BY: CLARA BATES
Missouri Independent
Local laws prohibiting landlords from discriminating against tenants who receive public assistance would be unenforceable under legislation sent to the governor’s desk Wednesday.
The bill passed by a final vote of 23 to 10 on Wednesday in the Senate, over the opposition of Democrats. It previously passed the House 103 to 37.
The legislation takes aim at ordinances passed in several Missouri cities to protect tenants from discrimination based on the source of their income — especially tenants who use federal housing choice vouchers, known as Section 8 vouchers, to pay rent.
The bill was co-sponsored by state Reps. Chris Brown, a Republican from Kansas City, and Ben Keathley, a Republican from Chesterfield. In the Senate, it was carried by state Sen. Nick Schroer, a Republican from Defiance.
“Various municipalities are trying to force landlords to put their homes into Section 8 programs,” Brown said during House debate Monday. “We feel like that is overstepping their authority.”
Schroer on Wednesday called it a “common sense bill that was just limiting what political subdivisions can do when it comes to property rights.”
Kansas City passed a source of income discrimination ban last year, though it was in large part paused by the courts in February.
Columbia, St. Louis, Webster Groves and Clayton have similar protections on the books. The laws make it illegal for landlords to discriminate based solely on the fact of renters’ lawful sources of income, including Section 8, veterans’ benefits and Social Security.
An amendment previously added by Democrat state Sen. Patty Lewis of Kansas City, would have carved out most of Kansas City from the legislation. But that language was removed in the final bill.
“The amendment that we stripped out would have excluded Kansas City from the bill,” Brown said. “Kansas City was a big reason we originated this bill.”
Schroer said there were also constitutional concerns that carving out Kansas City could get “litigated and thrown out” in court.
“This was the only path forward to make it through both chambers,” Schroer said.
Lewis said she was frustrated not to be consulted during the final negotiations.
“Affordable housing is extremely important to me, and that’s the basis of what they were trying to do with the ordinance,” Lewis said. “And I’m just trying to protect the local control.”
An amendment added by Democratic state Sen. Stephen Webber of Columbia was kept in the bill to clarify protections for renters receiving veterans’ benefits.
The legislation had the support of landlords groups, apartment associations, the realtors’ association and the conservative think tank Show Me Institute. Proponents characterized localities’ source-of-income protections as an overreach into property owners’ rights.
Opponents said the bill infringed on local control and would hurt affordable housing availability, exacerbating homelessness. The city of Kansas City has been opposed along with the anti-poverty nonprofit Empower Missouri and an association of public housing authorities in Missouri.
The legislation will go into effect Aug. 28 if signed into law by the governor.
