TRENTON
– Division on Civil Rights Director
Chinh Q. Le announced today that a record
86 percent of multiple-dwelling rental property
owners who are required to do so have submitted,
on time, an annual report to the Division
describing the race and ethnicity of their
housing applicants and leaseholders.
However,
Director Le also noted that many other multiple-dwelling
owners still have not met their obligation
to file the on-line reports, which are mandatory
under New Jersey’s Multiple Dwelling
Reporting Rule (MDRR) for owners of apartment
buildings containing 25 or more rental units.
Le reminded those property owners they face
increased filing fees, as well as possible
Division-imposed financial penalties, if
they continue to delay or fail to file.
“We
are encouraged by the excellent compliance
rate we’ve seen from New Jersey’s
multiple dwelling rental property owners
for this filing period,” said Director
Le. “These on-line MDRR reports are
significant because they help us to ensure
that landlords are opening their apartment
buildings to all eligible persons, and they
allow us to ‘red flag’ potential
patterns of discrimination. We are committed
to ensuring fair housing practices, and
urge any multiple-dwelling owners who have
not yet met their MDRR reporting obligation
to do so as soon as possible.”
Under
state law, multiple-dwelling property owners
are required to file their on-line MDRR
reports on or before January 31 of each
year. Information contained in the reports
must cover the period from Jan. 1 through
December 31 of the previous year. In addition
to providing information on the racial and
ethnic make-up of their rental populations
and pools of housing applicants, landlords
must also furnish information concerning
the degree of access they provide to persons
with disabilities.
According to Director Le, compliance by
property owners with the January 31 filing
deadline has increased steadily each year
since 2003, when the Division on Civil Rights
– as a means of addressing a mere
30 percent rate of timely compliance –
stepped up enforcement efforts.
In
2008, the Division began requiring that
property owners file the MDRR reports on-line,
which is also believed to have helped increase
timely compliance. Previously, property
owners had the option of filing either on-line,
by mail or by fax.
Today,
property owners must complete their annual
MDRR reports on-line using the WebMDRR filing
application available on the Division’s
Web site www.NJCivilRights.org.
Director
Le noted that the ease and efficiency of
on-line filing provides considerable cost
savings to both property owners and the
Division. He said the Division believes
that increased familiarity with the system
probably contributed to this year’s
record timely compliance.
Multiple-dwelling
property owners who do not file their MDRR
reports on time are subject to increasing
late filing fees of $100, $250, or $500
if their reports are not filed by February
14, March 1 and March 31, respectively.
Property owners who have not filed by April
30 may be served an Order to Show Cause
for their failure to file, and are subject
to a penalty in an amount designated by
the Director.
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