Apartment Trends Magazine September 2019

APARTMENT ADVOCATE NATIONAL APARTMENT ASSOCIATION / NATIONAL MULTIFAMILY HOUSING COUNCIL Safety First: Nationwide Criminal Screening Legislative Update According to reentry advocates, “Fair Chance Housing” means that people with criminal records should not have to experience additional barriers to accessing housing because of their record, and every person deserves a safe, aﬀ ordable place to live. True to their mission, reentry advocates are pushing advocacy campaigns at all levels of government to reform criminal screening laws, namely requiring rental housing providers to engage in an individualized assessment of each applicant and/or heavy restrictions on evaluating past criminal history (and in some cases other parts of the applicant’s background) with very limited exceptions. These restrictions on screening interfere with housing providers’ ability to protect apartment residents, employees and their communities. Additionally, these laws and applicable regulations leave housing providers vulnerable to potential legal liability under tort laws and disparate impact theory. Laws and regulations that limit the use of criminal background checks in the housing context appear in a variety of forms at the federal, state and local levels of government. Housing providers must remain vigilant, as over 30 proposals have been introduced so far in 2019. At the federal level, NAA is monitoring three bills; of note are HR 3685/S 2076 and HR 1585. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY- 14) joined forces to introduce HR 3685/S 2076, also known as “The Fair Chance at Housing Act,” which aims to reform the criminal screening and eviction policies for properties that receive federal housing assistance, by banning blanket “1-strike” policies and “no-fault” policies. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) deﬁ nes “1-strike” policies as denying tenancy to any applicant with a criminal record; while “no-fault” policies are considered terminating a lease without “good cause”. Additionally, NAA and NMHC are working with stakeholders to address provisions in HR 1585, the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2019, which would have signiﬁ cant adverse eﬀ ects on rental housing providers that operate aﬀ ordable units and be consequential in debates about housing protections for domestic violence victims that would apply to the industry more broadly at the state and local level. HR 1585, introduced by Representative Karen Bass (D- CA-37), requires a housing provider to conduct an individualized review of the totality of the circumstances regarding criminal activity, prior to denying assistance, tenancy or occupancy rights to housing that is assisted under a covered housing program. If this legislation passes the Senate, as written, housing providers must consider, during the individualized review, the nature and severity of the crime; the time elapsed since the criminal activity; if the crime has occurred more than once; if the criminal activity was related to a symptom of a disability; as well as if a victim of domestic violence was coerced to commit a crime by the perpetrator. In state legislatures, 21 criminal screening- related bills have been introduced in 14 states so far in 2019. NAA remains concerned about proposals in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Colorado and how they might be replicated in other jurisdictions. Much like the bill introduced in Congress, the New Jersey legislature is now considering A-5711/S-4040, the “Fair Chance in Housing Act”, which would restrict a housing provider from inquiring about an applicant’s criminal history prior to the provision of a conditional oﬀ er. According to NJ A-5711/S-4040, after a housing provider issues a conditional The most valuable new amenity in your building won’t cost you a penny Starry is an exceptional, outrageously fast new internet service that upgrades your property at no cost to you. Bring Starry to your building. STARRY.COM/AAMD Starry and the Starry logo are registered trademarks of Starry, Inc. 42 | TRENDS SEPTEMBER 2019 www.aamdhq.org

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