Chapter 9.37
UNFAIR HOUSING PRACTICES
Sections:
9.37.010 DECLARATION OF POLICY.
9.37.040 UNFAIR HOUSING PRACTICES FORBIDDEN.
9.37.010 DECLARATION OF POLICY.
It is declared to be the policy of the city in the exercise of its police power for the public safety, public health, and general welfare, for the maintenance of business and good government and for the promotion of the city’s trade, commerce and manufacturers to assure equal opportunity to all persons to live in decent housing facilities regardless of race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin, and to that end to prohibit discrimination in housing by any person, including real estate brokers, real estate salesmen and agents, owners of real property and lending institutions, to forward the cause of brotherhood, and to secure a reduction of all tensions and discriminations because of race, color, sex, religion or national origin. (Ord. 3542 §1, 1979)
9.37.020 DEFINITIONS.
Definitions as used in this chapter, unless additional meaning clearly appears from the context, shall have the meanings subscribed:
(1) "Dwelling" includes any building containing one or more dwelling units.
(2) "Dwelling unit" includes a suite of rooms for occupancy by one family containing space for living, sleeping, and preparation of food, and containing toilet and bathing facilities.
(3) "Housing accommodations" includes any dwelling, or dwelling unit, rooming unit, roominghouse, lot or parcel of land in the city which is used, intended to be used, or arranged or designed to be used as, or improved with a residential structure for one or more human beings.
(4) "Lender" includes any bank, insurance company, savings or building and loan association, credit union, trust company, mortgage company, or other person engaged wholly or partly in the business of lending money for the financing or acquisition, construction, repair, or maintenance of a housing accommodation.
(5) "Occupant" includes any person who has established residence or has the right to occupancy in a housing accommodation.
(6) "Owners" includes persons who own, lease, sublease, rent, operate, manage, have charge of, control, or have the right of ownership, possession, management, charge, or control of the housing accommodation, on their own behalf or on behalf of another.
(7) "Person" includes one or more individuals, partnerships, or other organizations, trade or professional associations, corporations, legal representatives, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy and receivers.
(8) "Prospective borrower" includes any person who seeks to borrow money to finance the acquisition, construction, repair, or maintenance of a housing accommodation.
(9) "Prospective occupant" includes any person who seeks to purchase, lease, sublease or rent a housing accommodation.
(10) "Real estate agent, salesman or employee" includes any person employed by or associated with a real estate broker to perform or assist in the performance of any or all of the functions of a real estate broker.
(11) "Real estate broker" includes any person who, for a fee, commission, or other valuable consideration, lists for sale, sells, purchases, exchanges, leases or subleases, rents, or negotiates or offers or attempts to negotiate the sale, purchase, exchange, lease, sublease or rental of a housing accommodation of another, or holds himself out as engaged in the business of selling, purchasing, exchanging, listing, leasing, subleasing, or renting a housing accommodation of another, or collects the rental for the use of a housing accommodation of another.
(12) "Rooming unit" includes one or more rooms within a dwelling unit or roominghouse containing space for living and sleeping.
(13) "Unfair housing practice" means any act prohibited by this chapter. (Ord. 3542 §2, 1979)
9.37.030 PROHIBITION.
Unfair housing practices as hereinafter defined in the sale and offering for sale and in the rental and offering for rent of housing accommodations, are contrary to the public peace, health, safety and general welfare and are prohibited by the city in the exercise of its police power. (Ord. 3542 §3, 1979)
9.37.040 UNFAIR HOUSING PRACTICES FORBIDDEN.
(a) No owner, lessee, sublessee, assignee, real estate broker, real estate salesman, managing agent of, or other person having the right to sell, rent, lease, sublease, assign, transfer, or otherwise dispose of a housing accommodation shall refuse to sell, rent, lease, sublease, assign, transfer, or otherwise deny to, or withhold from, any person or group of persons such housing accommodations, or segregate the use thereof, or represent that such housing accommodations are not available for inspection, when in fact they are so available, or expel or evict an occupant from a housing accommodation because of the race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin of such person or persons, or discriminate against or segregate any person because of his race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin, in the terms, conditions, or privileges of the sale, rental, lease, sublease, assignment, transfer or other disposition of any such housing accommodations or in the furnishing of facilities or services in connection therewith.
(b) A real estate broker, agent, salesman, or employee shall not, because of race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin of an occupant, purchaser, prospective occupant, or prospective purchaser:
(1) Refuse or intentionally fail to list or discriminate in listing a housing accommodation for sale, rent, lease or sublease;
(2) Refuse or intentionally fail to show to a prospective occupant the housing accommodation listed for sale, rental, lease or sublease;
(3) Refuse or intentionally fail to accept and/or transmit to an owner any reasonable offer to purchase, lease, rent or sublease a housing accommodation;
(4) Otherwise discriminate against an occupant, prospective occupant, purchaser or prospective purchaser of a housing accommodation.
(c) No person, bank, banking organization, mortgage company, insurance company, or other financial institution or lender, or any agent or employee thereof, to whom application is made for financial assistance for the purchase, lease, acquisition, construction, rehabilitation, repair or maintenance of any housing accommodation shall:
(1) Discriminate against any person or group of persons because of race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin of such person or group of persons or of the prospective occupants or tenants of such real property in the granting, withholding, extending, modifying or renewing, or in the rates, terms, conditions or privileges of, any such financial assistance or in the extension of services in connection therewith; or
(2) Use any form of application for such financial assistance, or make any record in inquiry in connection with application for such financial assistance which expresses, directly or indirectly, any limitation, specification or discrimination on the ground of race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin.
(d) An owner, person, real estate broker, agent, salesman, employee or lender shall not:
(1) Publish, circulate, issue or display, or cause to be published, circulated, issued or displayed, any communication, notice advertisement or sign of any kind relating to the sale, rental, lease, sublease, assignment, transfer or listing of a housing accommodation or accommodations which indicate any limitation, specification or discrimination based on race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin;
(2) Aid, abet, incite, compel or coerce the doing of any act defined in this chapter, as an unfair housing practice; or obstruct or discriminate against a person in any manner because he has complied or proposes to comply with the provisions of this chapter or has filed a complaint, testified or assisted in any proceeding under this chapter, or any order issued thereunder, or attempt, either directly or indirectly, to commit any act defined in this chapter to be an unfair housing practice or apply any economic sanctions or deny any membership privileges because of compliance with the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 3542 §4, 1979)
9.37.050 EXCLUSIONS.
Nothing in this chapter shall:
(1) Apply to the renting, subrenting, leasing or subleasing of single-family dwellings, wherein the owners or persons entitled to possession thereof normally maintain, or intend to maintain, their residences, homes or abodes;
(2) Be interpreted to prohibit any person from making a choice from among prospective purchasers or tenants of property on the basis of factors other than race, color, sex, religion, ancestry or national origin. (Ord. 3542 §7, 1979)
9.37.060 PENALTY.
Any person convicted of violating this chapter, or any part hereof, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to the provisions of BMC Chapter 1.12. (Ord. 4733, Reaffirmed, 11/30/2000; Ord. 4680, Amended, 12/17/1999; Ord. 3542 §8, 1979)