Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB875 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		87R3827 JG-D
2		-	By: Lopez~~, et al.~~ H.B. No. 875
	2	+	By: Lopez H.B. No. 875
3	3
4	4
5	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6		AN ACT
7	7		relating to the prohibition of housing discrimination on the basis
8	8		of age or certain housing needs and to the enforcement of that
9	9		prohibition.
10	10		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11		SECTION 1. Section 301.003, Property Code, is amended by
12	12		amending Subdivision (1) and adding Subdivisions (1-a) and (9-a) to
13	13		read as follows:
14	14		(1) "Age" means 65 years of age or more.
15	15		(1-a) "Aggrieved person" includes any person who:
16	16		(A) claims to have been injured by a
17	17		discriminatory housing practice; or
18	18		(B) believes that the person will be injured by a
19	19		discriminatory housing practice that is about to occur.
20	20		(9-a) "Housing needs" means the housing needs of an
21	21		individual as a result of the individual's age, including the need
22	22		to move into a group, shared, or apartment home that is regulated
23	23		under this chapter.
24	24		SECTION 2. Sections 301.021(a) and (b), Property Code, are
25	25		amended to read as follows:
26	26		(a) A person may not refuse to sell or rent, after the making
27	27		of a bona fide offer, refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of,
28	28		or in any other manner make unavailable or deny a dwelling to
29	29		another because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status,
30	30		[or] national origin, age, or housing needs.
31	31		(b) A person may not discriminate against another in the
32	32		terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling or
33	33		in providing services or facilities in connection with a sale or
34	34		rental of a dwelling because of race, color, religion, sex,
35	35		familial status, [or] national origin, age, or housing needs.
36	36		SECTION 3. Section 301.022, Property Code, is amended to
37	37		read as follows:
38	38		Sec. 301.022. PUBLICATION. A person may not make, print, or
39	39		publish or effect the making, printing, or publishing of a notice,
40	40		statement, or advertisement that is about the sale or rental of a
41	41		dwelling and that indicates any preference, limitation, or
42	42		discrimination or the intention to make a preference, limitation,
43	43		or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex,
44	44		disability, familial status, [or] national origin, age, or housing
45	45		needs.
46	46		SECTION 4. Section 301.023, Property Code, is amended to
47	47		read as follows:
48	48		Sec. 301.023. INSPECTION. A person may not represent to
49	49		another because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial
50	50		status, [or] national origin, age, or housing needs that a dwelling
51	51		is not available for inspection for sale or rental when the dwelling
52	52		is available for inspection.
53	53		SECTION 5. Section 301.024, Property Code, is amended to
54	54		read as follows:
55	55		Sec. 301.024. ENTRY INTO NEIGHBORHOOD. A person may not,
56	56		for profit, induce or attempt to induce another to sell or rent a
57	57		dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective
58	58		entry into a neighborhood of a person of a particular race, color,
59	59		religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
60	60		age, or housing needs.
61	61		SECTION 6. Section 301.026(a), Property Code, is amended to
62	62		read as follows:
63	63		(a) A person whose business includes engaging in
64	64		residential real estate related transactions may not discriminate
65	65		against another in making a real estate related transaction
66	66		available or in the terms or conditions of a real estate related
67	67		transaction because of race, color, religion, sex, disability,
68	68		familial status, [or] national origin, age, or housing needs.
69	69		SECTION 7. Section 301.027, Property Code, is amended to
70	70		read as follows:
71	71		Sec. 301.027. BROKERAGE SERVICES. A person may not deny
72	72		another access to, or membership or participation in, a
73	73		multiple-listing service, real estate brokers' organization, or
74	74		other service, organization, or facility relating to the business
75	75		of selling or renting dwellings, or discriminate against a person
76	76		in the terms or conditions of access, membership, or participation
77	77		in such an organization, service, or facility because of race,
78	78		color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national
79	79		origin, age, or housing needs.
80	80		SECTION 8. Sections 301.042(a) and (c), Property Code, are
81	81		amended to read as follows:
82	82		(a) This chapter does not prohibit a religious
83	83		organization, association, or society or a nonprofit institution or
84	84		organization operated, supervised, or controlled by or in
85	85		conjunction with a religious organization, association, or society
86	86		from:
87	87		(1) limiting the sale, rental, or occupancy of
88	88		dwellings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial
89	89		purpose to persons of the same religion; or
90	90		(2) giving preference to persons of the same religion,
91	91		unless membership in the religion is restricted because of race,
92	92		color, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin, age,
93	93		or housing needs.
94	94		(c) This chapter does not prohibit a person engaged in the
95	95		business of furnishing appraisals of real property from considering
96	96		in those appraisals factors other than race, color, religion, sex,
97	97		disability, familial status, [or] national origin, age, or housing
98	98		needs.
99	99		SECTION 9. Section 301.068, Property Code, is amended to
100	100		read as follows:
101	101		Sec. 301.068. REFERRAL TO MUNICIPALITY. (a) Subject to
102	102		Subsection (b), the [The] commission may defer proceedings under
103	103		this chapter and refer a complaint to a municipality that has been
104	104		certified by the federal Department of Housing and Urban
105	105		Development as a substantially equivalent fair housing agency.
106	106		(b) The commission may not defer proceedings and refer a
107	107		complaint under Subsection (a) to a municipality in which the
108	108		alleged discrimination occurred if:
109	109		(1) the complaint alleges discrimination based on age
110	110		or housing needs; and
111	111		(2) the municipality does not have laws prohibiting
112	112		the alleged discrimination.
113	113		SECTION 10. Section 301.171(a), Property Code, is amended
114	114		to read as follows:
115	115		(a) A person commits an offense if the person, without
116	116		regard to whether the person is acting under color of law, by force
117	117		or threat of force intentionally intimidates or interferes with a
118	118		person:
119	119		(1) because of the person's race, color, religion,
120	120		sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin, age, or
121	121		housing needs and because the person is or has been selling,
122	122		purchasing, renting, financing, occupying, or contracting or
123	123		negotiating for the sale, purchase, rental, financing, or
124	124		occupation of any dwelling or applying for or participating in a
125	125		service, organization, or facility relating to the business of
126	126		selling or renting dwellings; or
127	127		(2) because the person is or has been or to intimidate
128	128		the person from:
129	129		(A) participating, without discrimination
130	130		because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status,
131	131		[or] national origin, age, or housing needs, in an activity,
132	132		service, organization, or facility described by Subdivision (1);
133	133		[or]
134	134		(B) affording another person opportunity or
135	135		protection to so participate; or
136	136		(C) lawfully aiding or encouraging other persons
137	137		to participate, without discrimination because of race, color,
138	138		religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
139	139		age, or housing needs, in an activity, service, organization, or
140	140		facility described by Subdivision (1).
141	141		SECTION 11. The change in law made by this Act applies only
142	142		to a complaint filed with the Texas Workforce Commission civil
143	143		rights division on or after the effective date of this Act. A
144	144		complaint filed before that date is governed by the law as it
145	145		existed immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that
146	146		law is continued in effect for that purpose.
147	147		SECTION 12. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.