Under City of Boulder Ordinance, a landlord may not discriminate against a tenant on the basis of "...race, creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, religion, national origin, ancestry, pregnancy, parenthood, custody of a minor child, or mental or physical disability of the individual or such individual's friends or associates...." Section 12-1-2, B.R.C. 1981. Certain exceptions are provided for: social, fraternal, religious, or educational organizations or clubs; landlords of single-sex or elderly (over 55) housing; and, landlords who rent out a room in their homes. Other than denial of housing to an individual, discrimination also includes charging different rents or deposits, requiring different lengths of lease, or establishing different lease conditions on the basis of the above-listed categories.

The City of Boulder's ordinance prohibits more types of discrimination than federal or state law. A tenant who believes that a landlord has discriminated against him or her or a landlord or tenant who wants clarification or a copy of the law should contact the Office of Human Rights, Department of Housing and Human Services, Second Floor, New Britain Building, 1101 Arapahoe, P.O. Box 791, Boulder, Colorado 80306 (441-3140). Other options include contacting and filing a complaint with H.U.D. The Federal Fair Housing Act also prohibits discrimination. The terms of the Act may be utilized by private parties against landlords who discriminate.