75A - PUBLIC HEARING 5 YR CONSOLITATED PLAN

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to achieve regionally determined goals like progress toward meeting each jurisdictions Regional Housing Needs Allocation for very low-income and low-income households. This gap has resulted in litigation between the City of Huntington Beach and the State of California.22 Lack of Local Private Fair Housing Outreach and Enforcement Lack of local private fair housing outreach and enforcement is a significant contributing factor to fair housing issues in Orange County. Although Orange County is served by two, high -quality private, non-profit fair housing organizations, they are underfunded and understaffed in comparison to the total need for their services. Victims of discrimination would be more able to exercise their rights, thus deterring future discrimination, if the capacity of existing organizations grew to meet the scale of the problem. Lack of Local Public Fair Housing Outreach and Enforcement Lack of local public fair housing outreach and enforcement is a significant contributing factor to fair housing issues in Orange County. There are no local public entities that conduct fair housing outreach and enforcement, with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing and HUD constituting the only public enforcement bodies that operate in Orange County. Advocates across Orange County and the state of California have reported issues with the timeline of the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing's investigations and the standards that it applies in making probable cause determinations. A local public enforcement agency, if created, would have the potential to be more responsive to victims of discrimination in Orange County than either the state or HUD is. Lack of Meaningful Language Access for Individuals with Limited English Proficiency Lack of meaningful language access for individuals with limited English proficiency is a significant contributing factor to fair housing issues in Orange County. Private landlords generally are not required to provide leases or other key documents or communications in the primary languages of individuals with limited English proficiency (LEP). This can create confusion about individuals' rights. Housing authorities frequently have staff who are fluent in Spanish and/or Vietnamese, but LEP speakers of other languages may have limited options, with housing authorities relying on paid translation or interpretation services to communicate. Lack of Private Investment in Specific Neighborhoods Lack of private investment in specific neighborhoods is not a significant contributing factor to fair housing issues in Orange County. There are neighborhoods, particularly disproportionately low- income, predominantly Hispanic neighborhoods, that have historically been subject to 22 Priscella Vega et al., State Sues Huntington Beach over Blocked Homebuilding, L.A. TIMES (Jan. 25, 2019), httos://www.latimes. com/soc aVdadypilot/news/tn-dpt-me-hb-housing-lawsuit-20190125-story.html. 314 75A-593