(Gainesville, FL) On Tuesday , April 23 the Alachua County Commission approved an ordinance which protects low income families and non- citizens from discrimination in housing.
The Alachua County Commission (video) voted unanimously to update the Alachua County Human Rights’ Ordinance to prevent discrimination based on lawful income source, citizenship status, or being the victim of domestic violence. This applies to all of Alachua County immediately. This is a major step in the Alachua County Labor Coalition (ACLC) Renters Rights campaign and will have a major impact on our community in the years to come.
It is now illegal for a landlord to discriminate against someone from renting a unit due to a lawful source of income. Examples include those on Social Security Disability, Unemployment Insurance, and most notably those on the Housing Choice Voucher program (Section 8 housing vouchers). “We have hundreds of people who have Section 8 housing vouchers who cannot find a landlord willing to accept them. Their vouchers often expire before they find a home” said Jason Fults, organizer with the ACLC. “We have low income residents that deserve this help but landlords have discriminated with impunity against people who hold this voucher.”
As of yesterday any landlord who refuses to accept Section 8 housing vouchers would be subject to action by the Alachua County Government. This has the added effect of decentralizing poverty. Because so few landlords accept these vouchers the options where people can live are extremely limited. Now low income families can more readily move into safer neighborhoods with better schools that are closer to employment opportunities.
As of now, twelve states have some source of income protections like this one through state statutes. Sixteen counties – now including Alachua County – have local protections through ordinances. Alachua County became the third county in Florida to have a source of income ordinance to prevent discrimination in housing, following the lead of Miami-Dade and Broward.
The Commission made it illegal for a landlord to check on a client’s immigration status, whether it’s a student visa, work permit, or they are undocumented. “In our community the most vulnerable have been preyed upon by unscrupulous landlords. People on the whole spectrum of immigration – documented and undocumented alike – have been threatened by landlords for speaking up about unsafe living conditions. Often those tenants have to make a choice between asserting their legal rights as tenants or having a landlord arbitrarily contacting ICE” said Reina Saco attorney with Florida Legal Services. “Alachua County has made a major step in becoming a more welcoming and inclusive community” she continued.
Community advocates convinced the County to include in its sweeping anti-discrimination ordinance strong protections for those who are victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, and human trafficking. The removal of tenants or denial of housing based on this gendered violence is now prohibited in Alachua County.
Those who have been discriminated against based on their lawful source of income, citizenship status, or because they’re the victim of domestic violence can contact the Alachua County Equal Opportunity Office at (352) 374-5275 or jac@alachuacounty.us.