Sen. Schatz on HUD Housing Discrimination Complaint Against Facebook

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U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, a member of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, released the following statement after the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) filed a formal complaint against Facebook. In its complaint, HUD alleges Facebook allowed homeowners and tenants to discriminate against potential buyers and tenants through targeted ads that allowed them limit ads for homes to certain people, violating the Fair Housing Act.

“This is a step in the right direction. No one should be denied a home because of their gender, ethnicity, disability, or religion,” said Sen. Schatz. “I’m glad Secretary Carson followed through with reopening this investigation into Facebook’s unfair and discriminatory practices, I hope this is a sign that HUD will recommit to its mission to eliminate housing discrimination.”

During a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on housing in April, Senator Schatz questioned HUD Secretary Ben Carson about HUD’s decision to terminate an investigation into Facebook first initiated by former Secretary Julian Castro. In his testimony, Carson revealed for the first time that the investigation had been reopened.