MI: Senate panel weighs bills prohibiting landlords from income-based discrimination

[RandySF]

Equal housing advocates, former unhoused Michiganders, and landlords sat before the Michigan Senate Housing and Human Services Committee on Tuesday to testify on a bill package aimed at ensuring equal access to housing by disallowing landlords to deny renters based on their source of income.

The package, which is comprised of Senate Bills 205, 206 and 207, would extend the protections of the Elliott Larsen Civil Rights Act to prevent discrimination based on source of income and would prohibit landlords from denying prospective renters because of their use of housing vouchers or other subsidies to pay rent.

State Sen. Rosemary Bayer (D-Beverly Hills), who is the lead sponsor of Senate Bill 206, said that the issue of rent discrimination is surprisingly pervasive in Michigan. The lawmaker said she decided to take action after two rental complexes in her district changed ownership and in turn decided to stop renting to people with housing subsidies, displacing several residents.

“We had two buildings, and they got bought a year and a half ago,” Bayer said. “And the people got between one and six months notice that they were not going to have their lease renewed or that they were going to increase the rent outside of what they could pay for with a voucher.”

The lead sponsors of Senate Bills 205 and 207 are Sens. Mary Cavanagh (D-Redford Twp.) and Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor), respectively.




https://michiganadvance.com/2023/05/18/senate-panel-weighs-bills-prohibiting-landlords-from-income-based-discrimination/

[MichMan]

1. If source of income is irrelevant

Landlords can't turn down renters who say their source of income is selling meth, stealing catalytic converters, or prostitution?