Texas 2023 - 88th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3277 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

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1	1	88R1198 AMF-D
2	2	By: González of Dallas H.B. No. 3277
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 a person's source of income 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	adding Subdivision (10-a) to read as follows:
13	13	(10-a) "Source of income" includes:
14	14	(A) a housing choice voucher under Section 8,
15	15	United States Housing Act of 1937 (42 U.S.C. Section 1437f); or
16	16	(B) any other federal or state or local housing
17	17	assistance provided to a family or an individual or to a homeowner
18	18	on behalf of a family or an individual, including rental vouchers,
19	19	rental assistance, or rental subsidies from a nongovernmental
20	20	organization.
21	21	SECTION 2. Sections 301.021(a) and (b), Property Code, are
22	22	amended to read as follows:
23	23	(a) A person may not refuse to sell or rent, after the making
24	24	of a bona fide offer, refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of,
25	25	or in any other manner make unavailable or deny a dwelling to
26	26	another because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status,
27	27	[or] national origin, or source of income.
28	28	(b) A person may not discriminate against another in the
29	29	terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling or
30	30	in providing services or facilities in connection with a sale or
31	31	rental of a dwelling because of race, color, religion, sex,
32	32	familial status, [or] national origin, or source of income.
33	33	SECTION 3. Section 301.022, Property Code, is amended to
34	34	read as follows:
35	35	Sec. 301.022. PUBLICATION. A person may not make, print, or
36	36	publish or effect the making, printing, or publishing of a notice,
37	37	statement, or advertisement that is about the sale or rental of a
38	38	dwelling and that indicates any preference, limitation, or
39	39	discrimination or the intention to make a preference, limitation,
40	40	or discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex,
41	41	disability, familial status, [or] national origin, or source of
42	42	income.
43	43	SECTION 4. Section 301.023, Property Code, is amended to
44	44	read as follows:
45	45	Sec. 301.023. INSPECTION. A person may not represent to
46	46	another because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial
47	47	status, [or] national origin, or source of income that a dwelling is
48	48	not available for inspection for sale or rental when the dwelling is
49	49	available for inspection.
50	50	SECTION 5. Section 301.024, Property Code, is amended to
51	51	read as follows:
52	52	Sec. 301.024. ENTRY INTO NEIGHBORHOOD. A person may not,
53	53	for profit, induce or attempt to induce another to sell or rent a
54	54	dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective
55	55	entry into a neighborhood of a person of a particular race, color,
56	56	religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
57	57	or source of income.
58	58	SECTION 6. Section 301.026(a), Property Code, is amended to
59	59	read as follows:
60	60	(a) A person whose business includes engaging in
61	61	residential real estate related transactions may not discriminate
62	62	against another in making a real estate related transaction
63	63	available or in the terms or conditions of a real estate related
64	64	transaction because of race, color, religion, sex, disability,
65	65	familial status, [or] national origin, or source of income.
66	66	SECTION 7. Section 301.027, Property Code, is amended to
67	67	read as follows:
68	68	Sec. 301.027. BROKERAGE SERVICES. A person may not deny
69	69	another access to, or membership or participation in, a
70	70	multiple-listing service, real estate brokers' organization, or
71	71	other service, organization, or facility relating to the business
72	72	of selling or renting dwellings, or discriminate against a person
73	73	in the terms or conditions of access, membership, or participation
74	74	in such an organization, service, or facility because of race,
75	75	color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national
76	76	origin, or source of income.
77	77	SECTION 8. Sections 301.042(a) and (c), Property Code, are
78	78	amended to read as follows:
79	79	(a) This chapter does not prohibit a religious
80	80	organization, association, or society or a nonprofit institution or
81	81	organization operated, supervised, or controlled by or in
82	82	conjunction with a religious organization, association, or society
83	83	from:
84	84	(1) limiting the sale, rental, or occupancy of
85	85	dwellings that it owns or operates for other than a commercial
86	86	purpose to persons of the same religion; or
87	87	(2) giving preference to persons of the same religion,
88	88	unless membership in the religion is restricted because of race,
89	89	color, [or] national origin, or source of income.
90	90	(c) This chapter does not prohibit a person engaged in the
91	91	business of furnishing appraisals of real property from considering
92	92	in those appraisals factors other than race, color, religion, sex,
93	93	disability, familial status, [or] national origin, or source of
94	94	income.
95	95	SECTION 9. Section 301.068, Property Code, is amended to
96	96	read as follows:
97	97	Sec. 301.068. REFERRAL TO MUNICIPALITY. (a) Subject to
98	98	Subsection (b), the [The] commission may defer proceedings under
99	99	this chapter and refer a complaint to a municipality that has been
100	100	certified by the federal Department of Housing and Urban
101	101	Development as a substantially equivalent fair housing agency.
102	102	(b) The commission may not defer proceedings and refer a
103	103	complaint under Subsection (a) to a municipality in which the
104	104	alleged discrimination occurred if:
105	105	(1) the complaint alleges discrimination based on
106	106	source of income; and
107	107	(2) the municipality does not have laws prohibiting
108	108	the alleged discrimination.
109	109	SECTION 10. Section 301.171(a), Property Code, is amended
110	110	to read as follows:
111	111	(a) A person commits an offense if the person, without
112	112	regard to whether the person is acting under color of law, by force
113	113	or threat of force intentionally intimidates or interferes with a
114	114	person:
115	115	(1) because of the person's race, color, religion,
116	116	sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin, or source
117	117	of income and because the person is or has been selling, purchasing,
118	118	renting, financing, occupying, or contracting or negotiating for
119	119	the sale, purchase, rental, financing, or occupation of any
120	120	dwelling or applying for or participating in a service,
121	121	organization, or facility relating to the business of selling or
122	122	renting dwellings; or
123	123	(2) because the person is or has been or to intimidate
124	124	the person from:
125	125	(A) participating, without discrimination
126	126	because of race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status,
127	127	[or] national origin, or source of income, in an activity, service,
128	128	organization, or facility described by Subdivision (1); [or]
129	129	(B) affording another person opportunity or
130	130	protection to so participate; or
131	131	(C) lawfully aiding or encouraging other persons
132	132	to participate, without discrimination because of race, color,
133	133	religion, sex, disability, familial status, [or] national origin,
134	134	or source of income, in an activity, service, organization, or
135	135	facility described by Subdivision (1).
136	136	SECTION 11. Section 250.007, Local Government Code, is
137	137	repealed.
138	138	SECTION 12. The change in law made by this Act applies only
139	139	to a complaint filed with the Texas Workforce Commission civil
140	140	rights division on or after the effective date of this Act. A
141	141	complaint filed before that date is governed by the law as it
142	142	existed immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that
143	143	law is continued in effect for that purpose.
144	144	SECTION 13. This Act takes effect immediately if it
145	145	receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
146	146	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
147	147	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
148	148	effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2023.