at birth.'';
            (2) in section 804 (42 U.S.C. 3604)--
                    (A) by inserting ``sexual orientation, gender 
                identity,'' after ``sex,'' each place that term 
                appears; and
                    (B) in subsection (f)(3)(A), by striking the period 
                at the end and inserting a semicolon;
            (3) in section 805 (42 U.S.C. 3605), by inserting ``sexual 
        orientation, gender identity,'' after ``sex,'' each place that 
        term appears;
            (4) in section 806 (42 U.S.C. 3606), by inserting ``sexual 
        orientation, gender identity,'' after ``sex,'';
            (5) in section 808(e) (42 U.S.C. 3608(e))--
                    (A) in paragraph (4), by inserting a semicolon at 
                the end; and
                    (B) in paragraph (6), by inserting ``sexual 
                orientation, gender identity,'' after ``sex,''; and
            (6) in section 810(f) (42 U.S.C. 3610(f)), by striking 
        paragraph (4) and inserting the following:
    ``(4) Certification.--
            ``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
        during the period beginning on the date of enactment of the 
        Fair and Equal Housing Act of 2019 and ending on the date that 
        is 40 months after the date of enactment of that Act, each 
        agency certified for the purposes of this title on the day 
        before the date of enactment of the Fair and Equal Housing Act 
        of 2019 shall, for the purposes of this subsection, be 
        considered certified under this subsection with respect to 
        those matters for which the agency was certified on that date.
            ``(B) Exceptional circumstances.--If the Secretary 
        determines in an individual case that an agency has not been 
        able to meet the certification requirements under this 
        subsection within the 40-month period described in subparagraph 
        (A) due to exceptional circumstances, such as the infrequency 
        of legislative sessions in the jurisdiction of the agency, the 
        Secretary may extend the period by not more than 180 days.''.
    (b) Prevention of Intimidation in Fair Housing Cases.--Section 901 
of the Civil Rights Act of 1968 (42 U.S.C. 3631) is amended by 
inserting ``sexual orientation (as such term is defined in section 802 
of this Act), gender identity (as such term is defined in section 802 
of this Act),'' after ``sex,'' each place that term appears.
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