President Reagan has given his support to compromise legislation to strengthen enforcement of anti-discrimination laws in housing, a Republican leader said Tuesday. Rep. Robert H. Michel, R-Ill, the House minority leader, said Tuesday that Reagan told him from by telephone from the Toronto economic summit that he believes the agreement between congressional liberals and conservatives, as well as between civil rights groups and real estate agents, ``preserves the constitutional right to jury trials and (he) hopes the Congreess will move quickly on the legislation to strengthen fair housing laws.'' Michel made his comments at a news conference attended by congressional leaders, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights and the National Association of Realtors. The House should take up the fair housing legislation either Wednesday afternoon or Thursday. The Senate also is expected to act quickly after the House approves the measure. The House Judiciary Committee approved legislation on April 27 which would authorize the Department of Housing and Urban Development to levy fines and issue injunctions against people who discriminate in the rental or sale of housing. Under current law, HUD can play only a conciliatory role, attempting to mediate housing disputes. Enforcement of the law depends on private individuals, who can take a discrimination case to court, and on the Justice Department, which has authority to prosecute if there is evidence of a ``pattern or practice'' of housing discrimiantion. The bill sets up a new system of administrative law judges who would hear cases of alleged housing discrimination. If a party were dissatisfied with the decision, he or she then could go to federal court. The Reagan administration and the Realtors contended that the process was constitutionally flawed because it would subject a defendant to fines without benefit of a jury trial, as required under the Constitution's 7th Amendement. The compromise, to come as an amendment proposed by Rep. Hamilton Fish Jr., R-N.Y., will provide that any party charged with housing discrimination can elect to have the accusation litigated in federal court. If no such election is made, the case will be handled by the administrative process. Rep. Don Edwards, chairman of the House Judiciary civil and constitutional rights subcommittee, said, ``We believe (the bill) will do the job of putting teeth into fair housing law. ``Besides putting teeth into fair housing laws, (it) provides anti-discrimination protection to individuals with handicaps and to families with children,'' Edwards told the news conference. ``These new classes need protection, as our long study of the matter has clearly pointed out. These provisions are an essential part of the bill.'' Nestor R. Weigand Jr., president of the Realtors, said the compromise was a milestone in the history of fair housing legislation. ``Our respective organizations have been able to overcome their disagreements of the past decade and come to an agreement that will ensure free and equal access to housing for all Americans, as well as expedite enforcement proceedings in fair housing disputes.'' Sens. Bob Dole, R-Kan., the Senate minority leader, and Edward M. Kennedy, D-Mass., chairman of the Senate Labor and Human Resources Committee, each said he expects the Senate to act promptly and complete action on the bill before Congress recesses for the year.
