This scenario is easy to imagine, but it raises several important questions related to fair housing and equal opportunity.
Should the sponsor have asked about the nature and severity of an applicant’s disability? No. Grantees and sponsors need to be
aware of HOPWA’s requirement to follow the rules set forth in the Fair Housing Act of 1988 and the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The Fair Housing Act addresses discrimination related to the sale or rental of housing, and lays the foundation for prohibiting
discrimination based upon race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin. The Act sets forth a broad
definition of “handicap” that includes mental illness, drug addiction (not current use of illegal substances), and alcoholism.
The Act also covers housing program screening procedures - prohibiting inquiry into the nature and severity of an applicant’s handicap.
Grantees and sponsors may ask for verification of a handicap or disability for determination of program eligibility,
as in requiring HIV verification for the HOPWA program. If the agency asks about the nature and severity of a handicap, this would
likely lead to fair housing violations. The agency should remove these questions from the application and other screening processes.
Should the sponsor have denied requests to annually recertify by mail? Probably not. Recertifying program participant income at
least annually is a grantee and sponsor responsibility. However, a client’s disability may not make it easy for him or her to
come into an office and respond in person. Even if an agency requires clients to appear in person for some required program processes,
it would be a reasonable accommodation to make an exception to such a policy by allowing them to recertify by mail, if requested.
Remember, the accommodation of a disability does not only involve modifying a structure or dwelling. It also includes the
modification of rules, policies, and practices, and even the design of services. Should the agency have written policies and procedures
in place for responding to requests for reasonable accommodation? Neither the Fair Housing Act nor the Americans with Disabilities Act
requires agencies to have policies in place that proactively describe how they will respond to requests for reasonable accommodations.
That said, the development of such a policy will help the agency affirmatively meet its fair housing obligations and will
help guide decision making and responses to reasonable accommodation requests. Regular staff training on fair housing and reasonable
accommodation issues can also help to ensure that fair housing goals are met. The bottom line is, the Fair Housing Act
and Americans with Disabilities Act make it unlawful to refuse to make reasonable accommodations to rules, policies, practices,
or services when such accommodations may be necessary to afford persons with disabilities an equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling.