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HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinance 6885 ORDINANCE NO, AN ORDINANCE DECLARING THE POLICY OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH TO BE IN FURTHERANCE OF THE RIGHT OF EVERY PERSON TO HAVE A.(jqESS TO ADEQUATE HOUSING OF HIS OWN CHOICE WIT REGARD TO RACE, COLOR, RE- LIGION OR NATIONAL ORIGIN; DEFINING TERMS; ADOPT- ING REGULATIONS CONCERNING FINANCING OF DWELLINGS; PROVIDING REGULATIONS CONCERNING BROKERAGE SERVICES; PROVIDING CERTAIN EXEMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS; SET- TING UP A PROCEDURE FOR HANDLING COMPLAINTS; PRO- VIDING FOR INVESTIGATION AND CONCILIATION PRO- CEDURES; PROVIDING FOR CERTIFICATION OF THE HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION FINDINGS TO THE CITY ATTORNEY; AUTHORIZING THE CITY ATTORNEY TO INSTITUTE PROCEED- INGS IN THE MUNICIPAL COURT, STATING THAT REMEDIES CONTAINED HEREIN ARE NOT ADMINISTRATIVE PREREQUISITES TO ACTION UNDER OTHER LAWS; AUTHORIZING COOPERATION WITH THE SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT; FORBIDDING INTIMIDATION; PROVIDING FOR A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES OR PARTS OF ORDI- NANCES INCONSISTENT OR IN CONFLICT HEREWITH; PROVID- ING A FINE OF NOT MORE THAN TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS ($200.00) FOR EACH VIOLATION HEREOF; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE. BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS: SECTION 1. DECLARATION OF POLICY (A) It is hereby declared to be the policy of the City of Fort Worth to bring about, through fair, orderly and lawful procedures, the opportunity for each person to obtain housing without regard to his race, color, religion or national origin. (B) It is further declared that this policy is grounded upon a recognition of the right of every person to have access to adequate housing of his own choice without regard to race, color, religion or national origin; and, further, that the denial of such rights through considerations based upon race, color, religion or national origin is detrimental to the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of the City of Fort Worth ` T ♦ . a and constitutes an unjust denial or deprivation of such in- alienable right which is within the power and the proper responsihility of government to prevent. SECTION 2. DEFINITION OF TERMS As used in this ordinance: (A) "Committee" means the Housing Committee Of the Fort Worth Human Relations Commission which is composed of at least three (3) members of the Human Relations Commission. (B) "Administrator" means the individual designated Executive Director of the Fort Worth Human Relations Commission. (C) "Dwelling" means any building, structure or portion thereof which is occupied as, or de- signed and intended for occupancy as, a residence by one or more families, and any vacant land which is offered for sale or lease for the con- struction or location thereon of any such build- ing, structure or portion thereof. (D) "Family" includes a single individual. (E) "Person" includes one or more individuals, corporations, partnerships, associations, labor organizations, legal representatives, mutual com- panies, joint-stock companies, trusts, unincor- porated organizations, trustees, trustees in bank- ruptcy, receivers, fiduciaries and any other or- ganization or entity of whatever character. (F) "To rent" includes to lease, to sublease, to let and otherwise to grant for consideration the right to occupy premises not owned by the oc- cupant. (G) "Discriminatory housing practice" means an act that is unlawful under Sections 3, 4 and 5. SECTION 3. DISCRIMINATION IN THE SALE OR RENTAL OF HOUSING Except as exempted by Section 6, it shall be unlawful -2- (A) To refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer, or to refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of, or otherwise make unavailable or deny, a dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion or national origin. (B) To discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of services or facilities in connection there- with, because of race, color, religion or national origin. (C) To make, print or publish, or cause to be made, printed or published, any notice, statement or advertisement with respect to the sale or rental of a dwelling that indi- cates any preference, limitation or discrimination based upon race, color, religion or national origin, or any intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. (D) To represent to any person because of race, color, religion or national origin that any dwelling is not available for inspection, sale or rental when such dwelling is, in fact, so available. (E) For profit, or with the hope or expectation of profit, to induce or attempt to induce any person to sell or rent any dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of a partic- ular race, color, religion or national origin. -3- SECTION 4. DISCRIMINATION IN THE FINANCING OF HOUSING It shall be unlawful for any bank, building and loan as- sociation, insurance company or other corporation, association, firm or enterprise whose business consists in whole or in part in the making of commercial real estate loans to deny a loan or other financial assistance to a person applying therefor for the purpose of purchasing, constructing, improving, repair- ing or maintaining a dwelling, or to discriminate against him in the fixing of the amount, interest rate, duration or other terms or conditions of such loan or other financial assistance because of the race, color, religion or national origin of such person or of any person associated with him in connection with such loan or other financial assistance or the purposes of such loan or other financial assistance, or of the present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants or occupants of the dwelling or dwellings in relation to which such loan or other financial assistance is to be made or given. SECTION 5. DISCRIMINATION IN THE PROVISION OF BROKERAGE SERVICES It shall be unlawful to deny any person access to, or membership or participation in, any multiple-listing service, real estate brokers' organization or other service, organi- zation or facility relating to the business of selling or rent- ing dwellings or to discriminate against him in the terms or -4- ' s conditions of such access, membership or participation on account of race, color, religion or national origin. SECTION 6. EXEMPTIONS AND EXCLUSIONS (A) There shall be exempted from the application of Section 3: (1) Any single-family house sold or rented by an owner, provided that such private individual owner does not own more than three (3) such single- family houses, wherever located, at any one time; provided, further, that in the case of the sale of any such single-family house by a private individual owner not residing in such house at the time of such sale or who was not the most recent resident of such house prior to such sale, the exemption granted by this subsection shall apply only with respect to one such sale within any twenty-four (24) month period; provided, further, that such bona fide pri- vate individual owner does not own any interest in nor is there owned or reserved on his behalf, under any express or voluntary agreement, title to or any right to all or a portion of the proceeds from the sale or rental of, more than three (3) such single- family houses at any one time; provided, further, that the sale or rental of any such single-family house shall be excepted from the application of this -5- ordinance only if such house is sold or rented (a) without the use in any manner of the sales or rental facilities or the sales or rental services of any real estate broker, agent or salesman, or of such facilities or services of any person in the business of selling or renting dwellings, or of any employee or agent of any such broker, agent, salesman or person, and (b) without the publication, posting or mailing of any advertisement or written notice in violation of Section 3 (C) of this ordi- nance; but nothing in this proviso shall prohibit the use of attorneys, escrow agents, abstractors, title companies and other such professional assistance as necessary to perfect or transfer the title; (2) The rental of rooms or units in dwellings containing living quarters occupied or intended to be occupied by no more than four (4) families living independently of each other if the owner actually maintains and occupies one of such living quarters as his residence. (B) Nothing in this ordinance shall prohibit a religious organization, association or society or any non-profit institu- tion or organization operated, supervised or controlled by or in conjunction with a religious organization, association or society from limiting the sale, rental or occupancy of dwellings which it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose -6- to persons of the same religion or from giving preference to such persons, unless membership in such religion is restricted on account of race, color or national origin. (C) Nothing in this ordinance shall prohibit a private club not in fact open to the public which, as an incident to its primary purpose or purposes, provides lodgings which it owns or operates for other than a commercial purpose, from limiting the rental or occupancy of such lodgings to its mem- bers. SECTION 7. COMPLAINTS (A) Any person who claims to have been injured by a discriminatory housing practice or who believes that he will be irrevocably injured by a discriminatory housing practice that is about to occur (hereafter referred to as "person aggrieved") may file a complaint with the administrator. Such complaints shall be in writing and shall identify the person alleged to have committed or alleged to be about to commit the discriminatory housing practice and shall set forth the par- ticulars thereof. The administrator is directed to prepare and adopt from time to time standard complaint forms and to furnish them without charge to any person aggrieved. (B) The administrator shall receive and accept notifica- tion and referral of complaints from the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development pursuant to the provisions of Title VIII, Fair Housing Act of 1968, Public Law 90-284, and shall treat -7- such complaints in the same manner as complaints filed direct- ly by the person aggrieved. (C) If, in the course of any investigation as provided in Section 8 hereof on a complaint filed with or referred to the administrator, he shall receive credible evidence and shall have probable cause to believe that the person or persons named in such complaint have committed a discrimina- tory housing practice on grounds not stated in such complaint, the administrator may prepare and file a supplementary com- plaint upon his own motion and in his own name, and such sup- plementary complaint shall thereafter be treated in the same manner as an original complaint filed by a person aggrieved. (D) Upon the filing or referral of any complaint, the administrator shall furnish a copy of the same to the person or persons named in the complaint. (E) A complaint under Subsections (A) , (C) and (D) shall be filed within one hundred and eighty (180) days after the alleged discriminatory housing practice occurred. Com- plaints shall state the facts upon which the allegations of a discriminatory housing practice are based. Complaints may be reasonably and fairly amended at any time. A respondent may file an answer to the complaint against him and, with the leave of the administrator, which shall be granted when- ever it would be reasonable and fair to do so, may amend his answer at any time. A copy of an amendment to a complaint or an answer shall be furnished to the opposing party. Both -8- 2 complaints and answers shall be signed by the person making them. SECTION 8. INVESTIGATION (A) Upon the filing of a complaint as herein provided, the administrator shall cause to be made a prompt investiga- tion of the matter stated in the complaint. (B) In connection with such investigation, the adminis- trator may question and take and record testimony and state- ments of such persons who appear, and may examine, record and copy documents which are produced. (C) During or after the investigation, the administrator shall, if it appears that a discriminatory housing practice act has occurred or is about to occur, attempt by informal endeavors to effect conciliation, including voluntary discon- tinuance or rectification of the discriminatory housing prac- tice and voluntary compliance and adequate assurance of future voluntary compliance with the provisions of this ordinance. (D) In the event conciliation is effected, the adminis- trator shall disclose nothing said or done in the course of such conciliation in such a way as to make public identifica- tion of the person or persons named in the complaint without the written consent of the persons concerned. SECTION 9. COMMITTEE HEARING (A) Upon completion of the investigation and informal -9- endeavors at conciliation by the administrator but within thirty (30) days of the filing of the complaint with the administrator and if conciliation has not been effected, the administrator shall refer the complaint to the Committee, together with the answer of the respondent, if any, and a full report of his investigation and activities in the matter. (B) The Committee shall promptly set a date for the hearing. This date shall be within thirty (30) days of the date on which the administrator referred the complaint. At least five (5) days' prior written notice of the hearing shall be given to the person or persons alleged to have committed or to be about to commit the discriminatory housing practice. The hearing shall be conducted in a fair and impartial manner and shall be public. Proof of the matters alleged within the complaint may be presented by the administrator. The com- plainant and the person or persons alleged to have committed or to be about to commit the discriminatory housing practice may appear personally or by representative and with or without legal counsel and shall have the right to present proof and cross-examine witnesses in all matters relating to the com- plaint and subsequent related matters.. in the event that a person or persons alleged to have committed or to be about to commit a discriminatory housing practice shall fail to appear at the Committee hearing either personally or by representative after notice as provided above, then such hearing shall be deemed waived by such person or persons. -10- (C) If, after such hearing, a majority of the Committee shall determine on the basis of the evidence at the hearing that the complaint is well founded, the Committee shall forth- with by persuasion, education and entreaty diligently attempt to secure within a reasonable time, not to exceed thirty (30) days, voluntary discontinuance of any discriminatory housing practice. SECTION 10. CERTIFICATION TO CITY ATTORNEY If the Committee shall determine that a discriminatory housing practice has occurred and if a hearing before the Com- mittee on the complaint alleging such violation has been waived or if the Committee has held a hearing and the efforts of the Committee to secure voluntary compliance have been unsuccess- ful, the Committee shall refer the complaint to the Human Re- lations Commission with its recommendations. Upon a majority vote, the Human Relations Commission shall cause the adminis- trator to certify in writing, recommending to the City Attorney the prosecution of such violation in the Municipal Court of the City of Fort Worth. SECTION 11. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS It is the intent of this ordinance to increase the avail- able remedies which citizens may have to insure their rights under federal, state or local statutory or case law. Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed as an administrative pre- -11- requisite to a citizen pursuing his rights under any other federal, state or local statute, case decision or adminis- trative ruling. SECTION 12. COOPERATION WITH SECRETARY OF HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT The Committee, the Administrator and the City Attorney are authorized and encouraged to cooperate with the Secretary for Housing and Urban Development, pursuant to the provisions of Title VIII - Fair Housing Act of 1968, Public Law 90-284, and may render such service to the Secretary as they shall deem appropriate to further the policies of this ordinance and may accept reimbursement from the Secretary for services rendered to assist him in carrying out the provisions of the above cited federal law. SECTION 13. UNLAWFUL INTIMIDATION It shall be unlawful for any person, whether or not acting under color of law, by force or threat of force to wilfully injure, intimidate or interfere with, or attempt to injure, intimidate or interfere with: (A) Any person because of his race, color, religion or national origin and because he is or has been selling, purchasing, renting, financing, occupying, or contracting or negotiating for the sale, purchase, rental, financing or occupation of any dwelling, or applying for or participating -12- in any service, organization or facility relating to the busi- ness of selling or renting dwellings; or (B) Any person because he is or has been,, or in order to intimidate such person or any other person or class of persons from: (1) Participating, without discrimination on account of race, color, religion or national origin, in any of the activities, services, organizations or facilities de- scribed in Subsection 13 (A) ; or (2) Affording another person or class of per- sons opportunity or protection so to par- ticipate; or (C) Any person because he is or has been or in order to discourage such person or any other person from lawfully aiding or encouraging other persons to participate, without discrimination on account of race, color, religion or na- tional origin, in any of the activities, services, organiza- tions or facilities described in Subsection 13 (A) , or partic- ipating lawfully in speech or peaceable assembly opposing any denial of the opportunity so to participate. SECTION 14. EDUCATION AND PUBLIC INFORMATION In order to further the objectives of this ordinance, the administrator may conduct educational and public informa- tion programs, including but not limited to the following: -13- (1) The conducting of seminars, conferences, in- stitutes and symposia for the purpose of pro- viding information and advice which will further the aims and objectives of this ordinance. (2) The publication and dissemination of informa- tion concerning equal housing opportunities in the City of Fort Worth. SECTION 15. It is the intention of the City Council of the City of Fort Worth that the Human Relations Commission shall be au- thorized to enforce the provisions of this ordinance under the supervision of the City Manager in compliance with the provisions of Section 2 of Chapter V of the Charter of the City of Fort Worth. SECTION 16. Any person, firm or corporation violating the terms and provisions of this ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a mis- demeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined in a sum not to exceed Two Hundred Dollars ($200.00) . SECTION 17. If for any reason any section, paragraph, subdivision, clause, phrase or provision of this ordinance shall be held invalid, it shall not affect any valid provisions of this or any other ordinance of the City of Fort Worth to which these rules and regulations relate, and the provisions hereof are declared to be severable. -14- SECTION 18. This ordinance shall repeal every prior ordinance and provision of the Code of the City of Fort Worth in. conflict herewith, but only insofar as the portion of such prior ordi- nance or provision shall be in conflict, and as to all other ordinances or provisions of the Code not in conflict herewith, this ordinance shall be and is hereby made cumulative. SECTION 19. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and publication as required by law, APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY: V1�L City Attorney Adopted by the City Council l Loal -15-