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State human-rights officials outline how Binghamton residents can file discrimination complaints
Summary
State Division of Human Rights staff described how to report suspected discrimination, the centralized intake phone line, investigation steps (intake, probable-cause review, hearings) and options for remedies or appeals, and urged residents to use the Division's resources rather than the local office phone.
The City of Binghamton Human Rights Commission heard a detailed presentation July 9 from staff of the New York State Division of Human Rights explaining how residents can report discrimination and how cases move through the state system.
"With that phone number, you can report discrimination. You can do an official complaint with us with a trained agent," said Emily Scardilla, the Division's upstate outreach specialist, describing the recently launched centralized intake call center the agency uses to route complaints. Helen Torres Ramos, a supervising investigator based in Binghamton, explained the agency's investigative pathway: intake and jurisdiction check, drafting or refining a complaint, serving a respondent, and then an investigation that results in either a finding of "probable cause" or "no probable cause." "At the end of that investigation, you're either gonna get no probable cause or a probable cause," Torres Ramos said, adding that probable cause matters for whether a case advances to a hearing.
The presenters said hearings are public and that a commissioner's final order is published by the Division. They recommended conciliation and mediation early in the process when appropriate and described potential remedies, which include monetary awards to complainants, civil penalties and orders to change discriminatory policies. Torres Ramos urged anyone with questions about filing to use the Division's contact information and intake process rather than directing calls to local offices.
Why it matters: The presentation clarified how state-level protections in New York are often broader than federal law and provided practical instructions for residents, landlords and employers about the complaint process and possible outcomes. The Division also framed this outreach as part of recent capacity increases funded in the state budget.
What happens next: Commissioners and staff agreed to distribute the Division's intake cards and presentation materials to local partners and to arrange follow-up outreach with the commission's intake team later in July.
