Agents overseen by New Rochelle-based real estate broker Pasquale Marciano violated local and state laws by refusing to rent apartments to investigators who indicated that they intended to use a Section 8 Housing Choice voucher, according to a statement from the Office of the Attorney General.

Under a recent agreement with the OAG, Mariano must pay $40,000, place at least nine Section 8 tenants in buildings he owns, and agents must undergo antidiscrimination training, the OAG said in a statement. Marciano is the owner of Century 21 Marciano, Anthony Marciano Real Estate Inc. and New Roc Property Management.

According to the AG’s statement, as the owner and head real estate broker at Century 21 Marciano, Marciano oversaw the rental leasing practices of more than 25 real estate sales agents representing Westchester landlords seeking to rent apartments. An investigation by the Housing Rights Initiative found that Century 21 Marciano enforced a policy that prohibited Section 8 holders from submitting applications for rental units. Century 21 Marciano agents specifically told investigators that the units they inquired about did not accept Section 8 vouchers because they “preferred not to,” which is a violation of state and local antidiscrimination laws.

“Discrimination against low-income New Yorkers denies opportunities to those most in need of housing assistance,” Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement. “This agreement will open up housing specifically for low-income New Yorkers and send a clear message that this kind of discrimination is unacceptable in our communities. I want to thank the Housing Rights Initiative for their help with this investigation and consistent work to fight housing discrimination.”

Under the agreement with OAG, Marciano and any customer-facing staff member at his companies must undergo anti-discrimination training. Marciano must also implement an anti-discrimination policy and distribute it to everyone involved in the rental process at his companies. Rental applications must include clear anti-discrimination statements containing the sentence, “we are happy to consider applicants who have housing vouchers or subsidies.”

Marciano must also publicly advertise all vacant units and include that government housing vouchers, such as Section 8, are accepted on every rental listing. Finally, Marciano must ensure that rental application fees are capped at the $20 maximum and, during the five-year period of the agreement, must also waive broker fees for any applicants seeking to use a government housing subsidy for their rental.