A Brief History of Discriminatory Language Instruments
In the Southern United States from the 1920s to the 1940s, cities had laws requiring People of Color to live in certain areas. Property was also restricted by instruments that created “white only” subdivisions. In 1948, the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case Shelley v. Kraemer struck down racially restrictive housing covenants. In 1985, Chapter 201 of the Texas Property Code became law, allowing communities to change deed restrictions that had discriminatory language, but the process remained expensive and difficult. On September 1, 2021, Senate Bill 30 (also known as the “Senator Royce West Act”) went into effect. This new law created a streamlined process for individuals to remove discriminatory language from real property records, as part of Texas Property Code Section 5.026(a).
Our Equitable Development Initiative (EDI) team has created a Racial Covenant Language Flier with Templates so you can begin the process yourself. For more information, contact our EDI team at (713) 652-0077 Ext. 8108.
FAQ
Here’s a breakdown of the process to remove discriminatory language.
Q: Who can request discriminatory language be removed?
A: A property owner in the subdivision, an individual with an interest in the real property shown in the chain of title documents, or an individual with permission from the property owner.
Q: How do you request that the discriminatory language be removed?
A: File 3 forms with the Clerk of the District Court in the County where the document containing
the discriminatory language is recorded in the real property records.
- Motion to Remove Discriminatory Language (Motion);
- Affidavit; and
- Proposed Findings of Fact & Conclusions of Law (also known as FOF & COL).
Q: What happens after you file the 3 forms listed above with the District Clerk?
A: The Court will review the 3 forms that you filed. The Court may issue the FOF & COL without notice to anyone else and without your providing the Court any additional evidence. If 15 days pass and the Court has not granted your Motion, then your Motion is automatically granted. Once the Court issues the FOF & COL, the Court must send the findings to the appropriate County Clerk within 10 days of issuing.
Q: What happens next?
A: The County Clerk must file the District Court’s issued FOF & COL into the same real property records where the original document with discriminatory language was initially filed for free. The County Clerk must index its filings to help the public find the filing. The County Clerk must then remove the racial covenant on the original filed document by placing a black box over it.
Lone Star Legal Aid is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit law firm focused on advocacy for low-income and underserved populations. Lone Star Legal Aid serves millions of people at 125% of federal poverty guidelines that reside in 72 counties in the eastern and Gulf Coast regions of Texas, and 4 counties of Southwest Arkansas. Lone Star Legal Aid focuses its resources on maintaining, enhancing, and protecting income and economic stability; preserving housing; improving outcomes for children; establishing and sustaining family safety and stability, health and well‐being; and assisting populations with special vulnerabilities, like those with disabilities, or who are elderly, homeless, or have limited English language skills. To learn more about Lone Star Legal Aid, visit our website at www.lonestarlegal.org.
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