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For more than 50 years, the Fair Housing Act has worked to eliminate barriers to housing and promote opportunity. As our nation becomes more diverse in every way, the Fair Housing Act helps to foster strong and inclusive communities, which are critical to our collective success.

The act is a testament to the importance of equity in housing and creating a stable foundation for all Americans to thrive.

This week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has issued a proposed rule that would severely limit the progress that was envisioned by the Fair Housing Act to root out discrimination.

At stake is a tool used to enforce the Fair Housing Act called “disparate impact.” This legal theory provides that banks, landlords and other housing providers should choose policies that avoid an unnecessary discriminatory impact. Sometimes policies that appear neutral in theory can unfairly exclude certain groups of people or segregate particular communities in practice.