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DENVER, CO - The House today advanced legislation, sponsored by Representatives Chad Clifford and Yara Zokaie, to protect equal opportunity to housing for Coloradans with disabilities.
“We’re ensuring that Colorado law provides equal protections for housing for Coloradans with disabilities,” said Rep. Chad Clifford, D-Centennial. “Everyone deserves housing that fits their needs. Service animals provide life-saving care, and it is crucial that people with disabilities aren’t turned away from housing opportunities due to their service animal. Our law would combat Trump’s attacks against housing protections and ensure that Coloradans with disabilities can live safely and comfortably.”
“Colorado Democrats are continuing our work to strengthen protections for Coloradans with disabilities and protect Colorado communities from Trump’s continued attacks,” said Rep. Yara Zokaie, D-Fort Collins. “This bill would codify housing protections into state law and will ensure Coloradans with assistance animals have safe and reliable housing."
HB26-1045 would establish that it is an unfair or discriminatory housing practice to deny housing to Coloradans due to their live-in service animals. The bill would also create definitions for “assistance animal” and “emotional support animal” to provide clarity to housing providers and Coloradans with disabilities and reduce litigation.
Last year, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rescinded federal guidelines that outlined the rights that people with disabilities have regarding service animals under the Fair Housing Act. These guidelines also helped landlords, property managers and tenants understand how to distinguish between service animals and Emotional Support Animals. The repeal of these guidelines has created confusion regarding the rights of Coloradans with disabilities and what reasonable accommodations housing providers must provide.
In recent years, Colorado Democrats have passed laws to bolster housing protections for Coloradans with disabilities. Colorado Democrats passed laws that save Coloradans money on accessibility modifications to rental housing and prevent unjust evictions for Coloradans who rely on safety net programs, like disability insurance. Last year, Rep. Zokaie passed a law to expand protections under the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act to protect vulnerable communities, especially Coloradans with disabilities, by allowing victims of discrimination to receive monetary compensation for unfair housing practices.