Lincoln residents to vote on fair housing measure next week

Voters heading to the polls Tuesday in Lincoln will vote on a ballot measure that affects landlords and tenants alike.

If passed, the measure would bar landlords from denying tenants based solely on their source of income. These include Section 8 vouchers, disability payments, pension disbursements, annuities, alimony, child support and foster care subsidies.

Currently, landlords in Lincoln can choose not to rent to someone because of where that person’s income comes from.

Supporters of the ballot measure argue that it will expand housing choices and reduce concentrated poverty.

Steve Smith, who is with Civic Nebraska, said that after canvassing the neighborhoods with large renter populations, he found that source-of-income discrimination was a large issue renters were facing.

“In Lincoln, we find that about one in three Lincoln potential renters with vouchers can't use them,” Smith said. “They can't find a landlord that will accept them based specifically on that issue.”

Source-of-income discrimination is banned in 22 states and 128 cities and towns in the United States, he said, and the fears of rising rents and landlords having to rent to unreliable renters never materialized in those places.

“It becomes kind of a win-win situation for everyone,” Smith said. “Landlords get a steady, reliable source of payment. The renters are motivated to... keep improving their lot in life as they have a safe place to live.”

Those who oppose the measure say there is no need for an ordinance, especially when it comes to Section 8 vouchers, which are federal housing subsidies for low-income renters.

“It’s unnecessary,” said Lynne Fisher, president of the Real Estate Owners and Managers Association. “There's no real issue or problem with the Section 8 program as it's administered. Almost all of the vouchers are utilized every month, on a month-to-month basis, 99% or more.”

Fisher said that the reason some landlords choose not to participate in the program is because of requirements that come with it.

“It’s based strictly on the extra cost, time and hassle of dealing with the voucher system that certain owners choose voluntarily not to take the program,” Fisher said.

He said he expects the measure to pass, and the Real Estate Owners and Managers Association is looking to take action after the election.

“Our coalition is looking to introduce a bill… to prevent these kinds of laws, particularly source of income as a protected class,” Fisher said.

In addition to the ballot measure, Lincoln residents will be voting on three at-large positions on the City Council, four seats on the Lincoln Public Schools Board of Education and a seat on the Lincoln Airport Authority.

The final day to vote early in person is Monday. Polls are open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.