Michigan landlords who rent five or more units could be forced to accept Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers under a bill package in Lansing.

The Legislature is considering Senate bills 205, 206, and 207, as well as House bills 4062 and 4063. Together, the bills seek to prohibit landlords who have five or more units from discriminating against tenants or prospective tenants based on their income source, such as housing assistance, Social Security, or veterans benefits.

Reps. Jennifer Conlin, D-Ann Arbor Charter Township, and Jason Morgan, D-Ann Arbor, say these bills would improve tenants’ rights in Michigan.

“We made a step toward eliminating systemic barriers in the housing industry,” Conlin said in a news release. “Housing is a basic human right, and no one should be unhoused in Michigan. These bills are about ensuring every Michigander has equitable access to housing.”

HB 4063 and SB 207 would amend the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act to include income sources as a protected category when it comes to real estate transactions.

“Housing is not a luxury — it’s a basic life necessity,” Morgan said in a statement. “Ensuring that the good families, veterans and seniors of Michigan are protected from discrimination based on their source of their income is fundamental to ensuring our hometowns are strong and inclusive.”

The Property Management Association of Michigan opposes legislation that expands the Elliott-Larsen Act to include income sources as a protected class.

“Source of income would include Section 8 Housing Choice Vouchers, which is a program that is strictly voluntary in nature,” the group told CapCon in an email. “Many property owners choose not to participate in the program because of the inefficient manner in which the program is administered, and this legislation would force landlords to accept the vouchers and the bureaucracy that goes with it. We look forward to working with members of the Legislature to come up with alternative solutions to increase access to affordable housing in Michigan.”

The nonpartisan House Fiscal Agency estimates the bill would raise costs to the Department of Civil Rights by an unknown amount. The annual salary costs for an additional complaint investigation investigator are about $160,000.

These bills would allow tenants and would-be tenants to file lawsuits against landlords who violate the proposed laws, seeking damages, injunctive relief, or both.

A proposal to reallocate $630 million meant to pay down teacher pension debt to other priorities is on the June 20 House agenda. It is House Bill 5803, sponsored by Rep. Matt Koleszar, D-Plymouth.

A successful petition to move the bill to the House floor would lead to a vote to reallocate the money that had been scheduled to help pay down $29.9 billion in debt to teachers and others in the Michigan Public Schools Employee Retirement System. The bill would still need the Senate’s approval and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s signature.

The change envisioned by the bill would reduce pension fund contributions and increase costs for taxpayers by another $1.4 billion, according to the Reason Foundation.

The pension fund is one of the largest obligations taxpayers face, said James Hohman, director of fiscal policy at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. “The state accidentally made school employees the state’s largest creditors by promising pension benefits and not setting aside enough money to pay for them,” he told CapCon.

Koleszar did not respond to an email seeking comment. House Democrats also did not respond to a request for comment.

Two Republican representatives previously told the governor they oppose the plan. Reps. David Martin, R-Davison, and John Roth, R-Interlochen, sent a letter to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer which said in part that annual debt paydown payments ”must remain in the teachers’ retirement system ... to pay down the state’s unfunded obligations.”

Rep. Nancy DeBoer, R-Holland is vice chair of the House School Aid Appropriations Subcommittee. She also opposes the move. ”Diverting money from the teacher retirement system in past state budgets created this massive funding hole,” DeBoer told CapCon in an email. “It’s hard to imagine that diverting more money, again, is financially responsible. Overall, the teacher pension retirement system still owes the school employees over 30 billion dollars more. Paying this debt off would free up billions for classrooms and benefit current and retired school employees."