Maryland renters could see new protections against discrimination by landlords under a bill passed Monday by the House of Delegates.

The bill prohibits landlords from establishing policies that disparately affect a specific group of people based on their “race, color, religion, sex, disability, marital status, familial status, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, source of income, or military status.”

“Let's say a housing provider said that if you call 9-1-1 three times in a six-month period, we're evicting you. That's my policy as a housing provider,” said Del. Vaughn Stewart, a Democrat from Montgomery County, during Monday’s floor debate. “That is a racially and gender and otherwise discriminatory, neutral-on-its-face provision that could have a disparate impact on women who are victims of domestic violence.”

The proposed protections reflect a standard established by the U.S. Supreme Court. However, the first Trump Administration issued a rule in September 2020 that altered that standard.

“While this rule was overturned by the Biden administration on March 17, 2023, I am concerned that President Trump will reinstate his 2020 rule or a similar policy,” Congressman Glenn Ivey wrote in written testimony.

He said the proposed state bill will protect Marylanders “from the arbitrary rulemaking of changing administrations and safeguard their protections from discriminatory policies on the state level.”

Opponents of the bill have raised concerns that it would lead to a flurry of lawsuits against businesses that did not intend to discriminate.

In its testimony, the Maryland Building Industry Association criticized the measure as “overly vague.” and said it would allow tenants to claim discrimination “with no evidence of any discriminatory intent.”

The state Senate has not yet considered the measure.