You may recall that last summer , our Colorado legislature passed two bills which made “ source of income ” and “ immigration status ” protected classes statewide . We want to remind you that these laws have now taken effect as of Jan 1 , 2021 . If you have not already done so , you should consult with your attorneys and ensure that your documents and procedures are revised to fully comply with these new laws . While the “ source of income ” bill does contain a small exception for very small landlords , the “ immigration status ” bill contains no such exception . Here is a summary of each bill with a link to the actual bill language .
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IMMIGRANT TENANT PROTECTION ACT
Effective January 1 , 2021 , the " Immigrant Tenant Protection Act " ( Act ) prohibits a Colorado landlord ( property owner , property manager , leasing agent , real estate agent , etc ) from engaging in certain housing practices or related activities based on the immigration or citizenship status of a tenant . A tenant who is aggrieved by a landlord ' s violation of the Act may bring a civil action and seek penalties against the offender ( compensatory damages , plus punitive damages of up to $ 2,000 plus attorneys fees and costs ).
• Landlords may not ask about a person ' s citizenship status in housing , unless the Landlord is also the person ' s employer .
• Landlord may not threaten to call ICE or others ; may not harass or intimidate because of immigrations status , or evict due to citizenship status .
• Landlord must ask for the same documentation for every prosepct or applicant , which may include SSN , Tax ID number or other proof od identiy sufficent to properly screen the individual .
There are no exceptions for small Landlords under this law .
In a civil action brought under the Act , a tenant ' s immigration or citizenship status is not relevant , and inquiry into the tenant ' s status is not permitted unless :
• The claims raised by the tenant place the tenant ' s immigration or citizenship status in contention ; or
• The person seeking to make the inquiry demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the inquiry is necessary in order to comply with federal law .
Debbie Wilson is an attorney with Springman , Braden , Wilson & Pontius , P . C . and the chair of AAMD ' s Public Relations Committee .
SOURCE OF INCOME DISCRIMINATION
Effective Jan 1 , 2021 , discrimination based on " Source of Income " is a type of unfair housing practice in the state of Colorado .
" Source of income " is defined to include any source of money paid directly , indirectly , or on behalf of a person , including income from any lawful profession or from any government or private assistance , grant , or loan program .
A person is prohibited from refusing to rent , lease , show for rent or lease , or transmit an offer to rent or lease housing based on a person ' s source of income . In addition , a person cannot discriminate in the terms or conditions of a rental agreement against another person based on source of income , or based upon the person ' s participation in a 3rd-party contract required as a condition of receiving public housing assistance , such as section 8 Choice Vouchers , CCH , VASH , CAP etc ..
A person cannot include in any advertisement for the rent or lease of housing any limitation or preference based on source of income , or to use representations related to a person ' s source of income to induce another person to rent or lease property .
The restrictions of the provisions of this new law do NOT apply to a property owner or property manager with 3 or fewer rental units .
A property owner who owns 5 or fewer single family rental homes , and no more than 5 total rental units including any single family rental homes , is not required to accept federal housing choice vouchers for the single family homes . However , all other provisions of the new law apply .
A landlord is not prohibited from checking the credit of prospective tenant . Checking the credit of a prospective tenant is not an unfair housing practice if the landlord checks the credit of every prospective tenant . www . aamdhq . org JANUARY 2021 TRENDS | 25