No one should be denied a home because of how they pay rent.
But right now, landlords in Lincoln can refuse to rent to people who would pay for housing through disability benefits, social security, veteran benefits, or housing vouchers. It’s called source-of-income discrimination, and it hurts families, veterans, seniors, and people with disabilities.
That’s why Appleseed and our Lincoln For Fair Housing partners have been talking to our neighbors about a ballot initiative that will prohibit landlords and property managers from turning away tenants based solely on how they pay rent.
Today, the Lincoln City Council placed this ballot initiative onto Lincoln’s May 6, 2025 general election ballot!
Source-of-income protections work for everyone. While Lincoln faces an affordable housing crisis, source-of-income discrimination has been banned in 22 states and 128 cities and towns in the United States to help more folks access safe, affordable, and accessible housing. In those cities and states, the voucher failure rate has been cut in half.
Here’s what you can do:
➡️ Lincolnites, make sure you’re registered to vote! Make a plan to vote FOR fair housing on May 6.
➡️ Volunteer to get out the vote! It’s easy, and we’ll train you how to do it.
➡️ Learn more about the issue via the campaign fact sheet.
➡️ Share your story if you’ve experienced source-of-income discrimination.
➡️ Contribute online to Lincoln for Fair Housing.
Our city can adopt source-of-income protections and immediately increase Lincolnites’ chances at safe, affordable housing. Prohibiting landlords and property managers from turning away prospective tenants based solely on how they pay rent is the right thing to do.
Thank you for your advocacy. Together, we can ensure that ALL Lincolnites can find a place to call home!
