CRANBERRY TWP — The federal government sued — for the second time — a Cranberry Township-based property management company, alleging disability discrimination.

In a lawsuit filed in federal court April 5, the U.S. claimed Perry Homes, which manages several properties including Old Towne Rentals in Cranberry, discriminated against tenants by refusing to allow emotional support animals.

Attorneys for Perry Homes claim the government’s lawsuits are about changing, rather than enforcing, the Fair Housing Act. They say the FHA requires landlords to allow service animals, but does not require them to let tenants have emotional support animals.

“This is just another case of government overreach orchestrated by HUD (the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development) against our client to try to expand the requirements of the Fair Housing Act beyond what Congress intended,” the attorneys wrote in a statement. “It is a coercive effort to avoid the democratic process by trying to change the law through litigation instead of legislation.”

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