Baltimore County agreed this week to pay $30 million over the next 10 years to construct 1,000 Section 8 houses in affluent neighborhoods in an out-of-court settlement with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and other groups, according to an article by Leland Vittert for Fox News.
The NAACP sued Baltimore County for allegedly segregating tenants of Section 8 housing by placing them all in one area, according to the article. Baltimore County has now settled outside of court in a case that is sure to be watched closely by cities around the country.
In addition to the settlement, Baltimore County is also planning to introduce legislation that will prohibit landlords from denying Section 8 tenants.
Although it is doubtful that this legislation restricting landlords would pass, given the strong resistance by developers and landlords, the agreement requires future county executives to introduce the same legislation until it or a state law passes, according to an article by the Baltimore Brew.
Although the proposed legislation faces strong opposition, with some saying, “It’s destined to fail,” according to the article by Fox News, there are some proponents to the legislation.
From the article:
The argument from the NAACP and its allies, though, is that typical Section 8 subsidized housing programs bunch poor people together, and that this only fuels more crime and other problems.
Under the new plan, residents from low-income neighborhoods would be placed all around Baltimore County, essentially integrating the poor among wealthier families.
