| March 8, 2005
Housing Action Alert
Source of Income Amendment
HB 45/SB 167
Action Needed: Calls to your
Illinois State Senators and Representatives asking
that they support the Source of Income Amendment to
the Illinois Human Rights Act.
Please contact your
representative and ask them to support the Source
of Income Amendment, HB 45, to give all families a
fair chance at safe, decent, and affordable housing.
Please contact your
senators and ask them to support the Source Of Income
Amendment, SB 167, to give all families a fair chance
at safe, decent, and affordable housing.
Background: The Source of Income Amendment
to the Illinois Human Rights Act would protect individuals
from discrimination based on their lawful source of
income. The legislation would protect senior citizens,
persons with disabilities, and families from discrimination
by landlords who categorically refuse to rent to them
because of their source of income.
"Source of income" means
any lawful income, subsidy or benefit with which an
individual supports himself or herself and his or
her dependents, including, but not limited to, child
support, maintenance, and any federal, state or local
public assistance, medical assistance, or rental assistance
program. This change includes protection for over
400,000 Illinois households that rely on non-wage
income.
Prohibiting discrimination
against the source of income will improve the chances
for seniors, persons with disabilities, and families
with children to find safe, decent, and affordable
housing.
Catholic Social Teaching:
“We support a recommitment to the national pledge
of “safe and affordable housing” for all and effective
policies that will increase the supply of quality
housing and preserve, maintain, and improve existing
housing….We continue to oppose unjust discrimination
or unjust exclusion in housing……”Faithful Citizenship:
A Catholic Call to Political Responsibility U.S. Bishops
October 2003
Information Source-
HousingMatters.net For more information, contact either
Kate Walz at the Sargent Shriver National Center on
Poverty Law at katewalz@povertylaw.org or (312) 263-3830,
ext. 232 or Doug Schenkelberg at the Lawyers’ Committee
for Better Housing at dschenkelberg@sbcglobal.net
or (312) 347-7600, ext. 19.
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