2019 Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing: Phase 1 Report

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established the Secretary as the chair of the President's Fair Housing Council. This council reviews existing programs and designs new ones to promote the advancement of fair housing activities. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is tasked with enforcement of the Fair Housing Act. Victims of unlawful discrimination may seek reparations by filing complaints with the Secretary of HUD within 180 days of the incident. Remediation may also be sought by filing a lawsuit in state or federal court. When a violation has been established, redress may come in the form of compensatory damages, charges for corrective action, as well as awards for punitive damages and/or civil penalties. The Fair Housing Review Criteria was established in 1988 by HUD. It includes the regulatory framework for an Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing in both the private and public sectors. The analysis includes four components. First is a comprehensive review of jurisdictional laws, administrative policies, procedures, and practices for states or entitlements. Then an assessment of housing availability and how the aforementioned regulations impact housing availability. Next, conditions affecting fair housing choice for protected classes are analyzed. The final step is an evaluation of the availability of accessible and affordable housing in various unit sizes. HUD recommends an Analysis of Impediments be conducted every 3-5 years. In the event of identified impediments, the jurisdiction should detail a list of actions for remedy, create a timetable to track progress, and involve the community in finding solutions. The Analysis of Impediments serves as the basis for monitoring and managing Fair Housing Planning. Data and Methods for this Report Analysis of Impediments Reports have historically focused on multiple issues related to fair housing. Based on consultation with representatives from the Department of Housing and Urban Development, we have focused on two issues: 1) agency staff's knowledge of fair housing law; 2) alignment of agency policies and procedures with the Fair Housing Act. In this section, we briefly describe the methods employed in these analyses. Staff Fair Housing Survey The research team developed the "Hawai`i Housing Employee Anonymous Survey" designed to estimate agency staff members' knowledge of fair housing law. The survey was designed to be consistent across all partner agencies and the bulk of the questions focused on issues relevant to individuals working in public agencies tasked with administering subsidized housing programs. We are grateful to lead representatives from each participating agency who were invited to make comments on the draft survey. Some basic yes/no questions were asked, but the bulk of the evaluation hinged on a series of Fair Housing Scenarios designed to incorporate the complexity of fair housing law. Staff were asked to assess whether or not each scenario was likely an example of a fair housing violation and the degree to which they believed such violations occurred frequently in Hawai`i. The survey also collected demographic information on all agency staff. For the full survey instrument, see Appendix A. 4