Gov. Jim Douglas has declared April "Fair Housing Month" in Vermont.
He signed the proclamation at the beginning of his weekly press conference this afternoon in the governor's ceremonial office at the Statehouse.
VHFA has been a member of the Vermont Fair Housing Council (VFHC) since its inception. The VFHC monitors Vermont's Fair Housing activities, and published the state's Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing report.
The federal Fair Housing Act was part of the Civil Rights Act of 1968. It makes it illegal to discriminate in the rental, sale, or financing of housing on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, and sex.
In 1988, Congress added familial status and disability to those protected categories. Vermont's Fair Housing Act is similar to the federal law with four additional protected categories:
- Marital status
- Age
- Sexual orientation
- Receipt of public assistance
For more information on the VFHC or Fair Housing, call 1-800-889-2047.