Source of Income Bill Moves to Full House

The Source of Income Amendment to the Illinois Human Rights Act (House Bill 45 and Senate Bill 167) has passed out of committee in both chambers of the Illinois legislature. The bill would amend the Illinois Human Rights Act to prevent discrimination based on legal source of income in residential rental real estate transactions. If enacted, it would prohibit landlords from solely refusing to rent to people based on where they derive their legal income, such as Supplemental Security Income and Supplemental Security Disability Insurance, child support, and rental income supports. Landlords would still be free to use legitimate screening criteria, such as credit checks and landlord references.

The bill comes amid Illinois’s affordable-housing crisis. Studies show that 39 percent of renters are unable to obtain affordable housing and that approximately 400,000 families spend over half of their income on rent. These renters rely heavily on some form of nonwage, legal income to secure decent and safe housing, including housing subsidies, such as Housing Choice (Section 8) Vouchers.

When these renters are protected from discrimination based on their legal source of income, they are more likely to acquire affordable, stable housing. In a 2001 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development study, voucher holders had a 12 percent higher placement rate in areas that have laws protecting against source of income discrimination. The source of income legislation could improve the chances of seniors, people with disabilities, migrant farm workers, and families with children in finding decent and safe housing.

The advocacy community has been working to make the legislation more acceptable for property owners since the sole opponent continues to be the Illinois Association of Realtors. Several amendments to the bill have been passed in the spirit of compromise and cooperation:

• Landlords whose properties fail to meet Housing Quality Standards—the minimum housing standards requirement of the Housing Choice Voucher Program—do not have to rent to people with vouchers and will not be charged with source of income discrimination.
• When landlords are found guilty of source of income discrimination, the Illinois Department of Human Rights may ask them to attend training sessions in order to avoid future violations. Training would serve as a possible remedy for violations, especially first-time offenses.
• To give the Department of Human Rights time to educate the public, the effective date of the bill is delayed for six months. The extended time will be used to teach the public, especially rental property owners, how to comply with the new law.

In the Housing and Urban Development Committee in the House, H.B. 45 received 14 votes in support of the legislation, with one representative voting present and one voting in opposition. In the Senate’s Housing and Community Affairs Committee, S.B. 167 passed with a 6-to-4 vote. The House bill is expected to be called at the beginning of April.

For more information, contact Kate Walz at 312.263.3830 ext. 232.