S2479

An Act concerning discriminatory housing practices and amending P.L.1975, c.310.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Section 3 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-45) is amended to read as follows:

3. a. (1) The department shall, as soon as practicable and annually thereafter, after public hearing, prepare and make available at no cost to the public, to the extent that funding has been made available to the department for free distribution, a statement, in a form and size suitable for posting and distributing pursuant to the provisions of this act, of the primary clearly established legal rights and responsibilities of tenants and landlords of rental dwelling units.

(2) This statement shall be printed in both the English and Spanish languages and shall be posted on the department's Internet website, in an easily printable format, and updated annually. The statement shall serve as an informational document, and nothing therein shall be construed as binding on or affecting a judicial determination under section 6 of P.L.1975, c.310 (C.46:8-48) of what constitutes a lease provision which violates clearly established legal rights of tenants or responsibilities of landlords.

(3) The statement shall contain information about discriminatory housing practices prohibited under the "Law Against Discrimination," P.L.1945, c.169 (C.10:5-1 et seq.) in substantially the following form:

The New Jersey Law Against Discrimination requires equal treatment in the sale or rental of housing regardless of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, civil union status, domestic partnership status, familial status, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, mental and physical disability, nationality, or source of lawful income. Because a state or federally issued housing voucher qualifies as a source of lawful income, it is unlawful for a landlord to refuse to rent to persons with Section 8 housing vouchers. It is also an unlawful practice to advertise that a landlord will not rent to persons with Section 8 housing vouchers.

b. Where practical considerations make it necessary for the department to limit the extent of the statement, items to be included shall be selected on the basis of the importance of their inclusion in protecting the rights of the public.

(cf: P.L.2007, c.177, s.1)

2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill would bolster recent enforcement efforts targeting unlawful advertising practices of landlords, which were designed to deter prospective tenants from applying for rental housing if they held Section 8 housing vouchers, by requiring the Department of Community Affairs to update the Truth-in-Renting Guide to inform the public that such practices are discriminatory and unlawful.

The Division on Civil Rights within the New Jersey Attorney General's Office recently learned that an online marketplace was accepting advertisements for rental housing from property managers and landlords, which were designed to discourage prospective tenants from applying if they would be paying with federal Section 8 assistance vouchers. The division issued warning letters to those who had placed these ads, which urged them to immediately cease and desist from discriminatory advertising practices. Reportedly, the online marketplace has also modified its practices to protect against the placement of unlawful advertisements.

Current law, “The Truth-in-Renting Act,” N.J.S.A.46:8-43 et seq., requires the Department of Community Affairs to prepare, make available, and update annually a statement in English and in Spanish of the established rights and responsibilities of residential tenants and landlords in the State. The law requires the department to post this document, known as the Truth-in-Renting Guide, on the department's Internet website. The Truth-in-Renting Guide currently contains information about discriminatory housing practices, which are prohibited under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, but does not specifically inform landlords, tenants and the general public that it is unlawful for a landlord to refuse to rent to persons with Section 8 housing vouchers and that posting an advertisement that a landlord will not rent to persons with Section 8 housing vouchers is also an unlawful practice. By requiring DCA to update the guide to include this information, this bill will help protect against continued unlawful, discriminatory conduct.