Reasonable Accommodation Laws and the Public Housing Authority

By John Waddy, John Waddy Jr. Law Office

根据联邦法律，每个提供住房的公共住房管理局(PHA)都有义务提供住房¹ as well as state law to provide safe, 为任何合格的租户提供体面和卫生的住房，而不考虑租户的种族, color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability (which has the same meaning as handicap). 在任何阶段都禁止pha对每个人采取非法住房歧视做法, 包括残疾人士及任何被视为残疾人士的人士.

《2021十大正规彩票平台》禁止阻止残疾人在自己选择的社区生活的歧视. The Fair Housing Act Amendments Act added disability as a protected class and additionally created affirmative obligations for landlords that make it unlawful to refuse to permit reasonable physical modifications of certain premises; to refuse to make reasonable accommodations in housing rules and policies; or to fail to include certain accessibility features in the design and construction of new multifamily dwellings.

PHA’s are required to make reasonable exceptions to neutral policies, practices or services, 或在有需要时，作出某些合理的身体改装，使残疾人士有平等的机会使用和享用出租单位. 如果有必要消除与残疾有关的障碍，以充分利用和享受住房，PHA必须批准所要求的合理住宿或修改, and does not create an undue financial or administrative burden for the PHA.

1973年《十大正规彩票平台》第504条禁止在接受任何联邦机构财政援助的任何项目或活动中基于残疾的歧视, including the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), as well as in programs conducted by federal agencies, including HUD. Because a PHA is a recipient of federal financial assistance, it is subject to Section 504 's requirements.

The Mechanics of Reasonable Accommodation Requests

第504条的合理便利请求有三个组成部分:最初的请求, verification and the interactive process. 一旦租户声明他们有残疾，并要求修改，以适应他们的残疾, the PHA is obligated to begin the reasonable accommodation process. While a request may be oral or written, 较好的做法是让租客以书面形式提出住宿要求，以便清楚了解要求的性质.

第504条没有规定要求合理便利的统一程序. To request an accommodation, an individual need not mention Section 504 or use the phrase reasonable accommodation. A tenant need only make it clear to the PHA that they are requesting an exception, change, adjustment or modification be made to a rule, policy, practice, service, building or dwelling unit because of a disability. 租户必须告知PHA，他们有残疾，这使他们无法遵守租赁条款或无法获得平等的住房福利. The accommodation request does not need to state the name of the disability. PHA不得询问诊断、治疗或残疾的性质或程度.

When verifying the disability, 提供验证的人只需要说明租户有残疾，导致需要通过特定更改来适应的症状, 因为这一改变将有助于减轻租户进入或留在住房中的障碍. The request should state specifically what accommodation the tenant is seeking, 住宿是如何与残疾人相关的，它将如何帮助房客进入或留在住房计划中. Where neither the disability nor the need for the accommodation is readily apparent, PHA可要求核实残疾情况及住宿需要.

If the PHA denies a requested accommodation, PHA和租户应该参与一个互动的过程，讨论可以满足租户需求的替代住宿，而不会给租户带来不必要的负担或从根本上改变PHA的计划. This process should be geared toward seriously addressing the tenant’s needs.

Additionally, under Section 504, 公屋租户如指称残疾人士受到歧视，公屋租户须执行申诉程序, and the request for accommodation can be routed through the grievance process. If the tenant’s grievance is denied, 租户可以向HUD投诉，也可以选择在州或联邦法院对PHA提起个人诉讼.

Local Practices – Columbus, Ohio

哥伦布大都会房屋管理局(CMHA)在解决租户的合理住宿要求方面采取了双赢的方式. CMHA已实施交互式流程和申诉程序，以解决租户的504要求. CMHA的政策和使命是确保租户的504需求按照所有适用法律的要求得到充分解决.

租户可以在他们的社区站点以书面或口头方式提出504请求. CMHA鼓励租户以预先打印的表格提出他们的要求，以便清楚地了解租户的要求. The tenant’s 504 request is referred to CMHA’s designated 504 Officer, 受过联邦和州法律以及HUD规则和有关合理住宿指导方针培训的员工. Where the 504 Officer grants the request, the tenant is accommodated. If the 504 Officer initially decides to deny the request, 然后，租户参与交互过程以寻求其他信息或寻找替代方案. More often than not, 在互动过程中，租户得到当地残疾人团体或哥伦布法律援助协会的协助.

If the tenant is not satisfied with the 504 Officer’s decision, the tenant is advised to file a grievance with CMHA. CMHA已经实施了符合HUD法规和指导方针的申诉程序.

¹The Fair Housing Act (FHA), the Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 《2021十大正规彩票平台》(ADAAA)和《十大正规彩票平台》(ABA)