Attorney General Anthony G. Brown has filed an amicus brief urging the Maryland Supreme Court to hear Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, Ltd., to protect fair housing rights under the HOME Act and prevent discrimination against low-income Marylanders using Housing Choice Vouchers. The brief urges the Court to grant a writ of certiorari to hear the case and protect the fair housing rights of Marylanders. The outcome of this Supreme Court decision could set a significant precedent for how income requirements are applied in housing practices across the State.
Maryland enacted the HOME Act in 2020, joining 22 states and over 40 municipalities in outlawing housing discrimination based on source of income. The legislation was designed to protect marginalized groups such as people of color, families with children, and individuals with disabilities.
This includes participants in the federal Housing Choice Voucher program, which subsidizes rents for nearly 50,000 Maryland low-income families. Eligible families receiving assistance pay 30% of their income toward rent and utilities, with the remaining rent paid by a separate contract with local government agencies.
The case of Hare v. David S. Brown Enterprises, Ltd. involves an appeal from Katrina Hare, an elderly, disabled, African-American woman who receives Supplemental Security Income and uses a Housing Choice Voucher to afford housing. Hare was denied housing by David S. Brown, Ltd. because she did not meet its minimum income requirement of $47,700 a year, even though her Housing Choice Voucher would have covered all but $126 of rent. The Baltimore County Circuit Court ruled that this denial was not discrimination and granted summary judgment in favor of David S. Brown Enterprises, Ltd. Hare appealed that decision to the Maryland Appellate Court and has requested that the State's Supreme Court hear the case (she petitioned for a writ of certiorari) before the Appellate Court issues its opinion.
The Attorney General’s brief supports Hare’s petition to the Maryland Supreme Court, and requests the Court to hear the case and rule that David S. Brown Enterprise, Ltd. applied its minimum income requirements that illegally discriminates against prospective tenants who, like Hare, use Housing Choice Vouchers. The brief also details the legislative history of the HOME Act and emphasizes the intent of the General Assembly to protect Housing Choice Voucher participants from the type of housing discrimination in this case.
Read the September 9, 2024 The Moco Show article.
Read the September 6, 2024 Franklin County Free Press article.
