HUD DISTRIBUTES NEW BOOKLET TO MAKE IT EASY TO FILE HOUSING DISCRIMINATION CLAIMS

WASHINGTON - The Department of Housing and Urban Development is distributing more than 100,000 copies of a new booklet around the country to make it easy for people to file claims of illegal housing discrimination, Secretary Andrew Cuomo announced today.

"Housing discrimination is an ugly part of our past that has no place in our nation today," Cuomo said. "The United States government is dedicated to finding it, fighting it and ending it. Our new booklet will make more people aware of their right to report this kind of illegal discrimination, and will make it easy to file a discrimination claim."

The announcement is part of HUD's commemoration of Fair Housing Month in April. The month marks the 31st anniversary of the passage of the Fair Housing Act, which outlawed housing discrimination.

The new form is also on the Internet at http://www.hud.gov/ and can be filed electronically.

The Fair Housing Act bars housing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, disability, family status and national origin. The law covers the sale, rental, financing and advertising of almost all housing in the nation. Fair housing investigations are conducted by HUD, state and local agencies working with HUD, and private fair housing groups funded by HUD.

The attractive new booklet is titled: Are You a Victim of Housing Discrimination? It contains a simple and clearly written discrimination reporting form that can be folded over and mailed.

Copies of the booklet have been distributed to HUD's 81 offices around the country and are being made available to both public and private local fair housing groups.

HUD will also send copies of the booklet to other interested individuals and organizations, including: civil rights agencies, disability advocacy organizations, state and local housing counseling agencies, community groups and libraries.

The information collected on the discrimination reporting form will be used to contact the person who filed the claim; make an initial determination regarding HUD's jurisdiction over a claim; and lay the groundwork for the investigation of a claim.

Organizations or individuals who want to receive the new brochure containing the discrimination claim form can contact HUD's Customer Service Center at 1-800-767-7468, Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5:15 p.m. Eastern time, or fax requests to 202-708-2313.

In addition to using the new form, people who believe they've been harmed by housing discrimination can file claims with HUD by calling 1-800-669-9777.