DiNapoli: State Agency Mishandled Housing Discrimination Complaints

October 17, 2024

The New York State Division of Human Rights (DHR) failed to properly investigate dozens of housing discrimination cases, undermining its mission to eliminate injustices and promote equal opportunity, according to an audit released today by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"New Yorkers who face housing discrimination are told they can report it to the state Division of Human Rights and that it will be investigated, but the agency often failed to do its job," DiNapoli said. "It lost cases due to carelessness and failed to properly or quickly investigate others. Tenants whose complaints were mishandled may have been left to face continued discrimination or forced to move. The agency should establish new procedures that ensure complaints are handled with the attention and respect they deserve. It is encouraging that the agency is taking steps to address the issues raised by this audit."

DHR's Housing Investigations Unit examines, prosecutes and adjudicates housing discrimination cases. Housing discrimination can occur when sellers, owners, landlords, real estate brokers or agents refuse to sell or negotiate the sale, lease or rental of housing based on a protected class, such as age, race, income, national origin, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital status, disability, military statues or other specified traits or characteristics. Auditors reviewed 306 of 2,236 housing discrimination complaints made to DHR from April 2019 to October 2023.

Claims Not Properly Investigated

DHR's complicated and poorly managed intake system for housing discrimination complaints resulted in lost, unprocessed or mislabeled claims. Officials could not account for 82 of 120 complaints (68%), which means some were never entered into the agency's computer case management system.

Some complaints that were not recorded in the system were found by DHR officials in a filing cabinet labeled the "Twilight Zone," where some cases labeled "defective" were filed, meaning they required more information and were not being investigated further. The agency is required by law to inform individuals if their case is deemed defective. When auditors called about a third of complainants, none recalled receiving a notification from DHR. Auditors found that eleven of 25 complaints in the Twilight Zone file were inappropriately deemed defective.

Claims Taking too Long to Investigate

DHR did not ensure its staff met the time frames established by state law or by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) when investigating housing discrimination claims. Auditors reviewed 175 complaints filed and found in 47% of cases, DHR officials either did not initiate the investigation or failed to notify the person accused of discrimination within 30 days as required under the law. In one case, it took 655 days or almost two years to serve the complaint against the accused.

In 69% of cases reviewed, DHR officials did not complete the investigation or notify the accused of the outcome within 100 days as required. In one case, it took over three years to complete the investigation for determining probable cause. On average, cases took DHR officials nearly six months to close.

Investigations Not Done Properly

Auditors found DHR investigators failed to include sufficient evidence of their efforts to reach out to complaints in their case files as required by HUD. In 61 of the 87 cases reviewed (70%), records did not include evidence that all investigation steps were completed before cases were dismissed. As a result, the thoroughness of these investigations comes into question and discrimination may have continued or gone unaddressed.

Cases Improperly Prioritized

Auditors found DHR investigators were not properly trained and supervised. In addition, housing discrimination cases referred to DHR by HUD were prioritized over cases reported directly to DHR by alleged victims. According to a DHR investigator, they were instructed to prioritize HUD cases because of federal reimbursement. Auditors determined DHR staff were more likely to follow required investigation steps in HUD cases than for non-federal cases.

DiNapoli's audit recommends DHR:

• Establish adequate internal controls over the handling, processing and investigation of all complaints - including those deemed defective - and ensure that all complaints are handled on time and appropriately, including:
  • Developing and implementing comprehensive written procedures which include a streamlined process for handling and tracking all incoming complaints in a timely and consistent manner.
  • Monitoring and segregating the duties of the staff responsible for logging, tracking and completing the initial review of complaints.
  • Conducting ongoing reconciliations of DHR's various intake logs with case management system records.
  • Providing adequate training for all staff involved in the complaint intake, processing and investigation process.
  • Actively monitoring DHR's intake and investigation procedures to ensure that complaints - including those marked as defective and non-federal cases - are handled on time and appropriately.
• Improve oversight of the investigation process to identify reasons for delays in case processing times and ensure case determinations are consistent and accurate.
• Develop a mechanism to promptly assign investigators to housing discrimination complaints and ensure all complaints are investigated as required by state law.
• Properly prioritize complaints and investigate in the correct order.

In response, DHR officials generally agreed with the audit's recommendations and said the agency has made "major" changes to its executive leadership, brought on more investigators and will conduct internal audits, increase training and overhaul their case management system and intake process.

Audit
Investigation of Housing Discrimination Complaints