HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

150th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 41

RECOGNIZING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ENACTMENT OF DELAWARE’S EQUAL RIGHTS TO HOUSING ACT AND CELEBRATING A DAY FOR HOUSING.

WHEREAS, 50 years have passed since the 125th Delaware General Assembly enacted the state’s first legislative protections against discrimination in the housing market; and

WHEREAS, Governor Russell W. Peterson signed the Equal Rights to Housing Act into law on April 25, 1969; and

WHEREAS, it was the purpose of the Equal Rights to Housing Act to eliminate, as to housing offered to the public for sale or rent, discrimination based upon race, color, religion or national origin; and

WHEREAS, today protections against discrimination in housing are provided in the Delaware Fair Housing Act, Title 6, Chapter 46 of the Delaware Code; and

WHEREAS, the Delaware Fair Housing Act has been amended from time to time since its enactment, and now additionally prohibits discrimination based on creed, sex, marital status, familial status, source of income, age, sexual orientation or disability; and

WHEREAS, it is the responsibility of the Delaware Division of Human Relations to implement the provisions of the Delaware Fair Housing Act; and

WHEREAS, between fiscal years 2008 and 2017, 249 complaints of unlawful housing discrimination in Delaware were filed with the Delaware Division of Human Relations, or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity; and

WHEREAS, discrimination in the sale or rent of housing is just one example of barriers some households face when trying to maintain stable housing in Delaware; and

WHEREAS, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, Delaware has the 15th highest rental housing costs in the country; and

WHEREAS, approximately 70 percent of Delaware households with incomes below 30% of Area Median Income spend more than 50 percent of their monthly income on housing expenses; and

WHEREAS, the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates that in 2017 Delaware had a deficit of 17,055 affordable and available units for Delaware households with incomes at or below 50 percent Area Median Income; and

WHEREAS, estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey find that in 2017, 1,743 Delaware households occupied units lacking complete kitchen facilities, and an additional 908 lived in units without complete plumbing facilities; and,

WHEREAS, more than 1,000 people sleep in homeless shelters and on the streets each night in Delaware; andmore than 1,000 people sleep in homeless shelters and on the streets each night in Delaware; and

WHEREAS, as we recognize the anniversary of this historic Equal Rights to Housing legislation, there exists a continued need to address affordable housing, homelessness and fair and equitable housing practices in the State of Delaware.

NOW, THEREFORE:

BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the 150 ^th General Assembly of the State of Delaware, the Senate concurring therein, that the State of Delaware recognizes the 50 ^th Anniversary of the enactment of Delaware’s Equal Rights to Housing Act.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the State of Delaware also recognizes May 9, 2019 as a Celebration of a Day for Housing in the State of Delaware dedicated to those who work to address affordable housing, homelessness and fair and equitable housing in Delaware.

SYNOPSIS

This House Concurrent Resolution recognized April 25, 2019 as the 50th Anniversary of the enactment of Delaware’s Equal Rights to Housing Act. The House Concurrent Resolution further recognizes May 9, 2019 as a Celebration of a Day for Housing in the State of Delaware.