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California housing law challenged by landlord over voucher acceptance
🇦🇷 Argentina /Crime & Justice

California housing law challenged by landlord over voucher acceptance

From La Nación · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • A Sacramento property manager is suing California over a state law requiring landlords to accept tenants using federal housing vouchers.
  • The lawsuit argues that the law forces landlords to comply with program inspections and data sharing, infringing on Fourth Amendment rights.
  • California's law, enacted in 2020, prohibits landlords from denying rentals solely based on a tenant's use of housing subsidies, treating them as protected income sources.

A Sacramento property manager has filed a lawsuit challenging California's law that mandates landlords accept tenants who use federal housing vouchers. Tom Manning, owner of Tower Bridge Property Management, which manages around 300 rental units, seeks to have the state regulation declared unenforceable.

the requirement to participate in the program implies inspections and controls that violate rights protected by the Constitution of the United States.

— LawsuitThe lawsuit argues that the state's housing law infringes on constitutional rights.

The legal action, filed in federal court with support from the Pacific Legal Foundation, names the California Department of Civil Rights and its director, Kevin Kish, as defendants. The plaintiffs' attorneys contend that the requirement to accept participants in the Housing Choice Voucher program, commonly known as Section 8, imposes conditions that violate constitutional guarantees.

the obligation to accept beneficiaries of the federal housing choice voucher program, commonly known as Section 8, imposes conditions that affect guarantees provided in the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution.

— Plaintiffs' attorneysThe attorneys explain the basis of the legal challenge.

Under the law, landlords accepting voucher tenants must sign a Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract. This agreement allows authorities to conduct periodic inspections of the rental units to ensure they meet program standards. The lawsuit asserts that by being unable to refuse voucher holders, California landlords are compelled to permit these inspections and data access without a warrant or explicit consent, thus infringing on Fourth Amendment protections.

landlords are forced to accept program inspections in California or face sanctions

— LawsuitThe lawsuit details the consequences for landlords who do not comply with inspection requirements.

California's law, in effect since 2020, prohibits denying a rental solely because a person uses a federal voucher to cover part of the rent. Housing subsidies are classified as a protected source of income under state law. This means landlords cannot exclude an applicant for participating in the housing assistance program if they meet other standard rental requirements. The regulation also obligates landlords to adhere to the program's conditions.

landlords cannot exclude an applicant for participating in the housing assistance program as long as they meet the usual requirements for renting.

— California lawThe law's provisions regarding the acceptance of voucher holders are described.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by La Nación in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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