Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Case Management And Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
HRC reports 13 filings in September, discusses eviction-mediation pilot and enforcement steps
Summary
Evansville Human Relations Commission staff reported case totals and settlements for August/September and discussed prototyping a housing eviction-mediation program and steps for handling nonresponsive respondents.
Staff for the Evansville City Human Relations Commission reported routine case activity and outlined proposals and enforcement steps during the Sept. 24 meeting.
Diane, the commission’s executive director, told commissioners there were 13 cases filed in September, six transfers and seven cases added to an existing caseload (which she gave as 93 before the additions). She said staff closed several matters in August and September, reporting four settlements and a total of $10,640 in monetary settlements for the month of August. She also noted there was one “right to sue” issued and that ‘‘our contract fiscal year ends at the end of this month. . . the new fiscal year starts October 1.’’
On program development, Diane described a housing mediation program discussed under the Bloomberg Harvard initiative. She said the proposal is “a housing mediation program to prevent evictions” and that the next step would be to “prototype it in the community just to see what others feel about being able to sustain a program like this, and what are the resources and capacity to do it.” Diane reported she had met with Legal Aid and other housing stakeholders to gauge feasibility.
Legal counsel Ted Zimmer briefed the commission on enforcement when respondents fail to reply to investigative inquiries. Ted said the commission’s rules allow escalation, and he has contacted specific respondents to urge a response. Diane confirmed that in cases with monetary settlements the funds “do go to the charging parties.” Ted described the option of default orders or public hearings when respondents are recalcitrant and said the office is working on a formal process to address repeated nonresponse.
Commissioners asked clarifying questions about where settlement funds are held and how they are used. Diane explained that settlements paid to charging parties go directly to those parties; separate funds that arise from fines or public-hearing remedies may be set aside for legal costs if the commission directs it, but she said such recoveries are uncommon.
No formal votes were taken on the mediation pilot or the enforcement process during the meeting; commissioners directed staff and counsel to continue planning and report back.
The executive director also provided operational updates on the commission’s annual dinner planning and volunteer needs for the event on Oct. 17, and the commission agreed to schedule a brief special meeting the following week to finalize awards and logistics.
