SACRAMENTO – Assemblymember John Laird (D-Santa Cruz) today announced Governor Schwarzenegger signed AB 2800, the Civil Rights Housing Act of 2006. The measure, authored by Assemblymember Laird and co-sponsored by Equality California and the California Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, amends various California housing laws to specifically state that discrimination is prohibited based on race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, sex (including gender identity), marital status, sexual orientation, familial status and source of income.

“I’m pleased California is continuing to take a stand against discrimination,” said Mr. Laird. “The Civil Rights Housing Act of 2006 significantly improves housing protections in California by creating a single, comprehensive nondiscrimination standard.”

AB 2800 is the third in a series of bills authored by Assemblymember Laird to address discrimination. Other bills, AB 2900 in 2004 and AB 1400 in 2005, focused on nondiscrimination in the areas of employment and public accommodations. Both bills were signed into law.