Effective January 1, the ITPA (now Civil Code §1940.05) prohibits a landlord from several types of exploitation based on a person’s immigration or citizenship status. Under the law, immigration or citizenship status includes the following:
- a person’s actual immigration or citizenship status;
- a perception that a person has a particular immigration or citizenship status; or,
- a person is associated with a person who has, or is perceived to have, a particular immigration or citizenship status.
The third type of status is to prevent landlords from threatening to report a tenant’s family member or friend, even if they do not live in the unit.
The types of landlord conduct now prohibited include the following:
- asking tenants about their immigration status.
- threatening to disclose immigration status of anyone in unit or anyone associated with tenant in an attempt to induce tenants to move out.
- threatening to report or report immigration status in retaliation for complaint.
- evicting based on anyone’s immigration status.
- reporting tenants’ suspected immigration status.
