Court Rules Against Indiana in Recovery Home Discrimination Case

INDIANAPOLIS – A federal court has delivered a major blow to state-imposed restrictions on recovery housing, ruling that Indiana violated multiple federal laws by discriminating against homes for people with disabilities.

In decisions issued this week, U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Walton Pratt found that the State of Indiana unlawfully discriminated against four recovery home operators and their residents in Huntington, DeKalb, and Dubois counties. The court ruled the state violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Fair Housing Act, and the Rehabilitation Act by classifying these residential homes as commercial “Class 1” structures.

The legal battle centered on whether recovery homes—where residents live in family-style settings to maintain sobriety—should be subject to the same building codes as commercial businesses. The state, via the Department of Homeland Security, had insisted these homes install expensive upgrades, such as commercial sprinkler systems, which are not required for traditional single-family homes.

ACLU of Indiana Legal Director Ken Falk, who represented the homes, noted that the state’s requirements were not only costly but also fundamentally discriminatory.

“Even though the homes themselves were indistinguishable from homes being lived in by nuclear families, they had to adhere to these higher standards,” Falk said. “The whole purpose of these homes is to have an environment that mimics to the greatest extent possible the homes that most of us know, where people support each other.”

The ruling impacts Place of Grace and Harmony Home in Huntington County, Inspiration Ministries in DeKalb County, and Next Step Recovery Home in Dubois County. Because Place of Grace was forced to meet these improper commercial standards while building two new homes, the court awarded the nonprofit $206,232.11 in damages to cover the additional costs.

Falk emphasized that recovery homes are vital components of Indiana neighborhoods, providing peer support that is essential for overcoming substance abuse.

“People with disabilities are allowed to live in the same environments and be subject to the same rules as what we call nuclear families,” Falk stated. “I hope that people will just recognize… that this is no big deal.”

The court has permanently ordered the state to treat these recovery homes as “Class 2” residential structures, ensuring they are no longer burdened by commercial-grade building requirements.