Waters: Fair Housing Includes Investment in High-Poverty, High-Minority Neighborhoods

Press Release

As a longstanding supporter of efforts to prohibit housing discrimination and promote fair housing choice, today Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-CA), top Democrat on the Financial Services Committee, called on the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to assert that continued investment in high-poverty, high-minority neighborhoods is consistent with its goal of furthering fair housing.

In a strongly worded letter to HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan, the Ranking Member expressed her support for HUD's recently proposed Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing (AFFH) Rule, but stipulated a "serious concern." As currently written, she stated, the proposed rule's language can be interpreted to mean that investing in high-poverty, high-minority neighborhoods is inconsistent with the AFFH mandate.

Congresswoman Waters urged Secretary Donovan to pay close attention to the final rule, expressing her view that it "must clearly state that continued investment in high-poverty, high-minority neighborhoods is affirmatively furthering fair housing." The rule is being promulgated pursuant to the Fair Housing Act (FHA), which helps to ensure that all people have equal access to housing opportunities by prohibiting housing discrimination based on class and by requiring HUD to take steps in actively overcoming historic patterns of segregation.

The letter reads, "I do not believe that it is the intent of the FHA to preclude housing providers from continuing efforts to revitalize high-poverty, high-minority neighborhoods where federal investment is needed most. It is essential that the final rule recognize that affirmatively furthering fair housing has to, in addition to its efforts to reduce racially and ethnically segregated neighborhoods, also include devoting resources to improve high-poverty, high-minority communities by preserving and improving affordable housing. This notion must clearly be reinforced throughout the final rule, including in the definitions of "affirmatively furthering fair housing" and "fair housing choice," the statement of purpose, and in the Consolidated and PHA Plans in defining how a housing provider is affirmatively furthering fair housing."

The letter comes on the heels of a similar call by Waters, Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN) and 45 of their colleagues, expressing support for the swift enactment of a final rule.

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