Law Commons^™

Addressing Mental Disability Head On: The Challenges Of Reasonable Accommodation Requests For Virginia Housing Providers, Haley Fortner

Washington and Lee Law Review Online

A person’s home should be a sanctuary of safety, security, and comfortability away from the demands of the outside world. Yet for many people living with mental illness, a home can all too easily become a sort of temporary prison. Nowhere is this more apparent than when a housing provider stands in the way of allowing someone with a mental disability the equal opportunity to use and enjoy their home. Fair housing law’s reasonable accommodation requirement works to ensure those living with mental illness receive the accommodations they need in order to live safely and comfortably in their own home. …

The Never-Ending Grasp Of The Prison Walls: Banning The Box On Housing Applications, Ashley De La Garza

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Arlington Heights Won In The Supreme Court But The Fair Housing Act’S Goal Of Promoting Racial Integration Saved The Low-Income Housing, Henry Rose

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Housing, Healthism, And The Hud Smoke-Free Policy, Dave Fagundes, Jessica L. Roberts

Northwestern University Law Review

On July 30, 2018, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) rule prohibiting residents of public housing from smoking within twenty-five feet of any housing project took effect. These new regulations—HUD’s “smoke-free policy”—received near-universal acclaim as a means to improve public health, in particular by reducing vulnerable populations’ exposure to secondhand smoke. This Essay analyzes the smoke-free policy from the perspective of healthism—discrimination on the basis of health status. We argue that banning public housing residents from smoking is unfairly discriminatory for a variety of reasons. To start, the rule may not achieve its desired effects. Because a …

The Prison To Homelessness Pipeline: Criminal Record Checks, Race, And Disparate Impact, Valerie Schneider

Indiana Law Journal

Study after study has shown that securing housing upon release from prison is critical to reducing the likelihood of recidivism,1 yet those with criminal records— a population that disproportionately consists of racial minorities—are routinely denied access to housing, even if their offense was minor and was shown to have no bearing on whether the applicant would be likely to be a successful renter. In April of 2016, the Office of General Counsel for the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued much anticipated guidance dealing directly with the racially disparate impact of barring those with criminal records …

How Federal Tax Law Rewards Housing Segregation, Michelle D. Layser

Indiana Law Journal

INTRODUCTION

I. THE SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF TAX-BASED HOUSING SUBSIDIES

A.WHY THE SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF TAX-BASED HOUSING SUBSIDIES MATTERS

B. THE LOCATION OF TAX-SUBSIDIZED HOUSING IN AMERICA

1. THE SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF MORTGAGE INTEREST DEDUCTION BENEFITS

2. THE SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF LOW-INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT PROJECTS

II. VISUALIZING THE SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION OF TAX-BASED HOUSING SUBSIDIES

A. THE BIG PICTURE: MAPPING TAX-BASED HOUSING SUBSIDIES

B. A CLOSER LOOK: DESCRIBING TAX-SUBSIDIZED NEIGHBORHOODS

1. NEIGHBORHOODS WITH HIGH SHARES OF MORTGAGE INTEREST DEDUCTION BENEFITS AND FEW LIHTC PROPERTIES

2. NEIGHBORHOODS WITH HIGH NUMBERS OF LIHTC PROPERTIES AND LITTLE MORTGAGE INTEREST DEDUCTION BENEFIT

3. NEIGHBORHOODS IN …

Housing Resource Bundles: Distributive Justice And Federal Low-Income Housing Policy, John J. Infranca

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

What’S Hud Got To Do With It?: How Hud’S Disparate Impact Rule May Save The Fair Housing Act’S Disparate Impact Standard, William F. Fuller

Fordham Law Review

Since 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court has granted certiorari three times on the question of whether disparate impact liability is cognizable under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). The first two times, the parties settled. The question is before the Court once again in Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs v. Inclusive Communities Project, Inc., and this time the parties seem unlikely to settle.

Disparate impact liability in the civil rights context entails liability for actions that have a discriminatory effect, regardless of an actor’s motive. Under the FHA, this can translate into liability for actions that make housing …

Mi Casa Es Su Casa: The Benefits Of A Hud Mediation Program For Resolving Housing Accommodation Or Modification Disputes Between Landlords And Tenants With Disabilities, Adam Knobler

Pepperdine Law Review

After first providing a background on federal housing laws that prohibit discrimination based on disability, this article then proceeds to describe and analyze the remedies available to tenants who have experienced disability discrimination. The article concludes that, not only are such remedies as filing a complaint or pursuing litigation difficult and time-consuming, they could also damage the long-term relationship between the parties and preclude the possibility of creative remedies that satisfy the needs of both parties. The article finishes by proposing that HUD develop an agency-wide mediation program based on the model of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) mediation …

Comments: Private Investment: Trojan-Horse Or Shining Knight For America's Public Housing Stock, Andrew Balashov

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

The numbers are staggering. The nation's largest public housing authorities ("HA's") are in a state of crisis as a result of massive budget shortfalls. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) estimates it would take roughly $26 billion to remedy the problem. To put this in perspective, in 2014 the New York City Public Housing Authority had a $77 million deficit and $18 billion worth of "unfunded capital improvements," - a euphemism for basic upgrades to building systems such as water, heat, air conditioning, and elevators. At present, many of these systems are woefully below acceptable livability standards. This …

Overcoming Land Use Localism: How Hud's New Fair Housing Regulation Can Push States To Eradicate Exclusionary Zoning, Thomas Silverstein

University of Baltimore Journal of Land and Development

Since 2009, the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) and various housing and community development stakeholders have grappled with the question of what it means to affirmatively further fair housing (AFFH). In some respects, HUD’s publication of a final AFFH rule on July 16, 2015 was the culmination of that process, 2 but the rule did not resolve all outstanding questions. In particular, the one point that has been reiterated by a range of groups with often competing interests is that no one is entirely clear how the framework that HUD has developed will work for states.3 To …

The Statute Of Limitations In The Fair Housing Act: Trap For The Unwary, Edward Phillips Nickinson, Iii

Florida State University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Flood Disaster Protection Act Of 1973: A Rational Approach To Flood Damage Prevention, Larry J. Wilson

IUSTITIA

Throughout history, man has utilized rivers for water supply, transportation, power generation, and waste disposal. This strong relationship has encouraged the location of human settlements near rivers and streams despite the risk of periodic flooding. The modern technology of transportation and public services has reduced the necessity for riverside locations, but the development of flood plains in urban areas has continued, resulting in the periodic loss of human life and property when flooding has occurred. Within the United States, flooding has taken over 5000 lives in the last fifty years and causes an estimated $1.25 billion in property damages annually.' …

Civil Rights - Discrimination In Placement Of Low-Rent Housing- Statute's Requirement That Locality's Governing Body Agree To Cooperate With Hud Used As A Shield To Protect Suburbs From Integration By Low Income Blacks

Fordham Urban Law Journal

The constitutionality of certain sections of the National Housing Act that required a community to consent to the construction of federally assisted low income housing was challenged. The plaintiffs alleged that the consent requirement gave white suburbs the power to bar this construction resulting in limited low incoming housing offered in predominantly black areas. Plaintiffs proposed that a new agreement between the City of Cleveland and the Cuyahoga Metropolitan Housing Authority be reached that would better reflect low income housing needs. At trial, the court rejected the plaintiff's contentions and on remand, the court held that absent a rational basis, …