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House Bill 2387 History
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Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
H. B. 2387
(By Delegates Marshall and Moore)
[Introduced February 13, 2013; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary.]
A BILL to amend and reenact §5-11A-3, §5-11A-5, §5-11A-6 and
§5-11A-7
of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, all
relating to the West Virginia Fair Housing Act
; defining the
term "assistance animal"; replacing the term disability with
the term handicap; requiring a person with a disability
who
requests a reasonable accommodation to provide supporting
material documenting the need for the assistance animal
;
providing exceptions; and imposing a liability
provision.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §5-11A-3, §5-11A-5, §5-11A-6 and §5-11A-7
of the Code of
West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended and reenacted, all to
read as follows:
ARTICLE 11A. WEST VIRGINIA FAIR HOUSING ACT.
§5-11A-3. Definitions.
As used in this article:
(a) "Commission" means the West Virginia Human Rights
Commission;
(b) "Dwelling" means any building, structure or portion
thereof which is occupied as, or designed or intended for occupancy
as, a residence or sleeping place by one or more persons or
families and any vacant land which is offered for sale or lease for
the construction or location thereon of any such building,
structure or portion thereof;
(c) "Family" includes a single individual;
(d) "Person" includes one or more individuals, corporations,
partnerships, associations, labor organizations, legal
representatives, mutual companies, joint-stock companies, trusts,
unincorporated organizations, trustees, trustees in cases under
Title 11 of the United States Code, receivers and fiduciaries;
(e) "To rent" includes to lease, to sublease, to let and
otherwise to grant for a consideration the right to occupy premises
not owned by the occupant;
(f) "Discriminatory housing practice" means an act that is
unlawful under section five, six, seven or nineteen of this
article;
(g) "Handicap" "Disability" means, with respect to a person:
(1) A physical or mental impairment which substantially limits
one or more of such the person's major life activities;
(2) A record of having such an impairment; or
(3) Being regarded as having such an impairment, but such the
term does not include current, illegal use of or addiction to a
controlled substance, as defined in Section 102 of the Controlled
Substances Act, Title 21, United States Code, Section 802;
(h) "Aggrieved person" includes any person who:
(1) Claims to have been injured by a discriminatory housing
practice; or
(2) Believes that such the person will be injured by a
discriminatory housing practice that is about to occur;
(i) "Complainant" means the person, including the commission,
who files a complaint under section eleven of this article;
(j) "Familial status" means:
(1) One or more individuals who have not attained the age of
eighteen years being domiciled with:
(A) A parent or another person having legal custody of such
the individual or individuals; or
(B) The designee of such the parent or other person having
such custody of the individual with the written permission of such
the parent or other person; or
(2) Any person who is pregnant or is in the process of
securing legal custody of any individual who has not attained the
age of eighteen years;
(k) "Conciliation" means the attempted resolution of issues raised by a complaint or by the investigation of such the complaint
through informal negotiations involving the aggrieved person, the
respondent and the commission;
(l) "Conciliation agreement" means a written agreement setting
forth the resolution of the issues in conciliation;
(m) "Respondent" means:
(1) The person or other entity accused in a complaint of an
unfair housing practice; and
(2) Any other person or entity identified in the course of
investigation and notified as required with respect to respondents
so identified under subsection (a), section eleven of this article;
(n) The term "rooming house" means a house or building where
there are one or more bedrooms which the proprietor can spare for
the purpose of giving lodgings to such persons as he or she chooses
to receive; and
(o) The term "basic universal design" means the design of
products and environments to be useable by all people, to the
greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or
specialization.
(p) The term "assistance animal" means any service animal or
emotional support animal with or without specific training or
certification, or both, which is kept and used by a person with a
disability to perform one or more major life activities or to ease
or ameliorate the effects of its master's disability.
§5-11A-5. Discrimination in sale or rental of housing and other
prohibited practices.
As made applicable by section four of this article and except
as exempted by sections four and eight of this article, it shall be
is unlawful:
(a) To refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide
offer, or to refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of, or
otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any person
because of race, color, religion, ancestry, sex, familial status,
blindness, handicap disability or national origin;
(b) To discriminate against any person in the terms,
conditions or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the
provision of services or facilities in connection therewith,
because of race, color, religion, ancestry, sex, familial status,
blindness, handicap disability or national origin;
(c) To make, print or publish, or cause to be made, printed or
published any notice, statement or advertisement, with respect to
the sale or rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference,
limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex,
blindness, handicap disability, familial status, ancestry or
national origin, or an intention to make any such preference,
limitation or discrimination;
(d) To represent to any person because of race, color,
religion, sex, blindness, handicap disability, familial status, ancestry or national origin that any dwelling is not available for
inspection, sale or rental when such the dwelling is in fact so
available;
(e) For profit, to induce or attempt to induce any person to
sell or rent any dwelling by representations regarding the entry or
prospective entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of
a particular race, color, religion, sex, blindness, handicap
disability, familial status, ancestry or national origin; or
(f) (1) To discriminate in the sale or rental, or to otherwise
make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any buyer or renter because
of a handicap disability of: (A) That buyer or renter; (B) a
person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after it
is so sold, rented or made available; or (C) any person associated
with that buyer or renter.
(2) To discriminate against any person in the terms,
conditions or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the
provision of services or facilities in connection with such the
dwelling, because of a handicap disability of: (A) That person;
(B) a person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling
after it is so sold, rented or made available; or (C) any person
associated with that person.
(3) For purposes of this subdivision, discrimination includes:
(A) A refusal to permit, at the expense of the handicapped
disabled person, reasonable modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied by such the person if such the
modifications may be necessary to afford such the person full
enjoyment of the premises, except that, in the case of a rental,
the landlord may where it is reasonable to do so condition
permission for a modification on the renter agreeing to restore the
interior of the premises to the condition that existed before the
modification, reasonable wear and tear excepted;
(B) A refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules,
policies, practices or services when such the accommodations may be
necessary to afford such the person equal opportunity to use and
enjoy a dwelling; or
(C) In connection with the design and construction of covered
multifamily dwellings for first occupancy after the date that is
thirty months after the date of enactment of the West Virginia Fair
Housing Act, a failure to design and construct those dwellings in
such a manner that:
(i) The public use and common use portions of such the
dwellings are readily accessible to and usable by handicapped
disabled persons;
(ii) All the doors designed to allow passage into and within
all premises within such the dwellings are sufficiently wide to
allow passage by handicapped disabled persons in wheelchairs; and
(iii) All premises within such the dwellings contain the
following features of adaptive design: (I) An accessible route into and through the dwelling; (II) light switches, electrical
outlets, thermostats and other environmental controls in accessible
locations; (III) reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow later
installation of grab bars; and (IV) usable kitchens and bathrooms
such that an individual in a wheelchair can maneuver about the
space.
(4) Compliance with the appropriate requirements of the
American National Standard for Buildings and Facilities Providing
Accessibility and Usability for Physically Handicapped People,
commonly cited as ANSI A117.1, suffices to satisfy the requirements
of subparagraph (3)(C)(iii) of this subdivision.
(5) (A) If a unit of general local government has incorporated
into its laws the requirements set forth in subparagraph (3)(C) of
this subdivision, compliance with such those laws shall be deemed
to satisfy the requirements of that subparagraph.
(B) The commission or unit of general local government may
review and approve newly constructed covered multifamily dwellings
for the purpose of making determinations as to whether the design
and construction requirements of subparagraph (3)(C) of this
subdivision are met.
(C) The commission shall encourage, but may not require, units
of local government to include in their existing procedures for the
review and approval of newly constructed covered multifamily
dwellings, determinations as to whether the design and construction of such dwellings are consistent with subparagraph (3)(C) of this
subdivision, and may provide technical assistance to units of local
government and other persons to implement the requirements of such
that subparagraph.
(D) Nothing in this article shall be construed to require
requires the commission to review or approve the plans, designs or
construction of all covered multifamily dwellings to determine
whether the design and construction of such the dwellings are
consistent with the requirements of subparagraph (3)(C) of this
subdivision.
(6) (A) Nothing in paragraph (5) of this subdivision shall be
construed to affect affects the authority and responsibility of the
commission or a local public agency to receive and process
complaints or otherwise engage in enforcement activities under this
article.
(B) Determinations by a unit of general local government under
subparagraphs (5)(A) and (B) of this subdivision shall are not be
conclusive in enforcement proceedings under this article.
(7) As used in this section, the term "covered multifamily
dwellings" means: (A) Buildings consisting of four or more units
if such the buildings have one or more elevators; and (B) ground
floor units in other buildings consisting of four or more units.
(8) Nothing in this article shall be construed to invalidate
or limit invalidates or limits
any law of this state or any political subdivision hereof of this state that requires dwellings
to be designed and constructed in a manner that affords handicapped
disabled persons greater access than is required by this article.
(9) Nothing in This section requires does not require
that a
dwelling be made available to an individual whose tenancy would
constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other
individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical
damage to the property of others. The burden of proving such
threat to health or safety or the likelihood of such damage shall
be is upon the respondent.
_____(10) (A) For the purposes of this subdivision, rules,
policies, practices or services regarding pets are subject to the
reasonable accommodation requirements of subparagaph (B), paragraph
(3) of this subdivision: Provided, That in connection with a
request for reasonable accommodation to the rules, policies or
services, a person with a disability may be required to provide
supporting material documenting the need for the assistance animal.
_____(B) A person with a disability may be refused the
accommodation of an assistance animal if there is credible evidence
that the assistance animal would be a direct threat to the health
or safety of others.
_____(C) A person with a disability who keeps or uses an assistance
animal is responsible for seeing that the assistance animal lives
in the dwelling of the person without disturbing the property or quiet enjoyment of the property owner or the person's neighbors and
is liable for any damage caused by the assistance animal.
§5-11A-6. Discrimination in residential real estate-related
transactions.
(a) It shall be is unlawful for any person or other entity
whose business includes engaging in residential real estate-related
transactions to discriminate against any person in making available
such a transaction or in the terms or conditions of such a
transaction because of race, color, religion, sex, blindness,
handicap disability, familial status, ancestry or national origin.
(b) As used in this section, the term "residential real
estate-related transaction" means any of the following:
(1) The making or purchasing of loans or providing other
financial assistance: (A) For purchasing, constructing, improving,
repairing or maintaining a dwelling; or (B) secured by residential
real estate; or
(2) The selling, brokering or appraising of residential real
property.
(c) Nothing in this article prohibits a person engaged in the
business of furnishing appraisals of real property to take into
consideration factors other than race, color, religion, national
origin, ancestry, sex, blindness, handicap disability or familial
status.
§5-11A-7. Discrimination in provision of brokerage services.
It shall be is unlawful to deny any person access to or
membership or participation in any multiple listing service, real
estate broker's organization or other service, organization or
facility relating to the business of selling or renting dwellings,
or to discriminate against him or her in the terms or conditions of
such access, membership or participation on account of race, color,
religion, sex, blindness, handicap disability, familial status,
ancestry or national origin.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to
adjust the West Virginia
Fair Housing Act to realign it with the federal Fair Housing Act
with regard to support animals. The bill also substitutes the term
disability for the term handicap in the West Virginia Fair Housing
Act
.
The bill defines the term "assistance animal." The bill
requires a person with a disability
who requests a reasonable
accommodation to provide supporting material documenting the need
for the assistance animal
. The bill provides exceptions and imposes
a liability
provision.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from
the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would
be added.
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