TEXAS FAIR HOUSING GROUPS AWARDED $650,000 TO FIGHT HOUSING DISCRIMINATION

SAN ANTONIO - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today presented almost $650,000 to three anti-discrimination organizations to conduct fair housing education and outreach in Texas. Kim Kendrick, HUD's Assistant Secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, made the grant presentations to the Austin Tenants Council, Fair Housing Council of Greater San Antonio, and the Garland Fair Housing Office (see attached).

HUD has awarded 88 grants totaling $17.1 million awarded to recipients in 37 states and the District of Columbia to help fight housing discrimination.

"Last year there were a record 10,328 housing discrimination complaints filed with HUD and its state and local partners," said Kendrick. "These grants will allow us to continue with efforts to educate the public and the housing industry about their rights and responsibilities under the Fair Housing Act."

The grants presented today are funded through HUD's Fair Housing Initiatives Program, and will be used to
investigate allegations of housing discrimination, educate the public and the housing industry about their rights and responsibilities under the Fair Housing Act, and work to promote equal housing opportunities.

This year's grants were awarded under one of two initiatives:

• Private Enforcement Initiative grants (PEI) - HUD awarded $14 million to help groups investigate alleged housing discrimination, and enforce the Fair Housing Act and state and local laws that are substantially equivalent to the Act.
  
  
• Education and Outreach Initiative grants (EOI) - HUD awarded $3.1 million to groups that educate the public and housing providers about their rights and obligations under federal, state, and local fair housing laws.

FHEO and its partners in the Fair Housing Assistance Program investigate approximately 10,000 housing discrimination complaints annually. People who believe they are the victims of housing discrimination should contact HUD at (800) 669-9777 (voice), (800) 927-9275 (TTY). Additional information is available at www.hud.gov/fairhousing. Stay on
top of the most up-to-date news regarding the Fair Housing Act by signing up for the FHEO RSS Feed at www.hud.gov/offices/fheo/index.cfm. A list of all the grant recipients is available on the HUD website.

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Summary of the Fair Housing Initiative Grants in Texas

Austin Tenants Council, Inc.
Private Enforcement Initiative - Performance Based Component
Award Amount: $274,707

The Austin Tenants Council, Inc., (ATC) will provide complaint intake, investigation, and referral for alleged victims
of discrimination. ATC will conduct testing for discrimination in the rental market against racial and ethnic minorities and persons with disabilities, survey multifamily developments for compliance with the accessibility requirements of
the Fair Housing Act, and monitor housing advertisements for discriminatory language. Additionally, ATC will promote fair housing awareness by placing television, radio, and print advertisements in local media.

San Antonio Fair Housing Council, Inc.
Private Enforcement Initiative - General Component
Award Amount: $275,000

The San Antonio Fair Housing Council, Inc., (SAFHC) will provide fair housing enforcement activities in Bexar County and 35 other counties in South Texas. SAFHC estimates that it will investigate 250 housing discrimination
complaints; conduct 130 rental tests, 10 sales tests, and several lending tests; and conduct accessibility surveys
of multifamily developments in Cameron, Hidalgo, Starr and/or Willacy counties. In addition, SAFHC will partner with faith-based and community-based organizations and government agencies to conduct meetings on housing discrimination and predatory lending.

Garland Fair Housing Office
Education and Outreach Initiative - General Component
Award Amount: $100,000

The Garland Fair Housing Office (GFHO) will conduct a fair housing education and outreach campaign for residents of Dallas County. Specifically, GFHO will conduct 6 educational symposia; 12 landlord/tenant forums; 4 fair housing seminars; and several predatory lending presentations to City of Garland employees. In addition, GFHO will promote fair housing awareness by distributing educational materials to 100 churches and 80 community agencies. GFHO estimates that its activities will result in the referral of 70 housing discrimination complaints to HUD.