Fair housing law has never been easy to enforce. But HUD's proposal to eliminate the use of disparate impact analysis will remove another crucial tool for doing so.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has proposed rescinding its use of disparate impact analysis, which helps federal officials identify housing policies that produce discriminatory effects. This policy can be vital for stopping racist patterns of behavior, given that racist intent is often difficult to prove.
Writing for Shelterforce, Amber Banks, head of the African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs, explains how tenant screening, credit standards, appraisals, insurance practices and lending rules can appear neutral while still limiting access by people of color to housing and investment. She argues that removing HUD’s ability to use "disparate impact" statistical analysis would make racial discrimination harder to identify and challenge in court.
Read the full story: How HUD Is Seeking to Make Fighting Housing Discrimination Even Harder
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