In connection with any of the transactions set forth herein which affect any sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease of any housing accommodation, it shall be a prohibited, unlawful practice for a person, owner, financial institution, real estate broker, or real estate salesperson, or any representative of the above to:
(A) Refuse to sell, purchase, exchange, rent or lease, lend or deny brokerage service or otherwise deny to or withhold any housing accommodation from a person because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(B) Discriminate against a person because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status in terms, conditions, or privileges of the appraisal, purchasing of loans, financial assistance, sale, purchase, exchange, rental or lease of any housing accommodation, or in the furnishing of facilities or services in connection therewith; or
(C) Refuse to receive or transmit a bona fide offer to sell, purchase, exchange, rent or lease any housing accommodation from or to a person because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(D) Refuse to negotiate for the sale, purchase, exchange, rental or lease of any housing accommodation to any person because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, handicap, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(E) Represent to a person that any housing accommodation is not available for inspection, sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease when in fact it is available, or to refuse to permit a person to inspect any housing accommodation because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(F) Make, print, circulate, post, mail or cause to be printed, circulated, posted, or mailed any notice, statement, or advertisement, or to announce a policy, or to sign or to use a form of application for the sale, purchase, exchange, rental, lease, or financing of any housing accommodation, or to make a record of inquiry in connection with the prospective sale, purchase, exchange, rental, lease or financing of any housing accommodation which indicates directly or indirectly, any discrimination or any intent to discriminate as to race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(G) Offer, solicit, accept, or use a listing of any housing accommodation for sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease with the understanding that any person may be subjected to discrimination in connection with such sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease, or in the furnishing of facilities or services in connection therewith because of his/her race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(H) Induce directly or indirectly, or attempt to induce directly or indirectly, the sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease or the listing for any of the above, of any housing accommodation by representing that the presence or anticipated presence of persons of any particular race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status in the area to be affected by such sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease will or may result in:
(1) Lowering of property values in the area;
(2) An increase in criminal or antisocial behavior in the area; or
(3) A decline in the quality of the schools in the area; or
(I) Make any misrepresentations concerning the listing for sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease or the anticipated listing for any of the above, or the sale, purchase, exchange, rental or lease of any housing accommodation in any area in Jefferson County for the purpose of inducing or attempting to induce any such listing or any of the above transactions; or
(J) Place a sign purporting to offer for sale, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease any housing accommodation that is not, in fact, so offered; or
(K) Advertise for sale, purchase, exchange, rental or lease any housing accommodation which is nonexistent, or which is not actually being offered for any of the above; or
(L) Engage in, hire to be done, or to conspire with others to commit threats or acts or activities of any nature, the purpose of which is to coerce, cause panic, incite unrest, or create or play on fear with the purpose of either discouraging or inducing or attempting to induce the sale, occupancy, purchase, exchange, rental, or lease, or the listing for any of the above, of any housing accommodation; or
(M) Do any of the unlawful practices prohibited by this subchapter by canvassing; or
(N) Otherwise deny to or withhold any housing accommodation from a person because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status; or
(O) To discriminate in the sale or rental, or to otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any buyer or renter because of a disability of that buyer or renter, of a person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after it is sold, rented, or made available, or of any person associated with that buyer or renter; or to discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provisions of services or facilities in connection with such dwelling, because of a disability of that person, of a person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after it is sold, rented or made available, or of any person associated with that person:
(1) For purposes of this subsection,
DISCRIMINATION includes:
(a) A refusal to permit, at the expense of the disabled person, reasonable modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied by such person if such modifications may be necessary to afford the person full enjoyment of the premises, except that in the case of rental, the landlord may where it is reasonable to do so condition permission for a modification on the renter agreeing to restore the interior of the premises to the condition that existed before the modification, reasonable wear and tear excepted;
(b) A refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services, when such accommodations may be necessary to afford the person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a housing accommodation; or
(c) In connection with the design and construction of covered multi-family housing accommodations for first occupancy after the effective date of passage of this chapter, a failure to design and construct those housing accommodations in a manner ensuring that they have at least one entrance on an accessible route unless impractical to do so because of the terrain or unusual characteristics of the site. Housing accommodations with a building entrance on an accessible route shall comply with the following requirements:
1. The public use and common use portions of the housing accommodations shall be readily accessible to and usable by disabled persons;
2. All the doors designed to allow passage into and within all premises within the housing accommodations shall be sufficiently wide to allow passage by disabled persons on wheelchairs; and
3. All premises within the housing accommodations shall contain the following features of adaptive design:
a. An accessible route into and through the housing accommodations;
b. Light switches, electrical outlets, thermostats, and other environmental controls in accessible locations;
c. Reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow later installation of grab bars; and
d. Usable kitchens and bathrooms such that an individual in a wheelchair can maneuver about the space; and
(d) Compliance with the appropriate requirements of Chapter 11 of the Kentucky Building Code, Requirement for Accommodations in New Construction, as amended from time to time, suffices to satisfy the requirements of subsection (1)(c)2. or 3. of this section.
(2) As used in subsection (1) of this section, the term
COVERED MULTIFAMILY HOUSING ACCOMMODATION means:
(a) Buildings consisting of four (4) or more units if such buildings have one or more elevators; and
(b) Ground floor units in other buildings consisting of two or more units.
(3) Nothing in this section requires that a housing accommodation be made available to an individual whose tenancy would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others.
(P) Deny any person access to or membership or participation in any multiple-listing service, real estate brokers’ organization or other service, organization, or facility relating to the business of selling or renting dwellings, or to discriminate against that person in the terms or conditions of such access, membership, or participation because of race, color, religion, national origin, familial status, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, lawful source of income, conviction history or arrest history, prior military service, or homeless status consistent with the Kentucky Real Estate Commission (“KREC”) and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) regulations; or
(Q) Coerce, intimidate, harass, threaten or interfere with any person in the exercise or enjoyment of, or on account of his having exercised or enjoyed, or on account of his having aided or encouraged any other person in the exercise or enjoyment of, any right granted or protected by this chapter or Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act of 1968; or
(R) Use a financial or income standard for the rental of housing that fails to account for any rental payments or portions of rental payments that will be made by other individuals, organizations, or governmental agencies on the same basis as rental payments to be made directly by the tenant or prospective tenant.
(1994 Jeff. Code, § 92.03) (Jeff. Ord. 36-1999, adopted and effective 10-12-1999) (1999 Lou. Code, § 98.03) (Lou. Ord. No. 0088-2001, § 2, approved 8-16-2001; Lou. Metro Am. Ord. No. 193-2004, approved 12-10-2004; Lou. Metro Am. Ord. No. 146-2020, approved 12-9-2020; Lou. Metro Am. Ord. No. 179-2022, approved 12-7-2022)
Editor’s note:
Louisville Metro Ord. No. 146-2020 takes effect December 9, 2020, except with regard to the references to “lawful source of income” which shall become effective on March 1, 2021.