In this memorandum, addressed to the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, the Biden Administration pronounces that it will be a policy of the Administration for the Federal Government to work with communities to end housing discrimination, promote diverse and inclusive communities and take other actions to promote fair and equal access to housing.
It begins by recognizing and acknowledging the role that the Federal Government had in systematically declining to invest in communities of color, and as a result, in perpetuating racial inequality with repercussions that are still felt in the housing market.
It highlights the significance of the Fair Housing Act, enacted over 50 years ago to lift the barriers that upheld segregation on the bases of race, ethnicity and national origin. It also acknowledges its limitations, given that access to housing and the creation of wealth through homeownership continues to be markedly unequal in the United States.
In the second section of the memo, there is an examination of recent regulatory actions taken by previous administrations, and evaluate the effects of these actions.
Based on this study, the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will take steps to implement the Fair Housing Act’s requirements.