Prohibiting Religious Groups From Using Meeting Room Leads To Legal Trouble For Arizona HOA
An Arizona HOA recently settled a religious discrimination lawsuit brought against it by a group of homeowners who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("LDS"). The suit was brought in response to the HOA's adoption of a rule prohibiting religious groups from using its meeting room. (The Arizona Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in housing based on a person's race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or disability.) The lawsuit led to a settlement with the Arizona Attorney General's Office.
Among the terms of the settlement are the requirements that the association:
- adopt a revised room-use policy that eliminates religion as a factor for either charging for rooms or denying room requests;
- provide training to officers and employees of the association on Arizona's fair housing laws;
- pay the Attorney General's Civil Rights Division $1,000 to fund the monitoring of the HOA's compliance with the settlement agreement for the next two years; and
- reimburse the LDS Family Home Evening Group for the fees it paid to use the room as well as its reasonable attorneys' fees.
Like Arizona, Colorado law also prohibits discriminating against "any person because of disability, race, creed, color, sex, marital status, familial status, religion, national origin, or ancestry in the terms, conditions, or privileges pertaining to any housing ..." Colorado HOAs should take note of this cautionary tale out of Arizona and be careful not to adopt any rules that can be viewed as discriminating based on religious factors, including charging only religious groups for the use of HOA facilities or denying or approving use request based on a group's religious affiliation.