Bias on L.I. now verboten

ALBANY — State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office reached a settlement with a Long Island organization that for decades allowed only individuals of primarily German descent to live on its land, the Daily News has learned.

Schneiderman had been investigating the German-American Settlement League in Suffolk County’s Yaphank since 2015 for its violation of fair-housing laws that were passed to promote racial integration.

“The (league’s) discriminatory practices were a remnant of a disgraceful past that has no place in New York or anywhere,” Schneiderman said.

The league, a nonprofit organization that owns 40 acres of land in Yaphank, which it leases to homeowners, was created in the 1930s; at the time, it openly promoted support for the Nazi regime.

According to the group’s bylaws, only individuals who are “primarily of German extraction and of good character and reputation” can own the homes on league-owned property.

Under the settlement with Schneiderman’s office to be formally announced Wednesday, the German-American Settlement is prohibited from discriminating against individuals on the basis of race or national origin.

It also requires the group to reform its membership policies, governance structure and internal controls to ensure they are in compliance with federal, state and local fair-housing and not-for-profit laws.

The league also has agreed to replace its president and treasurer and report to the attorney general’s office over the next three years about its compliance measures.

“This agreement will once and for all put an end to the (league’s) discrimination,” Schneiderman said.

League officials could not be reached for comment.