HUD Proposes Regulations Banning Housing Discrimination Against Gays

From the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which notes that a 2007 study showed that 30% of same-sex couples in Michigan faced discrimination when attempting to rent or buy a home.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development today proposed new regulations intended to ensure that its core housing programs are open to all eligible persons, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. View the proposed rule announced today. “This is a fundamental issue of fairness,” said HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “We have a responsibility to make certain that public programs are open to all Americans. With this proposed rule, we will make clear that a person’s eligibility for federal housing programs is, and should be, based on their need and not on their sexual orientation or gender identity.”

HUD is seeking public comment on a number of proposed areas including: Prohibiting lenders from using sexual orientation or gender identity as a basis to determine a borrower’s eligibility for FHA-insured mortgage financing. FHA’s current regulations provide that a mortgage lender’s determination of the adequacy of a borrower’s income “shall be made in a uniform manner without regard to” specified prohibited grounds. The proposed rule would add actual or perceived sexual orientation and gender identity to the prohibited grounds to ensure FHA-approved lenders do not deny or otherwise alter the terms of mortgages on the basis of irrelevant criteria.

HUD is also launching the first-ever national study of housing discrimination against LGBT Americans. On Monday HUD begins accepting public comments on the proposed law. I'll post a reminder, you know the haters will be ALL over it.

(Tipped by JMG reader Anita)

DADT Cost $200M Since 2005

According to a just-released report from the federal Government Accountability Office, in the last five years almost $200M was spent on ejecting gay troops. Most of that money went to training replacements.

That means the average expulsion under DADT cost taxpayers $52,800, partly because a significant number of those discharged held a "critical occupation or important language skill," the GAO reported. At least "1,442 (39 percent) of the servicemembers separated under the policy held critical occupations, such as infantryman and security forces, while 23 (less than 1 percent) of the servicemembers held skills in an important foreign language, such as Arabic or Spanish," the report reads. "Seven separated servicemembers held both a critical occupation and an important foreign language skill."

Obama Calls For Federal Wage Freeze

President Obama today called for a two year freeze on the wages of all federal employees.

According to the administration, the two-year pay freeze would save $2 billion for the remainder of fiscal year 2011 and $28 billion over the next five years. The freeze would not apply to military personnel, but would apply to all civilian federal employees, including those in various alternative pay plans and those working at the Department of Defense. Federal workers shouldn't feel singled out: The White House says more tough choices are on the way. "This freeze is not to punish federal workers or to disrespect the work that they do," the White House said in a statement. "It is the first of many actions we will take in the upcoming budget to put our nation on sound fiscal footing -- which will ask for some sacrifice from us all."

Wanna bet the teabaggers still find a problem with this?

Daily Ungrumble

Looking for some bright light in today's darkness, over the last year we've all learned waaay more about how the federal government works than we probably ever got out of years of high school civics classes. I mean, come on, "cloture"?