Anoka, Minnesota’s ‘Crime-Free’ Housing Program Discriminates Against Tenants With Mental Health Disabilities

On November 7, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) informed the city of Anoka, Minnesota, that its “crime-free” housing program violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Fair Housing Act. The program denied tenants with mental health disabilities an equal opportunity to receive emergency assistance because if they called, they risked eviction.

Under the city’s rental licensing and so-called “crime free” housing ordinance, the city can penalize landlords for “nuisance calls” to their properties. Nuisance calls include disorderly conduct and what the city describes as repeated “unfounded” calls to the police. The city . . .