| PolicyFederal Fair Housing accessibility requirements | | | | advocates and completed in May 2000. HUD has |
| for new multifamily buildings should be written in | | | | certified that the building code language satisfies the |
| building code language certified as Fair Housing | | | | accessibility requirements of the Fair Housing Act and |
| compliant by the Department of Housing and Urban | | | | NAHB is promoting state and local adoption of the |
| Development (HUD). HUD should be vigilant in | | | | compliant code language. Federal promulgation of the |
| compliance education and assistance as is NAHB. Use | | | | requirements must still be intensified, however, if |
| of Fair Housing Initiatives Program funding for | | | | compliance is to be improved.Addressing |
| enforcement actions should be curtailed. Any | | | | noncompliance of existing covered buildings |
| enforcement actions should be reasonable and reflect | | | | (constructed for occupancy after March 13, 1991) |
| the lack of clear guidance available for complying with | | | | remains contentious. Federally funded private |
| the Act.BackgroundThe Fair Housing Amendments | | | | advocacy groups and state and local housing |
| Act of 1988 requires new multifamily buildings | | | | agencies, HUD, and the Department of Justice are all |
| constructed for first occupancy after March 13, 1991 | | | | actively involved in current enforcement actions and |
| and consisting of four or more units to be accessible | | | | will continue to be. These actions are often |
| to disabled persons. HUD issued accessibility guidelines | | | | threatening, based on questionably broad |
| on March 6, 1991 and a supplementary design manual | | | | interpretations of federal requirements, fail to reflect |
| in August 1996 to provide guidance on complying | | | | the lack of compliance assistance at the time of |
| with the law. But HUD's guidelines were poorly | | | | construction, and divert resources that could |
| promulgated and not written in building code | | | | otherwise be applied to more proactive |
| language, making it impractical for builders and local | | | | solutions.SolutionsUrge HUD to maintain compliance |
| officials to define compliance, which has led to | | | | education as a priority and to actively participate in |
| conflicting interpretations and inadvertent failures to | | | | the building code amendment process to help ensure |
| meet certain requirements.In response, building code | | | | building code requirements are compliant with Fair |
| language was cooperatively developed by NAHB, | | | | Housing accessibility requirements. |
| HUD, the International Code Council, and disability | | | | |