A bill banning cities from implementing bans on income discrimination targeted towards landlords passed the Kentucky Senate last Tuesday, Feb. 20, with a vote of 25-11. The bill, titled Senate Bill 25, is in response to a bill passed in mid-February by the Lexington City Council. The bill passed by the City Council stated that renters cannot discriminate against tenants based on where the tenant’s rent funds come from, and will require landlords to accept federal housing assistance as a form of income from their tenants.
The Senate Majority Leader, Sen. Damon Thayer (R-Georgetown), has stated that his constituents and others from the Fayette County area have cited concern regarding Lexington’s bill. Thayer stated, “They see the camel’s nose under the tent on this in cities across America where left-wing liberals on city councils are trying to force landlords into taking below market and I’m not going to stand for it while we got an opportunity to do something about it in this body.” The Senate Leader later stated, “You better believe this is a response to what they’re doing in Lexington.”
The bill passed from the Senate does have its critics in the chamber. Sen. Reginald “Reggie” Thomas (D-Lexington) stated in response to the bill “What we’re doing today, and let’s be clear, is we are discriminating against poor people.” Thomas later stated, “Three-fourths or 75% of those Section 8 tenants are African-American. So, this has a backdoor discrimination against those types of individuals.”
Sen. David Yates (D-Louisville) was another critic of the bill passed by the Senate. He stated “If someone had lots of evictions or is a sex offender or just dirty, whatever it is or because you have a bad feeling about it and the smell of wine, it has to be that. It cannot be solely for the basis of income.” Another criticism comes from the argument that the bill could hurt tenants who are Veterans, as many get federal assistance after they are discharged or disabled.
Other members of the Senate agreed with Thayer, however, Sen. Stephen West (R-Paris) stated, “Fixing the housing crisis by putting new requirements on the backs of landlords is not necessarily the way to go.” West later said, “This is the landlord’s property, They are in the best position to know what types of federal programs to accept or not accept.”
In response to the criticism against the bill, Thayer stated “What’s happening in Lexington is discrimination against the free market and the men and women who are in the business of being landlords and renting property to the citizens of Fayette County.”
The bill will now go to the State House, and if passed, is said to be likely vetoed by Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear. If the veto is overridden by the State Legislature, then it will overturn Fayette County’s ban as well as a ban passed in 2020 by Louisville, which had similar contents to the Fayette-Lexington bill.