InfoBytes Blog
DOJ Files Lawsuit Against City of Beaumont, Texas for Alleged FHA Violations
On May 26, the DOJ announced a lawsuit against the city of Beaumont, Texas (Beaumont) for allegedly violating the Fair Housing Act (FHA) and the Americans with Disabilities Act. According to the DOJ’s complaint, Beaumont’s Zoning Code imposes a one-half mile spacing restriction on small community homes for persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities; this means that no such community home may operate within one-half mile of another such community home. The DOJ alleges that Beaumont’s Zoning Code does not similarly restrict the spacing of housing for persons without disabilities. In addition, the DOJ asserts that Beaumont imposes on community homes for persons with disabilities excessive fire safety requirements that are not imposed on similarly situated housing for persons without disabilities. According to the DOJ, Beaumont’s policies have “compelled the closure of several community homes” and prohibited “new community homes from opening or operating in most of Beaumont’s residential neighborhoods,” forcing residents with disabilities to move to institutional settings or out of Beaumont. The lawsuit, which arose after complaints were filed with HUD, requests that the Court enter an Order under which Beaumont, among other things, would be (i) enjoined from enforcing the one-half mile spacing rule or fire safety requirements that apply only to community homes of persons with disabilities, (ii) required to restore (to the extent practical) the alleged victims to the position they would have been in but for the alleged violations, and (iii) required to pay monetary damages.