Los Angeles to Pay Nearly $40 Million to Settle Federal Lawsuit Over Affordable Housing Accessibility

The city of Los Angeles has agreed to pay $38.2 million to settle allegations it failed to meet federal accessibility requirements when it used Housing and Urban Development grant funds for multifamily affordable housing, the U.S. Department of Justice announced on Aug. 26. The settlement resolves a 2017 whistleblower suit filed by a Los Angeles resident who uses a wheelchair, and by the Fair Housing Council of the San Fernando Valley, a nonprofit disability-rights advocacy group. The claims resolved are allegations, and there has been no determination of liability, the Justice Department said. A “relator share”—that portion of a settlement received by a whistleblower—has not yet been determined, according to the agency....