Page 25 - The Civil Rights Division booklet

in areas such as housing, credit and taxes, while they are on
active duty. It covers issues such as rental agreements, se-
curity deposits, prepaid rent, eviction, installment contracts,
credit card interest rates, mortgage interest rates, mortgage
foreclosure, civil judicial proceedings, automobile leases, life
insurance, health insurance and income tax payments.

Meanwhile, the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee
Voting Act (UOCAVA) requires states to allow members of
the armed forces serving overseas, as well as other United
States Citizens living abroad, to vote by absentee ballot in
federal elections. The Civil Rights Division has the authority
to bring an enforcement action if a state does not satisfy its
responsibility under the law. For more information, visit
www.justice.gov/crt/voting/misc/activ_uoc.php.

Religious Discrimination

While many of the Division’s civil rights statutes protect
individuals from discrimination based on religion, in addition
to race, national origin and other factors, there are certain
efforts that apply specifically to religious freedom. The land-
use provisions of Religious Land Use and Institutionalized
Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) protect the religious exercise
of religious assemblies and institutions in the context of local
zoning and landmarking laws. These provisions prohibit lo-
cal governments from taking actions, such as denying per-
mits to build or expand places of worship, that substantially
burden religious exercise without sufficient justification.

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