Committee holds first hearing on bill to bar landlords from rejecting tenants for public benefits

The House Community Revitalization Committee held a first hearing on House Bill 135, which would prohibit landlords from denying current or prospective tenants housing solely because they receive certain public benefits.

Representative Megan Lawson Rowe, the bill sponsor, told the committee the measure would not stop landlords from verifying a tenant’s lawful source of income but would expand the definition of lawful income to include federal low‑income housing assistance, the Ohio Works First program, grants and loans administered by the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, Medicaid, veterans benefits, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, Women, Infants and Children (WIC) benefits and Social Security. "This bill seeks to alleviate some of the burdens faced by an already stressed population by strengthening our existing fair housing laws to prohibit income based rental discrimination by landlords towards current and prospective tenants in our state," Lawson Rowe said in sponsor testimony.

Committee members asked for clarifications about how the bill would interact with existing federal law and with landlords’ screening and administrative processes. Vice Chair Mullins asked how the proposal differed from protections under the federal Fair Housing Act; Lawson Rowe said the bill would provide state‑level protections "beyond what the federal government has in place in terms of ... source of income." Representative Brownlee requested a concrete example of how a family using benefits could be denied housing; Lawson Rowe described a scenario in which a landlord tells an applicant that an apartment is not available because the applicant has a housing voucher.

Ranking Member Brewer and other members said they have heard from constituents and stakeholder groups about instances where applicants appear to face stigma or denial because they list benefits such as SNAP or WIC on applications. Lawson Rowe told the committee she has research on such incidents and said she would provide that information to the committee. The chair asked that any materials be sent to the chair for distribution to committee members.

Some committee members raised a separate concern that barriers for landlords — such as additional paperwork or program rules attached to certain subsidy programs — may drive reluctance to rent to voucher holders, rather than intentional discrimination. Lawson Rowe said she did not have a definitive answer on whether administrative requirements are a primary driver and said she is open to discussing amendments.

No committee vote was taken. The chair closed the first hearing after members’ questions and indicated the sponsor would provide follow‑up information to the committee.