UCLA’s housing practices risk violating civil rights statutes by charging students higher rates for medically necessary housing accommodations, students and disability advocates alleged.
The Fair Housing Act of 1968, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 protect students with disabilities from discrimination while pursuing higher education. The bills contain specific language that aims to ensure students with disabilities who choose to live on college campuses have equitable access to housing.
But several UC students with disabilities were charged more for housing than their able-bodied peers, according to bills reviewed by the Daily Bruin. The students said they had to live in De Neve and Sunset Village – the only two dorm buildings with private bathrooms and the most expensive – because their disabilities required that they have a private bathroom
Nicholas Martinez, a UCLA alumnus who lived in a medically necessary single from 2023-25, was charged $5,985 for housing in spring 2025 – $1,009.50 more than he would have paid for a classic triple dormitory.
“I require these physical accommodations. It’s not a luxury I’m pursuing,” Martinez said. “Being forced to pay higher for necessary items at a public school is ridiculous.”
A third-year political science student who was granted anonymity due to fear of retaliation from the university, paid $6,360.75 in winter 2026 for their medically necessary single – $1,154.25 more than a standard classic triple. The higher housing costs had lasting financial consequences, forcing them to stretch aid packages to remain enrolled as they sought to keep the financial burden off their single working parent, they added.
The guiding principle behind federal disability law is ensuring equal access, said Christopher Knauf, a disability rights lawyer.
Institutions cannot shift the cost of required accommodations onto students under that framework, said Knauf, a lecturer at the University of Southern California’s Gould School of Law. Universities cannot use housing shortages as a valid excuse for not providing students with disabilities with proper accommodations, said Joseph Lento, a disability education attorney at LLF National Law Firm and LLG National Law Group, in an emailed statement.
“Every campus knows roughly how many single rooms it needs for medical accommodations,” Lento said in the statement. “Reserve them, prioritize them, eat the cost differential. Federal law says the university pays for compliance, not the student who needs the accommodation. Turning a civil right into an up-charge is never an option.”
Melyssa Gutierrez, a second-year business economics student, said she feels it is unfair for UCLA to punish her for a disability she cannot control. Gutierrez, who uses a wheelchair, said she has to pay $1,041 more per quarter for her single with a private bathroom than she would have for a classic triple.
“It’s not my fault I need my own room,” Gutierrez said. “I need my own room because I use a wheelchair, because I have medication and I have mobility issues that need to be addressed.”
UCLA Housing said in an emailed statement that the university is dedicated to providing equitable and inclusive housing for all students.
Students who require private bedrooms because of approved medical accommodations are charged the rate of the cheapest dorm in their building, even when placed in a single room to accommodate their needs, Housing said in the statement.
However, buildings at UCLA have different kinds of rooms and thus different pricing, Housing said in the statement. As such, students with disabilities may have to pay more if they are placed in dorms with more expensive rooms.
But UCLA’s practice of making students pay more for medically necessary singles violates the ADA, Lento said.
“The Department of Justice and Office of Civil Rights have said in settlement after settlement that you cannot make a disabled student pay more for equal access,” Lento said. “If the only reason the bill is higher is the disability, it’s illegal.”
UCLA has previously faced allegations of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act.
In 2025, two students sued UCLA for discriminatory practices against disabled students and violations of the ADA, alleging that the university failed to properly train its faculty in emergency evacuation procedures for students with disabilities. The lawsuit, which is ongoing, also alleged that UCLA failed to make its campus wheelchair-accessible.
[Related: Students with disabilities sue UCLA, UC Regents for discrimination]
A UC Office of the President spokesperson denied that students with disabilities who are approved for single rooms are charged a higher rate than they would otherwise pay for a double or triple.
“The University of California is committed to providing equitable and inclusive housing for all students consistent with their needs and in compliance with state and federal law and UC policy,” the UCOP spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “The well-being of all students is a priority for UC.”
UC Davis students with disabilities, though, say that’s not the case – and that they’re facing similar issues as their UCLA peers.
As a wheelchair user who needs live-in help, Sanah Keswani-Santiago, a fourth-year biotechnology and data science student at UC Davis, said she cannot live in her college’s dorms, and she instead pays more for an off-campus apartment.
Keswani-Santiago, added that increased housing costs for accommodations are prohibitive and can lead to students with disabilities having to compromise on their living situations
“Either you get forced to pay more or you get forced to live in a worse situation,” Keswani-Santiago said.
UC Davis News and Media Relations also declined to comment and referred the Daily Bruin to UCOP.
Marcella Renati, a UC Davis alumnus, said she did not seek any housing accommodations because she was not aware they existed, despite having health issues that could have helped her qualify for a single.
Renati said she unsuccessfully applied for a single dorm through the lottery system, and she could not afford her own apartment. Having roommates worsened her health issues, she added.
“They should be able to give us an equitable solution for pricing,” said Veda Diptiman, a fourth-year political science, public service and sociology student at UC Davis and chair of the Disability Justice Committee
