The Housing and Civil Enforcement Section has primary responsibility for investigating alleged violations of the Fair Housing Act and bringing suit to enforce the statute. The Fair Housing Act forbids discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, familial status (families with children under age 18), national origin, or disability in the sale, rental, advertising, or financing of housing. Practices forbidden by the Fair Housing Act include not only the direct refusal to sell, rent, or finance, but also more sophisticated forms of discrimination such as blockbusting, racial steering, redlining, discriminating in zoning or land-use decisions, and providing false information about housing availability. In addition, with respect to individuals with disabilities, discrimination includes the refusal to permit the reasonable modification of existing premises to make them accessible and the refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services. Finally, the statute requires that most multifamily dwellings constructed for initial occupancy after March 1991 be accessible to persons with disabilities.

1. A. HUD Referrals. The Department of Justice and the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) share enforcement responsibility with respect to individual claims brought under the Fair Housing Act.

HUD is authorized to receive and investigate individual complaints of discrimination and to attempt to obtain voluntary compliance with the Fair Housing Act through conciliation. In the event that the conciliation process fails, HUD may, upon finding reasonable cause to believe discrimination occurred, issue administrative charges alleging a Fair Housing Act violation. After HUD issues a charge, the matter can proceed in one of two ways: (1) HUD conciliates the complaint or litigates the complaint to judgment before an administrative law judge; or (2) one of the parties to the administrative charge “elects” to have the case heard in federal court, in which case the Attorney General, acting through the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, is required to initiate and maintain a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of the complainant. These suits by the Civil Rights Division on behalf of complainants are often referred to as “election” cases.

Additionally, under the Fair Housing Act, HUD is required to refer to the Attorney General (1) any complaint that involves the legality of a state or local zoning or other land use law or ordinance, 42 U.S.C. § 3614(b)(1); (2) any breach of a HUD conciliation agreement, 42 U.S.C § 3614(b)(2); (3) requests by the Secretary of HUD to enforce HUD subpoenas in federal district court, 42 U.S.C. § 3614(c); and (4) an authorization by the Secretary of HUD to file a civil action for temporary or preliminary relief relating to Fair Housing Act complaint pending with HUD, 42 U.S.C. § 3610(e)(1).

Finally, in conjunction with the Civil Rights Division Appellate Section, the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section has responsibility for the enforcement of orders entered by HUD administrative law judges in Fair Housing Act cases, 42 U.S.C. § 3612(j). United States Attorney’s Offices, in coordination with the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section, also have responsibility for seeking collection of monetary judgments, when necessary. The United States Attorney’s Offices also have responsibility for enforcing administrative subpoenas issued by HUD under Section 811 of the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3611. HUD will either refer these matters directly to the relevant United States Attorney’s Office or to the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section.

The Housing and Civil Enforcement Section operates the United States Attorneys’ Fair Housing Program, which assists United States Attorney’s Offices that are handling Fair Housing Act “election” cases and provides guidance on enforcing the Fair Housing Act. Because the Civil Rights Division has an interest in maintaining consistent policies and precedent nationwide, the Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division retains the final authority to determine what cases to file and settle, even when such cases are assigned to the United States Attorney’s Offices.

1. B. “Pattern or Practice” and “Group of Persons” Cases. The Attorney General also has authority to file certain types of Fair Housing Act cases without receiving a referral from HUD. Specifically, the Attorney General may file a civil action to enforce the statute when he or she has reasonable cause to believe (1) that a person or group of persons is engaged in a “pattern or practice” of unlawful discrimination, or (2) that a “group of persons” has been denied rights under the statute and such denial raises an issue of general public importance. 42 U.S.C. § 3614(a). The Housing and Civil Enforcement Section works with United States Attorney’s Offices to investigate and litigate these pattern-or-practice and group-of-persons cases.

When a United States Attorney’s Office receives a complaint or other information suggesting a pattern or practice of unlawful discrimination or the discriminatory denial of Fair Housing Act rights to any group of persons, that office should forward the complaint or other information to the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section as soon as practicable. The United States Attorney’s Office and the Housing and Civil Enforcement Section may work together, either jointly or in a more limited role, on these investigations and any resulting litigation. Division of responsibilities is determined on a case-by-case basis.

1. C. Interference with Housing Rights. The use of force or threats of force to interfere with fair housing rights may violate the criminal prohibitions of 42 U.S.C. § 3631 as well as the civil provisions of the Fair Housing Act, 42 U.S.C. § 3617. The Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division, in consultation with the United States Attorney, will determine whether to proceed with a civil action. Criminal prosecutions under 42 U.S.C. § 3631 are supervised, supported, and coordinated as appropriate by the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division. See JM 8-3.000.

[updated March 2018]