Fair Housing Update: July 2006

Washington State
FAIR HOUSING UPDATE

King County
Fair Housing Ordinance Amended
By Roxanne Vierra, King County Office of Civil Rights

On March 27, 2006, the Metropolitan King County Council passed Ordinance 15399, standardizing the four King County civil rights ordinances, and increasing antidiscrimination protections for some renters and home buyers in unincorporated King County. King County Executive Ron Sims signed the Ordinance on April 6 and it became effective on April 16. The King County Office of Civil Rights (OCR) enforces these ordinances.

The amendments included changes in the definitions of "protected classes" - those groups of people who are protected from housing discrimination:

"Sex" was changed to "Gender."
"Ancestry" was added as a separate protected class. (Example - An American-born individual whose parents or grandparents are from Thailand might face discrimination based on his ancestry.)
"Use of a trained dog guide" was changed to "use of a service or assistive animal," which is defined as "a dog guide, signal or hearing dog, seizure response dog, therapeutic companion animal or other animal that does work, performs tasks or provides medically necessary support for the benefit of an individual with a disability."
The definition of "sexual orientation" was changed to include heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality, and gender identity. "Gender identity" means having or being perceived as having a gender identity different from that traditionally associated with the sex assigned to that person at birth. Protection associated with gender identity includes self-image, appearance, behavior, or expression.

In addition, the length of time within which a person can file a fair housing complaint with OCR was extended from 180 days to 365 days after the occurrence or termination of the alleged unfair housing practice.

The county's Open Housing ordinance is codified as King County Code 12.20 (online at www.metrokc.gov/mkcc/Code/15-Title%2012.pdf — scroll to page 45).

If you have questions about fair housing laws, or if you want a print or CD copy of the ordinance, contact OCR at 206-296-7592 (or TTY 296-7796) or by e-mail to Civil-Rights.OCR@metrokc.gov.

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Updated: July 24, 2006

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