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Committee forwards Human Relations Commission revisions to council, adds source‑of‑income protection and mediation changes
Summary
Committee reviewed proposed changes to the Human Relations Commission ordinance, including adding source‑of‑income (voucher) protections to housing nondiscrimination, narrowing commission size, and enabling use of outside mediators and alternates for investigatory independence. The package will be presented to council for final action.
The Finance & Administration Committee reviewed a draft of amendments to the Narberth Human Relations Commission (HRC) ordinance and recommended the package for presentation to the full borough council. The proposed changes include adding source‑of‑income discrimination (intended to protect tenants using housing vouchers or third‑party payments), clarifying covered bases to include federal rehabilitation and ADA protections, reducing the number of regular commissioners and adjusting alternate‑member rules to preserve separation among mediation, investigation and hearing steps.
Vice Chair Mike Solomonson (speaking as the committee lead on HRC matters) said the changes respond to difficulty filling commission seats and to operational problems that arise when a small commission must mediate, investigate and hold public hearings in the same case. He described giving the commission explicit authority to appoint outside mediators and to use alternates in investigatory roles so that mediators are not later asked to sit on investigations or hearings.
The draft also explicitly adds “source of income” to the list of protected characteristics in housing discrimination provisions so landlords may not deny tenancy to voucher holders or other third‑party payees. Committee members suggested some editorial edits to definitions and recommended inclusion of federal statutes (Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act) in the ordinance language.
No final ordinance vote occurred at the committee; the changes will be presented in whole to council at the next meeting for consideration.
