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News Release
NCD #02-341
November 6, 2001
Contact: Mark S. Quigley
202-272-2004
202-272-2074 TTY
mquigley@ncd.gov
National Council on Disability Evaluates HUD's
Enforcement of Fair Housing Laws
WASHINGTON--The National Council on Disability (NCD)
has found that despite legislation from1988 that mandated improving
fair housing, fair housing enforcement remains an unfulfilled promise
for Americans with disabilities. NCD today released its report,
Reconstructing Fair Housing (http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/fairhousing.html),
which evaluates the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's
(HUD) enforcement of the Fair Housing Act and Section 504 of the
1973 Rehabilitation Act to counter discrimination in housing, and
HUD's record during the past 12 years in enforcing the rights of
people with disabilities under these laws. The report states that:
- The past 12 years of civil rights enforcement
by HUD have left America, and in particular people with disabilities,
needing more.
- In fiscal years 1999 and 2000, people with disabilities
became the single largest group to file housing discrimination
complaints.
- By the late 1990s, HUD's investigations of housing
discrimination complaints took nearly five times as long as Congress
had mandated.
- Inadequate funding hampered administrative enforcement
of civil rights laws.
"Clearly, HUD's fair housing enforcement system must
be revised," said NCD board member Dave Brown. "Improving HUD's
enforcement system obviously requires action by Congress and the
Bush administration, but we believe it is essential that affected
and at-risk groups strengthen existing coalitions to ensure positive
action and accountability by elected and appointed officials."
Brown stated that people with disabilities, Native
Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, and African Americans
have mutual concerns and shared interests, "because we are all at
risk when it comes to being discriminated against."
In addition to urging greater cooperation among affected
and at-risk groups, NCD also recommended that:
- The Bush Administration improve the enforcement
of disability rights laws with input from a new HUD Citizen Advisory
Panel.
- The Administration, HUD, and Congress ensure that
current and future HUD budgets are increased to provide adequate
resources for enforcing housing-related civil rights laws.
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