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In the only one week after the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. . When the Fair Housing Act (Title VIII of the Civil Rights Act Of 1968 ) was first enacted, it prohibited discrimination only on the basis of race, color, religion and national origin. In 1974 , sex was added to the list of protected classes, and in 1988 , disability and familial status (the presence or anticipated presence of children under 18 in a household) were added. The United States Department Of Housing And Urban Development is the cabinet agency with the statutory authority to enforce the Fair Housing Act administratively. The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development has delegated fair housing enforcement and compliance activities to HUD's Office of Fair Housing and Opportunity (FHEO) and HUD's Office of General Counsel. FHEO is one of the United States' largest federal civil rights agencies. It has a staff of more than 600 people located in 54 offices around the United States. The current head of FHEO is Assistant Secretary Kim Kendrick. Individuals who believe they have experienced housing discrimination can file a complaint with FHEO at no charge. FHEO funds and has working agreements with many state and local governmental agencies where "substantially equivalent" fair housing laws are in place. Under these agreements, FHEO refers complaints to the state or locality where the alleged incident occurred, and those agencies investigate and process the case instead of FHEO. This is known as FHEO's Fair Housing Assistance Program (or "FHAP"). There is also a network of private, non-profit fair housing advocacy organizations throughout the country. Some are funded by FHEO's Fair Housing Initiatives Program (or "FHIP"), and some operate with private donations or grants from other sources. Victims of housing discrimination need not go through HUD or any other governmental agency to pursue their rights, however. The Fair Housing Act confers jurisdiction to hear cases on federal district courts. The United States Department Of Justice also has jurisdiction to file cases on behalf of the United States where there is a pattern and practice of discrimination or where HUD has found discrimination in a case and either party elects to go to federal court instead of continuing in the HUD administrative process. It should be noted that the Fair Housing Act does not apply to landlords renting or leasing space in their primary residence. SEE ALSO EXTERNAL LINKS
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