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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHRC minutes 111317Orange County Human Relations Commission Minutes Monday, November 13, 2017 6:00 pm -7:30 pm Orange County Animal Services Conference Room 1601 Eubanks Road, Chapel Hill NC MEMBERS PRESENT STAFF Debby Stroman, Vice Chair Sherrill Hampton, Director Scott Goldsmith Tara May, Civil Rights Specialist Nancy White Jackie Podger, Secretary Ana Garcia - Turner Nora Spencer Matt Case Marc Xavier Joy Preslar MEMBERS ABSENT April Chang (excused) Sue Kinzer (excused) Elizabeth O'Quinn Daniel Ryan GUESTS Bonnie Hammersley, County Manager L Call to Order A. The meeting was called to order at 6:01pm by Dr. Debby Stroman, Vice Chair. A quorum was present. IL Introductions A. Staff, members, and new members introduced themselves and shared positive news about their life over the past month as an ice - breaker. Ms. Bonnie Hammersley, County Manager was also present. B. Dr. Stroman clarified that she is the Vice -Chair and acting Chair until the seat is filled. III. Minutes Approval — September 11, 2017 & October 24, 2017 A. Dr. Stroman stated that minutes should be read prior to the meeting going forward, and allowed a few minutes for review. B. A motion was made to approve the minutes from September 11, 2017 [Goldsmith, Podger]. The motion carried. C. A motion was made to approve the minutes from October 24, 2017 [White, Xavier]. The motion carried. D. Ms. Tara May stated that she would upload the approved minutes to the website. N. HHRCD /County Updates A. Ms. Bonnie Hammersley, Orange County Manager, shared that the Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP agency) housed in the Housing, Human Rights, and Community Development Department, was under assessment from July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2017. She stated that some weaknesses were cited in the assessment that resulted in a 90 -day performance improvement plan. Ms. Hammersley stated that there were no nefarious acts, but that HUD was not pleased with response times, misallocation of funds that needed to be reconciled. She continued that she met with the HUD representatives on November 91', and told them some of the corrective actions she would put in place. She stated that in 2010 the Human Rights and Relations Agency was moved into Housing due to the height of the recession and was an effort to reduce some of the administrative costs by having one department director overseeing it. Ms. Hammersley announced that she would be recommending to the BOCC on December 4, 2017 that the Human Rights and Relations division become an independent department and move from the Housing and Community Development Department. She stated that this move is important because it will allow the Housing and Community Development Director to focus on their core function and will allow the Human Rights and Relations Director to do the same. She stated that the FHAP agency is relatively small and averages only about seven cases a year, and that HUD asked if Orange County was interested in continuing to have a FHAP and she ensured them that she and the BOCC are. She explained that the alternative would be for the State Human Relations Commission to take over Orange County and investigate any Fair Housing complaints that originate here. She stated that since she believes that the BOCC wants to continue to have a local FHAP, it is also important to elevate the profile of it by creating its own department and working through the Performance Improvement Plan. She mentioned that the HUD representatives were highly supportive of her recommendation to create a new department for Human Rights and Relations, particularly because it would eliminate the financial mix -up errors made by using money from the incorrect accounts. She announced that the director of the Department of Human Rights and Relations would be Ms. Annette Moore, who also served as the Interim Director for Housing Human Rights and Community Development ( HHRCD). Ms. Hammersley explained that since the caseload for the agency is relatively small, Ms. Moore would continue to also serve as Staff Attorney part time in addition to her directorship. In order to avoid a conflict of interest, another Staff Attorney in the County Attorney's Office will be the attorney for the FHAP. 1. Dr. Stroman asked if Ms. Sherrill Hampton and Ms. May would continue coming to the Human Relations Commission (HRC) Meetings. a. Ms. Hammersley stated that Ms. Hampton would be the Housing and Community Development director and will not continue on with the HRC, but that Ms. May will continue since her position will be moving under the new department. B. Ms. Hammersley continued that Ms. May and Ms. Marlyn Valeiko, as the Civil Rights Specialist and Limited English Proficiency Specialist, respectively, would both be 2 moving to the Department of Human Rights and Relations, and that the Intake Specialist position will also be filled. 1. Mr. Scott Goldsmith asked if the HRC's shift with the new department would change the HRC's role in fair housing cases. a. Ms. Hammersley explained that it would not change. 2. Dr. Stroman asked about the other two advisory boards housed in the Housing department. a. Ms. Hampton explained that the Affordable Housing Advisory Board (AHAB) and the Orange County Housing Authority (OCHA) would both remain with staff from the Housing and Community Development Department. 3. Dr. Stroman asked if splitting the departments would affect the budget. a. Ms. Hammersley stated that the Human Rights division receives its own funding which would switch over to the new department. 4. Dr. Stroman asked if the news of HUD's assessment was public information. a. Ms. Hammersley stated that she sent a letter to the BOCC, but that it was not public with HUD. C. Ms. Hammersley explained that a number of the items that received negative review from HUD had already been an area of focus for the Human Rights division before Ms. Hampton came to Orange County in August, but were not completed during the time period that was reviewed during the on -site assessment. She further explained that the items HUD requested within 15 days have been responded to. Ms. Hammersley reiterated that the regional HUD representatives from Greensboro provided positive feedback on the decision to move Human Rights to its own department. She explained that Ms. Moore's background is in Human Rights and Relations and that she was previously the Director of Human Rights and Relations when it was its own department and that she had also worked in the field in Virginia. She stated that HUD was pleased with Ms. Moore's experience in the area. Ms. Hammersley also explained that one of the concerns was that the FHAP was included in a department where the director had other areas of focus also, and it wasn't a priority. She stated that when she first came to Orange County as County Manager four years ago, she questioned why Human Rights had been "buried" in the Housing and Community Development Department and had been working towards a split. She explained that when she interviewed Ms. Hampton, she told her that this was something she wanted to do in order to give more exposure to the fact that Orange County has a FHAP agency and a department focused on Human Relations, but that the process was sped up due to HUD's review. Ms. Hammersley clarified that her recommendation is not a reflection on Ms. Hampton or anyone else and stated that if she had been Manager during the recession when the departments were merged she likely would not have done it the same way. She commended the members on the HRC for their dedication and the Commission's work and stated that the people of Orange County deserve to know that we are paying attention to this topic. 1. Dr. Stroman stated that some of the HRC members have mentioned wanting more autonomy and prominence for the board. She also clarified that she wanted to know if the information was public so that members did not say something if it was meant to be internal. 3 a. Ms. Hammersley responded that her recommendation would probably not be breaking news due to some of the issues that were cited. For instance, she mentioned that one of the issues was the timeliness of complaints, but when she looked into case timeliness for other agencies, Orange County's processing time is not necessarily unreasonable in some cases. She stated that her recommendation would likely get more attention when she goes before the BOCC on December 41' and asks for them to make the new department. She continued that in her discussions with members of the BOCC she learned that a couple of them voted against merging Human Rights with Housing and Community Development back in 2010 and newer members have also expressed support, so the recommendation could even go through the BOCC without much attention. D. Ms. Hammersley reiterated that a performance improvement plan has been approved by HUD and is in place. E. Dr. Stroman expressed her thanks to Ms. Hampton for her work during the time she assisted with the board. F. Mr. Matt Case asked what the Fair Housing Assistant Program does. 1. Ms. May explained that the discussion from October's meeting about Fair Housing Investigations with Complainants and Respondents is what the FHAP agency does and that Fair Housing Assistance Program or FHAP is the "technical" term used for the program when talking about HUD. G. Mr. Case also asked for clarification on HUD's role 1. Ms. Hampton stated that HUD does provide funding for FHAP agencies and also enforces the Federal Fair Housing Act. 2. Ms. May clarified that the Orange County Civil Rights Ordinance is a substantial equivalent to the Federal Fair Housing Act. H. Mr. Goldsmith asked how the HRC's rare responsibility for hearing Fair Housing case appeals in a three - member panel would work under the new department. 1. Ms. May explained that the Civil Rights Ordinance does empower the Human Relations Commission to hold appeal hearings for cases that were determined No Cause by staff and the Complainant requested a reconsideration within 30 days of the date of the Determination. In that case, a 3- member panel would be voted on by the HRC and would hear the case with all its evidence to either overturn or uphold the decision made by staff. She stated that she was not aware of any cases that required the HRC to hear the appeal, as Mr. Goldsmith alluded to. Ms. May referenced previous conversations about having the HRC obtain more training in order to serve in that role if they are called to do so, and stated that opportunities could be explored going forward. L Mr. Marc Xavier asked if the misallocation of funds as cited by HUD in their assessment would impact the HRC in requesting funds for events or other things. 1. Ms. Hammersley explained that it would not impact the HRC's event budget and that the mistakes had already been rectified. She further explained that the mistakes were simply an ineligible use of funds and HUD disallowed the reimbursement of some expenses. J. Mr. Goldsmith asked if the change would expand or impact the role of the HRC overall. M 1. Ms. Hammersley stated that it would give the department and the HRC more prominence which would ultimately expand it. She also stated that having a director whose focus is on Human Rights and Relations would be beneficial for the HRC. She stated that she would like to see more prominence for both because the work is important and because the BOCC wants the keep the Commission and FHAP in Orange County. She stated that the County requested certification to have a FHAP in 1996 and was certified in 1999 and that she and the BOCC are proud to locally offer the service to the County residents who would otherwise have to go through the State. K. Ms. Jackie Podger asked how the allocation for Ms. Moore's role was determined. 1. Ms. Hammersley stated that she was willing to make the directorship fulltime but that Ms. Moore requested to continue as Staff Attorney part time due to the low volume of complaints and with full -time staff dedicated to intake and investigation. Ms. Hammersley stated that she agreed with Ms. Moore's recommendation. She also mentioned that she offered the position to Ms. Moore due to her background in Human Rights and Relations, but would have had to begin a recruitment process if Ms. Moore had declined the offer because the move needed to still be done. L. Mr. Case asked if there was a job description for the Director's position. 1. Ms. Hammersley said that there is a job description and that she would have it sent out. M. Ms. Hammersley excused herself from the meeting upon no further questions. N. Ms. Sherrill Hampton stated that she came to Orange County on August 21" of this year and did not have anything to do with the backstory that were cited in HUD's review. Ms. Hampton announced that the BOCC approved to fund the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial event along with the Town of Carrboro and the Town of Chapel Hill with Commissioner Renee Price's support. 1. Dr. Stroman asked if the Department had received any information on the events being planned for the Bicentennial a. Ms. Hampton stated that she had asked Mr. James Williams to forward the event dates to her and would have Ms. May bring them back to the HRC when she received them. 2. Mr. Xavier agreed to contact the NAACP regarding the "kickoff event" for December 6th upon Dr. Stroman's request. O. Ms. Hampton announced the Orange County Affordable Housing Summit sponsored by the Orange County Affordable Housing Coalition on January 5, 2018 10:00am- 1:OOpm at Chapel Hill Public Library off of Estes Dr. She stated that she will send out flyer and registration. P. Ms. Hampton announced the Orange County DSS Toy Chest and encouraged members to donate items and to contact DSS with any questions. She emphasized that DSS particularly need items for teenagers. Q. Ms. Hampton stated that HHRCD received almost $300,000 federal dollars for HOME and is working to have a needs assessment and public hearing on December 4, 2017 during the BOCC meeting regarding the needs around affordable housing. 1. Dr. Stroman asked if there is federal money for Human Rights and Relations and if staff could search for additional funding options. a. Ms. Hampton stated that would be a task for the new Human Rights and Relations Director. R. Ms. Hampton also stated that staff is working on a mobile home initiative and will present recommendation to BOCC on November 20, 2017. All abstracts can be found on the County's website. S. Ms. Hampton brought attention to case update sheet provided. 1. Ms. May gave a brief update on the open cases. She stated that the first six cases have the same Respondent and alleges discrimination based on National Origin and four also allege discrimination based on Familial Status due to a discriminatory portion of the lease. Ms. May also stated that those six cases are in the conciliation phase. Ms. May also mentioned that Case 48 is also in the conciliation stage. Members agreed to review the rest of the sheet on their own. T. Ms. Hampton stated that even though she will no longer be with the HRC, she has asked Ms. May to continue to bring general case updates to the meetings in order to address part of the Charge. She also stated that one of the issues mentioned in HUD's assessment was the age of cases. She states that she tried to put plans in place to help staff close the cases as quickly as possible. Ms. Hampton explained that the department has been in a long transition period with multiple changes in Directors and Civil Rights Specialist. She also stated that she directed staff to work together on the cases about translation services and notarizing complaints and sent Ms. May and Ms. Valeiko to class to become notaries themselves. U. Dr. Stroman asked if repeat Respondents are tracked by HUD and how that is addressed. 1. Ms. May stated that she was told by the Government Technical Monitor (GTM) that one of the Respondents for cases 1 -6 also has other complaints against them in other counties. 2. Ms. Hampton mentioned that the Mobile Home Initiative was meant to address some concerns seen specifically by landlords of mobile home communities. She also stated that she is proposing a meeting on November 301' for the Section 8 landlords. 3. Ms. May clarified that the Respondents who have had multiple complaints brought against them were not charged with anything previously, but simply had allegations. She also stated that a change in staffing for individual Respondents with multiple complaints could be considered as part of conciliation and additionally requires Fair Housing trainings in almost all conciliation agreements. V. Mr. Goldsmith asked why conciliation was considered for cases that had discriminatory leases. 1. Ms. May explained that HUD encourages conciliation because it provides a better outcome and allows the FHAP agency to implement terms that will prevent discrimination or something that looks like discrimination in the future. W. Mr. Xavier asked what the investigation process entailed. 1. Ms. May explained the complaint process in full. She stated that an individual would contact the agency to make the complaint and the agency would subsequently establish jurisdiction. Once jurisdiction is established, the complaint is signed by the Complainant and the agency sends letters of notification to all parties to let them know the complaint has been filed, request a response to the allegations from the Respondent(s), and request additional necessary information. D Once the response to the allegations is received and reviewed, interviews are conducted with the Complainant and then the Complainant's witnesses, then the Respondent and the Respondent's witnesses. Throughout the interview phase, more information is frequently requested or subpoenaed from one or both parties. After interviews and evidence is gathered and analyzed and compared with the Prima Facie case elements for the particular claim. A final interview is conducted with both parties individually to present the evidence and allow them a final opportunity to provide additional evidence for consideration. The Civil Rights Specialist / Investigator makes a recommendation to the Director, and if the evidence fits the Prima Facie elements then a Reasonable Cause Determination would be issued for the case. X. Mr. Goldsmith asked who does the conciliations. 1. Ms. May explained that she as the Investigator is also the Conciliator but treats each process and the information provided during each process separated. She stated that almost all other FHAP agencies she has come in contact with at trainings and meetings also have Investigators doing conciliations. 2. Dr. Stroman asked if Ms. May would do both function s in an ideal world. a. Ms. May stated that the current set -up has not caused any issues and is very common, but ideally having another staff member work on conciliation make the processes absolute separated and potentially less confusing for parties in the complaint, though it has not caused an issue. Y. Ms. Nancy White asked how information about the FHAP is spread. 1. Ms. May stated that the agency has a website, goes to outreach events across the county, and is on resources lists. She stated that a lot of people who file complaints have heard about the agency from another person through word -of- mouth. 2. Ms. White stated that she would like to see the board help in getting the word out to let residents know they can file Fair Housing complaints. 3. Ms. Hampton stated that the LEP Specialist, Ms. Valeiko, also organizes outreach events for the agency. She also mentioned particular communities in the county including Burmese, Karen, and Spanish that the agency provides translated materials for. She encouraged the HRC to let the agency know about opportunities for outreach going forward and providing enhancement strategies. Z. Ms. Hampton excused herself from the meeting. V. Board Structure and Role Consideration A. Dr. Stroman stated that there are seats for 18 members 1. Ms. May stated that Ms. Jessica Aguilar is no longer on the board, so there are 13 seats filled. 2. Dr. Stroman encouraged members to ask their neighbors and colleagues to apply. B. Orientation 1. Dr. Stroman mentioned a section in the policies and procedures regarding orientation and stated she would work with Ms. May to bring more information back. 2. Ms. May stated that the packets brought forward in October were the first attempt at an orientation and could certainly be refined. 7 C. Dr. Stroman stated that the Chair position still needs to be filled and encouraged members to take time over next month to decide who to nominate for the Chair and potentially Vice Chair. She stated that she is interested in going for the Chair position and that Ms. Podger is still Secretary. VI. Annual Report and Work Plan A. Due December 15, 2017 B. Dr. Stroman will work with staff. VII. HRC Forum and Pauli Murray Awards A. HRC Forum 1. Dr. Stroman stated that she wanted to continue the forum for 2018 but that the HRC could review all events and maybe change things up in the year going forward. 2. Dr. Stroman stated that a committee needed to be formed for the forum. B. Pauli Murray Awards 1. Dr. Stroman stated that the event is generally held in February and that there is room to adapt the event. 2. Dr. Stroman clarified that the essays for the Pauli Murray Awards would be related to the Frederick Douglass Bicentennial. 3. Ms. Joy Preslar suggested that the HRC would work with the Pauli Murray center in Durham for the Pauli Murray Awards. VIII. Reconstitution of Subcommittees 1. Dr. Stroman suggested dissolving the Diversity Matters committee, noting that the commission itself is diverse. 2. Ms. Preslar stated that the Diversity Matters committee was originally focused on events before a name change. 3. Mr. Goldsmith stated that the lack of active members continually made issues for the subcommittees because members did not participate. 4. Mr. Case suggested forming subcommittees as needed. 5. Mr. Goldsmith stated that subcommittees for the events are important. 6. Dr. Stroman suggested a Google Doc in order to discuss the issue of subcommittees. IX. Other Business /Announcements/Upcoming Events A. Dr. Stroman encouraged members to keep reading their books for a get together to discuss the takeaways. X. Adjourn A. The meeting was adjourned at 7:30pm B. NEXT MEETING: December 11, 2017 6:OOpm at Animal Services