HB 404 — Fair & Affordable Housing Act
Status: Passed first reading
Introduced: Nov. 12, 2024 (filed in 2025 session documents)
Primary focus: Affordable housing study, fair-housing protections, housing trust funding, tenant credit-reporting reform
Summary
This bill (titled the Fair & Affordable Housing Act in the House) is a multi-part housing bill that (1) directs a statewide study of affordable housing needs and options, (2) amends the State Fair Housing Act to add "source of income" as a protected characteristic, (3) provides new funding for workforce/affordable housing via the Housing Trust Fund, and (4) makes reforms to credit-reporting and eviction-record practices affecting tenants (including optional credit reporting for tenants in subsidized housing).
Key provisions and changes
- Legislative study (LRC)
- Directs the Legislative Research Commission (LRC) to study availability of affordable housing across metropolitan and rural areas.
- Required study elements include: inventorying affordable housing supply; assessing publicly owned land that could be developed; cataloging federal/state/local subsidy and incentive programs and how well they work; identifying barriers and best practices; evaluating energy-efficiency and modular housing options; and other matters the LRC finds relevant.
- LRC must report findings and any proposed legislation to the 2026 Regular Session.
Fair Housing: "Source of income" protection
- Expands definitions in the State Fair Housing Act to explicitly include "source of income" (defined to include wages, grants, loans, government payments or vouchers such as Section 8 or HOPE, and private/nonprofit financial assistance).
- Makes it an unlawful discriminatory housing practice to deny housing or discriminate in housing-related transactions because of source of income.
- Extends the prohibition to certain residential real-estate-related transactions and to land-use or permitting decisions, with a stated carve‑out allowing land‑use considerations aimed at limiting high concentrations of affordable housing.
- Enforcement: violations can be found based on intent or on discriminatory effect; a "business necessity" defense remains available in some circumstances.
- Exemptions: certain narrow exemptions (e.g., some religious organization preferences) remain.
Housing Trust Fund appropriation
- Provides a direct appropriation to the State Housing Trust Fund. (Text cites a nonrecurring appropriation of $45,000,000 in one version of the bill.)
- Aim: expand workforce housing and support development of affordable units.
Tenant credit reporting & eviction records
- Prohibits credit reporting agencies from reporting lawsuits for ejectment (eviction filings) that do not result in a judgment for the landlord.
- Establishes optional credit-reporting mechanisms for tenants who participate in subsidized housing programs (designed to allow tenants to build positive credit history through on‑time rental payments).
Who would be affected
- Renters who use housing vouchers, subsidies, or nontraditional income sources (greater protection against denial or discriminatory terms).
- Landlords, property managers, real-estate professionals (new compliance obligations and legal exposure for source‑of‑income discrimination).
- Local governments and planning/permitting authorities (restricted from making land‑use decisions based on source of income in many cases).
- Housing developers and nonprofit housing providers (potentially increased funding and program opportunities from the Housing Trust Fund).
- Credit reporting agencies and tenants (changes to eviction reporting and optional positive rental reporting).
Fiscal and procedural notes
- The bill directs the LRC study and requires a report to the 2026 session (timeline for study/reporting is explicit).
- One version of the bill appropriates $45 million (nonrecurring) to the Housing Trust Fund; other fiscal impacts (administration, enforcement) are not fully specified in the text excerpts.
- The bill also contains provisions that would require administrative or regulatory action (implementation of credit‑reporting options, enforcement under fair‑housing law).
- Legislative progress (from attached logs): bill has passed first reading and has moved through committee activity in the cited session; final disposition may vary by chamber and version.
Notes and uncertainties
- Multiple document excerpts and versions were provided; some provisions (exact appropriation amount, enforcement mechanisms, and exemptions) appear in specific drafts and may be amended during legislative process.
- Implementation details (agency rules, timelines, and administrative costs) are not fully specified in excerpts and would be developed after enactment or in implementing guidance/regulation.
If you want, I can:
- Produce a short one‑page explainer for tenants or landlords summarizing their new rights/obligations; or
- Track the bill’s next committee steps and any amendments as it moves.
