HUD Reaches Settlement with Ohio Housing Authority

HUD recently announced a voluntary compliance agreement with the Medina Metropolitan Housing Authority in Medina, Ohio, resolving allegations the housing authority discriminated against African Americans in the administration of its Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program, a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Fair Housing Act. 

The Medina Housing Authority had a residency preference point system that effectively imposed a residency requirement, thus putting African Americans who didn’t live or work in Medina County at a disadvantage. Under the agreement, the housing authority will create a $35,000 relocation assistance fund, with payments of $500 per household, to support persons moving into Medina County with a Housing Choice Voucher. The housing authority will also eliminate its residency preference, purge its waiting list, and provide voucher assistance on a first-come, first-served basis. In addition, the housing authority will market its voucher program to minorities who don’t live or work in the county and develop a plan to increase access to its services by persons whose ability to read or write English is limited.