Human Rights Commission Regular Meeting November 18, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 6:30pm Agenda Packet Attachments 1. Agenda 2. 09/02/2021 Legal Representation Committee Meeting Minutes 3. 09/09/2021 Legislative Agenda Committee Meeting Minutes 4. 09/16/2021 Regular Meeting Minutes 5. 10/07/2021 Housing Committee Meeting Minutes 6. 10/07/2021 Legal Representation Committee Meeting Minutes 7. 10/14/2021 Accessibility Committee Meeting Minutes 8. 10/21/2021 Regular Meeting Minutes 9. 11/04/2021 Community Engagement Committee Meeting Minutes 10. Excerpts from Human Rights Ordinance and HRC Rules & Procedures 11. Summary of concerns from Midway Manor residents 12. OHR Staff Report – November 2021 13. Draft HRC Resolution A21-1 (standard version) 14. Draft HRC Resolution A21-1 (plain language version) 15. Draft HRC Resolution A21-1 (plain language graphic version) 16. Draft HRC Resolution (plain language usage) Attachment 1 Human Rights Commission AGENDA Regular Meeting November 18, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 6:30pm Please take Notice that this virtual meeting of the Human Rights Commission is for the purposes of planning, developing and drafting management and administration documents for the Human Rights Commission. For the purpose of addressing issues during the quarantine, this virtual meeting will be a limited public forum to discuss the agenda items designated under Section 5 below and to ensure the continuity of services provided by the Commission. The Commission Chair may limit public comments or discussion points that are unrelated to agenda items under Section 5 or that pertain to topics outside the scope of this Agenda. Members of the public are limited to three minutes of comment time per person related to the Agenda below. A maximum of sixteen public comment time slots are allotted per meeting. This will be a virtual/electronic meeting open to the public and registration information is available at www.charlottesville.gov/zoom. Link to Human Rights Commission shared Box folder: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER b. ROLL CALL c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT (Webinar attendees use the “raise hand” function, phone attendees use *9) b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC 3. MINUTES a. 09/02/2021 Legal Representation Committee Meeting Minutes* b. 09/09/2021 Legislative Agenda Committee Meeting Minutes* c. 09/16/2021 Regular Meeting Minutes* d. 10/07/2021 Housing Committee Meeting Minutes* e. 10/07/2021 Legal Representation Committee Meeting Minutes* f. 10/14/2021 Accessibility Committee Meeting Minutes* g. 10/21/2021 Regular Meeting Minutes* h. 11/04/2021 Community Engagement Committee Meeting Minutes* 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. Housing discrimination against people with mental health and substance use challenges b. Review of HRC Rules and Procedures as pertains to a quorum* c. Formation of HRC Officer Nominating Committee* d. CHAIR UPDATE e. OHR STAFF REPORT 5. WORK SESSION a. Resolution A21-1* b. Draft Resolution – Plain Language* c. AD-HOC COMMITTEE UPDATES i. Community Engagement Committee 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT (Webinar attendees use the “raise hand” function, phone attendees use *9) b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES 8. NEXT STEPS & ADJOURN * ACTION NEEDED Individuals with disabilities who require assistance or special arrangements to participate in the public meeting may call the ADA Coordinator at (434) 970- 3182 or submit a request via email to ada@charlottesville.gov. The City of Charlottesville requests that you provide a 48 hour notice so that proper arrangements may be made. Attachment 2 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Legal Representation Committee Meeting September 2, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 1:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. No official chair. Meeting is called to order at 1:28 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Kathryn Laughon ii. Mary Bauer c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. i. Mission statement skipped. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. None. 3. MINUTES a. None 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. None 5. WORK SESSION a. Review of UVA Title 9 complaint process i. Making an ask of the City for a specific amount—how to decide on amount? 1. Commissioner suggests talking to state delegates a. State likes to test different amounts in localities 2. Compare legal representation for complainants 3. Commissioner says City could create a fund without legal authority ii. Kathryn suggests talking to Kristin Clarens 1. OHR staff says he and Kristin are already in contact, and have already successfully gotten people pro-bono legal representation for mediation iii. Commissioner asks OHR staff is it is possible to look at number of cases in jurisdiction of Commission that have had representation and see how many hours each has taken 1. Commissioner asks if certain categories of cases are harder to place than others a. Employment and housing are common areas of expertise; public accommodations is less common, though there has already been a public accommodations case with representation iv. Commissioner asks OHR staff if he looks for attorneys only when clients ask for them, or if he looks automatically 1. Search for legal counsel begins when a client begins asking for legal advice 2. Oftentimes, the respondent will have representation already v. Commissioner asks how high of a level the fund will come from, like for a private attorney, or if there is an income cap on who can be given representation 1. Another Commissioner responds that UVA more or less does this for civil cases; the complainant is referred out and given some funding 2. There is a vetted list 3. OHR staff wonders if the City requires attorneys to register as vendors—is it more employees or contracted consultants? vi. Commissioner wonders if Commission should involve the City Attorney’s Office to ask for their analysis—should HRC push for a particular interpretation or push for a change in state law? vii. Commissioner asks about status on right to counsel 1. Mary says LAJC was in negotiations for the $300,000, which is less than both the HRC and LAJC estimated to be necessary 2. Issue over whether the City would commit to the three years (City said it would commit if the county commits) 3. Mary wrote a letter to Council for them to codify the right to counsel fund into the ordinance, and the response was that it could not do so under state law 4. Committee expresses general support for moving this forward and getting in contact with the county viii. Todd will find numbers for how long cases have taken ix. Questions about how to approve a lawyer, what other things the committee needs to understand before making a recommendation, etc. 1. Look into legal review x. Commissioner expresses support for drafting an ordinance rather than simply having a fund 1. Another Commissioner suggests keeping this as an eventual goal xi. Kathryn asks Mary if it is necessary to do anything locally, such as asking UVA about what they are doing 1. Mary will ask LAJC when she asks about the right to counsel 2. Kathryn says a letter to UVA may be helpful a. Could draft one to present at the next meeting b. Review of draft Resolution HR21-1 i. OHR staff asks Kathryn to look at draft Resolution as a starting point for edits 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. No members of the public in attendance. 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. None 8. NEXT STEPS a. General next steps i. Potentially draft letter to UVA for approval at next HRC meeting b. Mary i. Will ask about local action for pushing forward funding when following up with LAJC c. Kathryn i. Will look over the starting point draft Resolution HR21-1 to make edits d. Todd i. Will find the amount of hours taken to find representation during relevant cases in jurisdiction of the Commission ii. Potentially ask Kristin Clarens for input on an amount recommendation 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 1:50 pm Attachment 3 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Legislative Agenda Committee Meeting September 9, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 7:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. No Chair. Meeting called to order at 7:36 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Mary Bauer c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 3. MINUTES a. None 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. None 5. WORK SESSION a. Support for right to counsel in evictions ordinance i. OHR staff says he requested extra information from Council, but has received no updates yet ii. Commissioner asks what HRC’s role would be, whether that would be recommending any changes based in racial equity, or if recommendations should be more specific to Charlottesville 1. There are some states that have adopted statewide right to counsel in evictions proceedings laws, though the City may not be very interested in this kind of law seeing as it has not been pushing forward these proceedings iii. OHR staff does not think Council remembers that it is one of the Commission’s duties in the ordinance to provide recommendations, so it does not ask iv. HRC can review things Council is considering to propose 1. They approve a slate of recommendations then hand it to TJPDC, which combines that with other regional recommendations and presents them to the General Assembly a. TJPDC’s website has recommendations Council has brought forward b. Last year, the Commission made one or two recommendations because they didn’t know what Council was proposing at that point v. Mary believes there will be cases coming up at the General Assembly regarding racial justice and equity 1. Ex. Voting Rights Bill that will restore voting rights to those with felonies—is this something having to do with HRC? 2. Last year, Catherine suggested one about expungement of criminal record 3. Or proposing legislation to allow municipalities to create rental registries so that municipality was not held back by Dylan’s Rules 4. OHR staff says landlords could be required to register all rental properties with the City to inspect them and keep better track of them vi. OHR staff recommends if there are things related to equity rights municipalities are not currently authorized to do, this could be a good thing to pursue for HRC recommendations 1. Mary says it would be useful to get the view of the City Attorney about whether a locality can enact a right to counsel ordinance 2. If it cannot, then HRC could suggest it be changed 3. Similarly, there are issues with providing counsel in the complainant system vii. City Attorney was not at the last HRC meeting, so HRC did not ask for her view then, but it would be very useful 1. OHR staff says he could also ask to get a meeting with Allyson and whoever else is relevant to ask these kinds of questions a. Todd can ask for the meeting; may occur next week b. Allison and Mary should be available Monday around 11:30-12:30pm to meet 2. Lisa is advising Council on their part around the legislative agenda, so Allyson can check with her b. Mary talked to Ashley about having a closed session to discuss Director hiring i. She said this is happening and was going to run it by Allyson ii. Mary will follow up with her 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. None 8. NEXT STEPS a. Mary i. Will follow up with Ashley about closed HRC session to discuss hiring b. Todd i. Will ask Allyson to meet with Mary and him 11:30am-12:30pm on Monday 9/13 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 7:41 pm Attachment 4 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Regular Meeting September 16, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 6:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Chair, Mary Bauer, called the meeting to order at 6:28 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Mary Bauer ii. Kathryn Laughon iii. Jeanette Abi-Nader iv. Jessica Harris v. Wolfgang Keppley vi. Sue Lewis vii. Lyndele Von Schill viii. Ernest Chambers (arrived later) c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 3. MINUTES a. Review of minutes from 08/19/21 i. Bullet point 4.a.iii.3.a.i: there is a typo; “Civil Right to Council” should be “Civil Right to Counsel” ii. Bullet point 4.a.iv: should be about land use proposals, not zoning proposals iii. Todd will fix these iv. Vote 1. In favor: 6 2. Can live with: 0 3. Opposed: 0 4. Abstained: 1 4. BUSINESS MATTERS (1) a. Closed session i. Chair proposes to move open session to closed session as per section 2.2-3711 and 2.2-3712 of the Virginia Code for the “Discussion, consideration, and/or promotion of a prospective candidate for the position of the Director of the Human Rights Commission as authorized by Virginia Code sec. 2.2-3711 (A) (1).” 1. Motion to approve a. Kathryn Laughon 2. Second a. Sue Lewis 3. Vote a. In favor: 7 b. Opposed: 0 ii. Commission moves to a closed session iii. Certification of Closed Meeting 1. Motion to approve a. Sue Lewis 2. Second a. Lyndele Von Schill 3. Vote a. In favor: 7 b. Opposed: 0 iv. Motion passed 5. WORK SESSION (1) a. Land use plan overview and panel discussion with speakers Rory Stolzenberg (Charlottesville Planning Commission), Dan Rosensweig (Habitat for Humanity), and Sunshine Mathon (Piedmont Housing Alliance) i. Rory Stolzenberg 1. Comprehensive plan a. VA says each locality must update its comprehensive plan every 5 years to serve as an overarching guide for land use, housing, and commercial growth, as well as guide city decisions b. Charlottesville updates its plan to reflect anticipation of city changes and what strategies will be necessary c. Started the planning for this particular comprehensive plan in January 2017 2. Future land use map a. Not a zoning map; more of a high-level vision to guide the zoning map that will be created later 3. Public feedback process a. Phase I: kicked off May and June 2017 with community engagement tabling events at meetings, libraries, schools i. Re-evaluation was necessary after the events of August 2017 b. Phase II: Planning Commissioners went around to local community events to get feelings about housing, land use, and the city c. Phase III: survey distributed online in 2018 to get as many responses as possible i. Also received a housing needs assessment analyzing census data and housing availability from a consultant in 2018 ii. After adjusting for students iii. 1,740 households <30% AMI were extremely low income, 810 households were very low income iv. Shortage of affordable housing units with 3,318 and expected to grow 4. Draft of Planning Commission’s land use map presented to Council from 2018 a. Increase in intensity contemplated across the city with particular focus near parks, schools, UVA housing, commercial corridors b. Decrease in intensity around single-family townhomes, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes to break cycle of exclusion 5. Op-ed in Cville Tomorrow by Carmelita Wood discusses how housing land use restrictions were driven by Jim Crow era of segregation a. Zoning began as a way to keep noxious industry fumes away from housing, but quickly turned into a way to racially separate housing b. Racial zoning was deemed unconstitutional, so density zoning along class lines (and, therefore, race) began to occur c. Harland Bartholomew was commissioned for the housing plan that excluded non-whites 6. 5-year maps followed this original pattern of development restricted whitest and wealthiest areas of the city to two-family zoning 7. 2018’s draft land use map showed Council what a big change the Planning Commission was proposing, to distribute housing across the city (especially in formerly exclusionary areas) 8. Cville Plans Together phase a. Council brought in consultants for the modern Cville Plans Together process in early 2019 to finish Affordable Housing Plan and Comprehensive Plan, as well as rewrite the zoning ordinance b. Details $10 million per year funding commitment for affordable housing for the next 10 years, subsidies, tenant rights, etc. 9. Future land use map iterations were created over time, which have created much feedback from the community a. There is some talk about Affordable Housing Plan requiring some percentage of affordable housing as part of the zoning ordinance 10. In regard to homelessness, single-occupancy housing and more expensive homes have contributed to the current situation; the Crossings project was just enabled a few years ago, but it is still restricted and not really covered in this project 11. Go to cvilleplanstogether.com to look at all documents ii. Dan Rosensweig 1. The current zoning map is the law, unlike the future land use map 2. Comprehensive Plan wanted multiple things at once, but not often worked through a. Idea of neighborhood preservation vs an equitable Charlottesville 3. Zoning was intentionally exclusive; many lots designated R1 in Charlottesville were restricted to only whites, backed by federal policy a. FAJ started guaranteeing loans to developers of larger subdivisions; financing was exclusively for whites 4. Harland Bartholomew came through and decided which neighborhoods were worth preserving and which were not a. The ones torn down were Black neighborhoods where the city did not extend public amenities like water and sewer 5. The city took away wealth and ownership from the Black communities in Charlottesville and replaced their neighborhoods with public housing a. At the time was decent housing, but not decent enough to last b. Harland Bartholomew’s intentionally racist map is the same as the current zoning map; Charlottesville zoning still features racism and inequity 6. Habitat for Humanity was invigorated by consultants’ work in bettering the housing plan, but also witnessed the beginning of a “civil war” in Charlottesville over the future land use map a. Some say there is too much change too fast; others say upping density across the city will just quicken gentrification in largely African-American neighborhoods b. Everyone wants affordable housing; there is just disagreement as to whether the current plan was going to get it 7. Solution piloted in Cambridge, MA: you can please everyone and get greater density if and only if what you build, in addition to base density, is affordable iii. Sunshine Mathon 1. Comments apply to an older land use map, but are still relevant 2. Charlottesville is not unique in its exclusionary zoning practices—this is the case across the nation, though some cities are beginning to experiment a. Minneapolis was one of the first to experiment by taking R1-equivalent zoning and allowing four units of housing on all b. Portland, OR, Charlotte, and Cambridge did something similar c. Cambridge did “affordable housing overlay” which puts affordable housing into a special category to get additional density and make it more economically viable to build affordable housing on any given lot 3. Transitioning from Affordable Housing Plan into Comprehensive Plan and Future Land Use Map into rezoning a. A rarity; most cities do not link the three together 4. Nationwide, there is a common conception that affordable housing is a supply/demand issue, but it is not just that; there are kernels of truth, but it is important to realize that essentially all cities are “behind” in terms of housing 5. Planning Commission – Future Land Use Map alternative framework document a. First key concept: creating a low-intensity residential land use category i. Consultants call them “sensitive areas/neighborhoods” b. Second key concept: all other residential portions of the city would have a base land use of the currently proposed general residential land use category i. Would shift growth patterns to higher-income areas c. In effect, all residential areas of the city would have a base land use of either low-intensity residential or general residential d. There would be a base level of allowable density across the entire city, and if you want more, affordable housing would have to be a part of it e. Need for gradations of middle-intensity or high-intensity residential allowances in different parts of the city f. Still need to work through the specifics of affordability; this proposal does not yet address these details i. Must strike balance between affordability and impact g. Proposal recognizes that good land use and zoning policies are necessary, but still insufficient in making the city wholly equitable; other interventions like adequate funding, rapid development approval processes, and tenant protections are still necessary 6. There is no county or city in the nation where a person making minimum wage can afford a two-bedroom apartment market rate 7. Current land use map proposal highlights low-intensity residential and general residential as the primary land uses b. Q&A session i. Chair asks what specific tenant plans Sunshine was referring to 1. Everything from capitalizing access to lawyers for eviction prevention to potentially rent control (must be enabled by state legislature) 2. Other two are that any development with city assistance must push for extra rights not given by the state, as well as just cause eviction (must also have approval from the state) 3. A couple jurisdictions have growing movements to do the first right of refusal in which tenants have the first right to buy a rental building when it goes up for sale ii. Commissioner asks what it means to add a fourplex when adding affordable housing to medium-density corridors 1. The new draft that came out today says that the general residential category (majority of the city) allows for triplexes and fourplexes 2. New change that should be in the new draft is that when adding to a single home on a site, the first unit would be market rate while the next would be the affordable one; then up to two more would be market rate a. This way, affordability is built in at the front end 3. Commissioner says that the Commission would probably prefer a fourplex over a triplex for accessibility (FHA/ADA regulations kick in after the fourth unit in a building) a. Cost would bump up after four, but at least two units would be accessible 4. In the new draft, the second-unit affordability piece applies to sensitive areas, while non-sensitive areas allows for three units, then unspecified affordability bonuses beyond this; there is talk of making it so that the affordability bonus program kicks in after four units to incentivize accessible units 5. Dan predicts that formerly-exclusionary areas will get single homes turned into three or four units; it will be difficult to get accessibility because few have zero-step energy a. The strongest mechanism for creating accessibility are public funding mechanisms, stronger than the FHA regulations iii. Commissioner asks about when developers say they are going to make affordable units, but decide halfway through to pay a fine instead to build whatever they want—does the plan take this loophole away? 1. They can get a certificate of occupancy, meaning they would not be able to complete their project without compliance 2. Until last year, there was limited authority from the state to require affordable units iv. Commissioner confirms that the initial recommendation was to require second-unit affordability housing in both sensitive areas and non- sensitive areas, but the plan that came out today only required it in sensitive areas 1. Encouraged consultants to bring forth some consistency during meetings a few days ago 2. Commissioner says that HRC could support this through a letter to the Cville Plans Together team 3. Making every neighborhood more accessible to more families at a lower rate than now is the motivation to allowing a few units by right to those 4. Big change in the new draft is that more than four units would be allowed if affordability was included in those 5. Council recently gave funding to make sure inclusionary zoning works 6. Idea that market-rate units cross-subsidize affordable units despite high cost of land so that the change actually happens 7. Level of affordability is important—fair-market rent is about 60% AMI, which is the target to be able to apply housing vouchers; then, subsidies could be layered on top v. Commissioner confirms that the current plan prevents developers from paying a fine instead of constructing affordable housing 1. Currently, it is required for all units above a single-family house in sensitive areas and all units larger than a triplex in non- sensitive areas a. Mostly required in medium areas vi. OHR staff says HRC provides recommendations to City Council for the annual legislative agenda that then get taken to the General Assembly by the TJPDC; asks about enabling legislation at the state level that would allow municipalities to set rent control, particularly in alignment with HUD payment standards for vouchers; many times, rent is being raise beyond payment standards to exclude those with vouchers; also wonders what the Commission could do to lift enabling legislation recommendations to Council such that some of these protections might be set in place 1. It is worth looking at the Affordable Housing Plan again to see what legislation would be helpful from their perspective 2. VA Housing Alliance has been impactful in getting change in terms of funding and other measures; there will be some new bills that VA Housing Alliance will support coming up vii. Commissioner asks what specific actions HRC could take to ensure that there is a solid plan moving forward 1. Money 2. Charlottesville has been doing well with redevelopment of some areas, but fallen down in support for affordable homeownership 3. Affordable Housing Plan explicitly calls for a list of things to be funded; these are necessary for the plan to work a. A few weeks ago, Charlottesville Affordable Housing Coalition submitted an email to City Council highlighting potential projects and their positive impacts over the next three years, but they are not possible without funding 4. This platform is important and relevant now because the CIP process is underway—city affordable housing money is allocated via the capital improvement program a. There is a lot of federal money out there, but most sources require a local match b. Could receive $10 million c. Not focusing on this will possibly make the project lose billions of dollars in stimulus money c. Follow-up discussion to panel i. Chair asks what steps the Commission should take—there is general support for taking action ii. Commissioner says HRC should support the second-unit model they proposed, as well as the $10 million from real estate tax by funding writing a letter or going to Council or Planning Commission iii. Commissioner feels that HRC should take special care to be prepared to provide recommendations to City Council about state legislation iv. Commissioner expresses support for pushing Council to go after the stimulus money v. Commissioner would like to see some of materials that Rory, Dan, and Sunshine presented before deciding exactly what to do about the land use plan; feels all HRC can do at the moment is follow up with Council on all of the monies possible 1. Chair is concerned about the public discourse surrounding the future land use map and the neighborhood preservation rhetoric 2. HRC can help frame this discussion in terms of commitment to equity and racial justice vi. Commissioner says HRC has a prime opportunity to disrupt structural racism, so Commissioners can be showing up at meetings, sending in written comments, having discussion about how to represent the Commission, etc. 1. Both City Council and the Planning Commission vii. Chair suggests having a small group come together to form some written comments 1. Housing committee could do this? 2. People who are not just on the Housing committee have expertise in this area 3. Could do it through the Housing committee and make the drafting process available to everyone viii. Final work session on future land use map is next Tuesday, 9/21; there will be some discussion on the chapters, then another meeting on 10/12 during which the Planning Commission will vote on and approve a final draft 1. Will then go to City Council for a first hearing in November; Council will make any amendments it wants to, then approve it in December ix. Ashley suggests drafting via Google Docs to draft comfortably outside of meetings, so long as no more than 2 Commissioners are in the document at one time x. Housing committee would like to meet at 1pm on 10/7 xi. Commissioners work on a Google document before the Tuesday Planning Commission meeting; Mary can make comments as Chair without needing to have a vote 1. Chair would like some help formulating what to say exactly, but she can do this 6. BUSINESS MATTERS (2) a. OHR Staff report i. Report is attached; ask Todd if there are any questions ii. Outreach from 9/21 has been rescheduled to 10/1-- let Todd know if interested b. Chair update i. Will be discussed during Housing committee updates 7. WORK SESSION (2) a. Ad-hoc committee updates i. Accessibility (Chair – Wolfgang) 1. Met last week to draft a proposed resolution (attached in agenda) a. Asks for feedback i. No specific feedback b. Committee Chair would like to clarify with Allyson legal requirements c. Committee Chair asks if full Commission is ready to vote i. Vote would be to take resolution to Council as written, with changes subtracting the “above and beyond” legal requirement part (not waiting will get the resolution to Council faster) d. Motion to approve (with legal requirement caveat) i. Vote 1. In favor: 6 2. Opposed: 0 2. There is a new temporary ADA Coordinator 3. Next committee meeting: 10/14 at 6:30pm ii. Community Engagement (Chair – Jessica) 1. No one present at the committee meeting is present at this meeting 2. Next committee meeting: 10/14 at 7pm iii. Housing 1. Mary updates (right to counsel) a. Explored what the city is prepared to do in terms of funding; looks like there will be a contract with LAJC to pay $300,000 over the course of three years ($100,000 per year) i. Much lower from what was originally proposed b. Believes Commission should continue to advocate for a more robust plan in the form of a letter and presentation to Council i. Mary is willing to draft something 2. Todd and Mary met with Allyson Davies to request a review of state law to determine whether or not any enabling legislation was needed to pass an ordinance regarding right to counsel a. There has been discussion over whether the city has the authority to adopt an ordinance giving people this right; the Commission can recommend the city adopt the ordinance or that the city have it part of its legislative agenda to push the state to allow it the authority to adopt the ordinance 3. Not anything new, just follow-up advocacy 4. Also talked about working on messaging—getting statements out about increased density and increased support for affordable housing a. Could draft letter to the editor from HRC that squarely talks about housing as a human right to counter other narratives i. Kathryn is willing to take lead on drafting and editing letter; Wolfgang can help ii. Daily Progress is not always prompt in publishing letters to the editor; Kathryn and Wolfgang will talk offline about how to go about getting letter published iv. Legal Representation 1. Mary and Todd talked to Allyson about what legal representation might look like in regard to complainants vs tenants of eviction proceedings a. Looked at draft resolution and continue thinking about it 2. OHR staff talked to people in Procurement about how it would work as a pilot program a. RFQ (request for quotes) from local attorneys and have them apply as vendors vs a reimbursement program for people who sought service b. There is still work to do; currently waiting on data 3. Next committee meeting: 10/7 at 1:30pm v. Legislative Agenda 1. Only Mary was there; decided to explore what recommendations have been made in the past and bring those requests to the full Commission 2. Believes the presentations from this meeting were helpful in framing the Commission’s legislative agenda 3. OHR staff says to think about timelines—want to get something to Council to get in recommendations for this year a. There is probably not time to have another meeting to draft and submit recommendations to raise them up to Council 4. General agreement to draft recommendations for other housing concerns like rent control, just-cause evictions, rental registry, etc., as part of legislative agenda a. Mary will work on this and circulate it 8. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. Ang Conn 1. Asks for a brief overview for new public attendees of what the Commission does 2. Says there are big problems in the city with landlords raising rent, discriminating against household size, property management, etc. a. Discriminatory practices are even written in policies 3. Housing applications are often discriminatory, making it difficult to find housing with a voucher ii. Adrienne Dent 1. Asks that Commission clearly endorses the affordable housing overtly and affirm intention to do so 2. Would also like to advocate for consistency in language over Affordable Housing Plan 3. Concerned that two members of the Planning Commission will not be present at the next meeting, so asks if HRC can do whatever they can to ensure the meeting goes well a. Timing of statements would be very helpful 4. Sam Sanders shared there will be a new Department of Community Solutions for Adrienne—language is intentionally shaped to prioritize increased capacity to address affordable housing crisis (a positive stated intention) 5. Believes op-ed piece and whatever else HRC can do to address the affordable housing crisis is necessary and helpful b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. OHR staff gives brief explanation of HRC 1. HRC prioritizes recommendations to City Council regarding systemic concerns in city policy, yearly legislative ideas to be taken to General Assembly, and education and outreach 2. In conjunction with OHR, HRC also acts as an adjudicating body for complaints with probable cause filed through OHR a. OHR accepts individual complaints of discrimination under Charlottesville’s jurisdiction and conducts close investigation 3. City website has an HRC webpage with descriptions of what the Commission does ii. Chair says the Commission is deeply concerned about the issues the speakers from today raised—housing discrimination is core to HRC’s mission, so it is dedicated to doing what it can to address this discrimination 9. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. Jessica i. Wants to have a discussion at the next meeting about the City's treatment of Black officials, particularly Chief Brackney and the Mayor 1. Ernest agrees b. Sue i. Next meeting will be her last meeting as a Commissioner ii. Not moving to in-person meetings any time in the near future 10. NEXT STEPS a. General Next Steps i. Work on Google document for comments to present at 9/21 Planning Commission meeting ii. Outreach from 9/21 has been rescheduled to 10/1-- let Todd know if interested iii. Discussion next meeting about treatment of Black officials in Charlottesville b. Mary i. Make comments on Planning Commission document before the 9/21 meeting ii. Begin drafting letter to Council about more funding for right to counsel plan iii. Begin drafting recommendations to Council about other housing concerns like rent control, just-cause evictions, rental registry, etc., as part of legislative agenda c. Kathryn and Wolfgang i. Draft and edit letter to the editor talking about housing as a human right d. Todd i. Correct minutes from 8/19/21 1. Bullet point 4.a.iii.3.a.i: there is a typo; “Civil Right to Council” should be “Civil Right to Counsel” 2. Bullet point 4.a.iv: should be about land use proposals, not zoning proposals e. Committees i. Housing: 10/7 at 1pm ii. Legal Representation: 10/7 at 1:30pm iii. Accessibility: 10/14 at 6:30pm iv. Community Engagement: 10/14 at 7pm 11. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 9:22 pm Attachment 5 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Housing Committee Meeting October 7, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 1:00 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Chair, Kathryn Laughon, called the meeting to order at 1:02 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Mary Bauer ii. Kathryn Laughon iii. Jessica Harris (arrived at 1:07 pm) c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. Anna Mendez 1. Executive Director of Partner for Mental Health, research fellow through UVA Equity Center, and Board Chair and Public Policy Committee Chair for Mental Health America for VA 2. Todd and Anna have been speaking for several months 3. Partner for Mental Health a. Does not provide direct clinical services; rather, it assists those with mental illness with accessing their local resources b. Also, it addresses and helps to improve social determinants of health 4. Clients are experiencing discrimination on the basis of disability at hotels and motels in Charlottesville a. Partner for Mental Health calls hotel or motel and ascertains there are vacancies, but when it comes time to make the payment under the organization’s name, the vacancy goes away or the hotel/motel tells them “We don’t rent to your people” b. A fair housing issue under disability and source of payment, as well as ADA issue 5. Challenges a. The people Partner for Mental Health serves are most often in a critical position—unsheltered or about to be unsheltered b. Filing with OHR is something these people do not have the time nor capacity to do i. PMH supports about 200 people per year—time with each client is finite c. City Attorney has told PHR that they as an organization have not experienced discrimination, so they have no standing to submit a complaint 6. What to do next about this systemic discrimination? b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. Chair says this is an important issue for the committee to take up 1. Would like some more information and to put this on the agenda for the next meeting ii. Mary says she is very familiar with federal standing doctrines under the Fair Housing Act, and there is a fair argument PMH would have under federal law 1. Not sure about state statutes 2. In addition to support by HRC, would like to meet with Anna offline to talk about legal support options iii. OHR staff says finishing the process of creating a city ordinance to become a Fair Housing Assistance Program (FHAP) will allow for Director-initiated complaints on behalf of a client, among other things iv. Committee member adds that Anna’s situation falls under the very definition of discrimination in that the oppressed cannot change their circumstances alone 3. MINUTES a. Review of minutes from 9/9/21 i. Vote 1. In favor: 2 2. Opposed: 0 3. Abstained: 1 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. None 5. WORK SESSION a. Right to counsel advocacy i. Mary raised this issue at the last City Council meeting, as well as met with a representative from DHA because they were open to follow-up advocacy 1. The City Council meeting was focused on other issues, but this is still an issue worth advocating for; Mary is unsure of next steps, however ii. Committee Chair thinks it necessary to continue to name the DSA as the organization that is advocating for this 1. DSA would like to be more formal partners with whoever is doing the work and would prefer to work on policy change as opposed to direct work iii. Committee member thinks next step would be sending an email asking Council for a response to her comments at the last meeting b. CLIHC partnership i. Looking to ask if someone from CLIHC would like to apply to be on HRC to create liaison ii. OHR staff talked to Emily Dreyfus 1. Said they may not be prepared to do that yet, but can loop in Todd to CLIHC conversation 2. He is attending the CLIHC meeting tomorrow, 10/8/21, at 10:30am—he can bring up CLIHC member as Human Rights Commissioner again 3. Ashley and Sam Sanders will be guests c. Support for Midway Manor residents i. Concern because Midway Manor owners have only signed a contract for 2 years instead of 30; what are next steps? ii. Mary Bauer heard from Mary Carey, who has been working with Todd 1. Carey said there is not much advocacy going on that HRC could connect with at the moment 2. Asks if CLIHC is involved at all 3. 98 units at Midway Manor: many people could be in a difficult place iii. Todd talked to Emily some about this: CLIHC has no immediate plans to do anything, but Mary Carey and Todd are working on crafting a letter response to Midway owners asking for the rationale in written format of signing only a 2-year contract and pointing out that the decision has major ramifications for seniors and those with disabilities 1. Letter would be signed by residents; Mary Carey will go around to get these 2. Told Emily from CLIHC about this; maybe a collaborative letter between HRC and CLIHC could be a possibility iv. No current concrete action except for voicing concern and amplifying groups who are already doing advocacy d. TJPDC Virginia Eviction Reduction Program (VERP) updates i. OHR staff notes that similarly to how DSA is collecting eviction data, the Equity Center is collecting data for the TJPDC; there is a report that is not yet published 1. There is a set of goals for an implementation grant for the VERP project a. Funding for additional representation in court is a possible action item 2. $3,000,000 can be awarded and is expected to be spent within a year; awarded over 3-4 partners, so award would be up to $1,000,000 ii. OHR staff has been on advisory committee and is letting them know HRC is advocating for right to counsel iii. Chair thinks different wording should be used to differentiate right to counsel and access to counsel iv. Committee member asks what happens after sending the letter of recommendations for the legislative agenda 1. Lisa Robertson told Todd she was conducting the legal review and taking it to Council, so Council is aware of the recommendations 2. Could follow up and ask Council for a response e. FHAP process updates i. Eric Steinecker is going to do another informal review this week of the draft ordinance to become a FHAP ii. Then, it is ready to bring to the City Attorney’s Office to do a legal review before bringing it to the Commission iii. Aiming to present it at the November meeting 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. None 8. NEXT STEPS a. General Next Steps i. Look into Partner for Mental Health’s situation of clients being discriminated against at Charlottesville hotels and motels ii. Send email to Council requesting a response to Mary’s comments from the last Council meeting iii. Ask Council for a response to HRC’s letter of recommendations for the legislative agenda 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 1:30 pm Attachment 6 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Legal Representation Committee Meeting October 7, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 1:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. No current official Chair. Kathryn Laughon called the meeting to order at 1:31 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Kathryn Laughon c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 3. MINUTES a. Review of minutes from 9/2/21 i. Not enough Commissioners in attendance to vote 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. None 5. WORK SESSION a. Next steps for draft resolution i. OHR staff reached out to attorney who is currently doing pro-bono assistance in an OHR case for an hour and cost estimation 1. Wonders if this level of detail is necessary in a resolution to propose the project to Council 2. Will continue to look for more programmatic details for the future ii. Kathryn says she would defer to future committee members; thinks these details would not go in the resolution, but they are helpful to answer later questions iii. Kathryn looked at resolution—seems satisfactory iv. Concern of making both requests at once versus asking more sequentially 1. OHR staff says ideally, Council would consider resolution during budget session, and this is the time to move forward 2. If Commission passed resolution to move forward, the Commission could just write a letter to Council saying it wants to do this a. Would want to have a number at this point 3. There are 5 ongoing complaints and four involved in mediation; not all OHR clients desire legal representation, but it will be a salient issue to consider v. Priority may also be funding OHR vi. Decision to put resolution on hold until taking it up with Commission 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. None 8. NEXT STEPS a. Putting resolution on hold until taking it up with Commission 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 1:36 pm Attachment 7 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Accessibility Committee Meeting October 14, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 6:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Chair, Wolfgang Keppley, called the meeting to order at 6:33 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Wolfgang Keppley ii. Sue Lewis iii. Lyndele Von Schill c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 3. MINUTES a. Review of minutes from 09/09/21 i. Vote 1. In favor: 2 2. Opposed: 0 3. Abstained: 1 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. None 5. WORK SESSION a. Resolution HR21-1: Language Access Plan i. Committee Chair wants to talk to Allyson to ensure that Allyson’s comments are in line with what the resolution says 1. She had crossed out “beyond legal requirement”; Chair wants to clarify what the plan is proposing 2. Chair can have Todd follow up if they do not hear back from Allyson b. Disability PSA project i. Chair looked through all of the emails that Phoebe and Melvin sent back and forth, as well as emailed all of the original participants 1. One participant would like some clarification on what the project is ii. Asks what next steps are 1. Making sure participants who originally signed on are still willing to participate a. Potentially add more participants 2. Clarifying people are comfortable with the script written by Phoebe and Melvin 3. Getting in contact with city media services to join the project iii. There were several emails to other parties—is the project trying to include organizations or individuals? 1. OHR staff says those organizations have contact with people with lived experience, so they could recommend people who would potentially be interested in participating 2. Chair can get back in contact with these organizations to ask if they know of any more people willing to participate, as well as for any feedback about the project iv. Brian says York Place is available, and remote is an option if needed; just need to have a plan, dates, etc. 1. OHR staff has not worked with them before v. Remy Trail works at the Media Center-- more notice is better, but just ask and they will say if there are any bookings on a particular day 1. All staff wear masks when with members of the public, and they ask members of the public to wear masks as well unless they are in front of the camera doing a production 2. There will be at least 2 weeks' notice 3. Media Center has regular office hours, but they are flexible; evenings and weekends are available on a case-by-case basis vi. York Place has a big central space that many organizations use 1. If some people are uncomfortable for one reason or another, filming outside is an option; there are some portable cameras that people can use 2. One could even record from their home vii. Waiting to hear back from participants from the original project viii. Wolfgang will reach out to Arc and IRC to see if there is anyone else who would like to be involved c. New business i. Lyndele brings up plain language document availability as an equity and accessibility issue 1. The federal government has a law saying to do things in plain language, but it is often ignored—compliance issue? a. Everyone in the city puts out very dense information b. Would like HRC to take the lead in writing as plainly and clearly as possible, or at least provide separate documents in plain language if the city wishes to keep official documents formal 2. Could use upcoming Human Rights resolution for Language Access Plan to propose writing separate plain language copy of all documents a. Still in its working draft stages and is the only resolution written so far in the past year 3. Lyndele’s friend is a world expert on plain language and would be willing to do a workshop 4. There is evidence that writing in plain language first is helpful— helps clarify mission and not disguise intent with complicated language 5. Chair says that Lyndele’s friend’s workshop could definitely be pursued as a sub-committee or passed up to Mary for the full Commission 6. Sue says language simplicity is definitely something that can be added to the resolution a. Chair asks if this is possible, as the Commission has already voted on it b. Should work on plan for what committee envisions as a Language Access Plan so that it is ready for city’s response 7. Work plain language piece in as a principle in any written or oral responses; try and get it in a way such that the general public would be able to understand 8. Resolution #A21-1 should be in the next agenda packet—can add bit about plain language here a. Some variation of “We will use plain language because human rights work should be easy to understand.” 9. OHR staff says HRC could aim to make all documents in plain language rather than companion documents to original formal- language documents, though Commission may not be there yet a. Think about ability to do this—does Commission want to translate existing documents or recruit people to translate future documents? b. Lyndele volunteers to work on plain language documents 10. Commission should approve the resolution as drafted in plain language a. Formal language and plain language documents can reference back and forth to each other 11. There can be a “plain language” section on the website 12. Commission can start creating plain language companion documents for future HRC documents d. OHR staff says that the Disability PSA project could be a joint effort with the Community Engagement committee i. Todd will mention it at the next Community Engagement meeting ii. Extra feedback on the script, as well as additional potential contacts, would help iii. Lyndele may be able to help 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. None 8. NEXT STEPS a. Wolfgang i. Wait to hear back from participants from original Disability PSA project ii. Reach out to Arc and IRC to see if there is anyone else who would like to be involved in Disability PSA project b. Lyndele i. Work on plain language document for Resolution HR21-1 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 7:00 pm Attachment 8 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Regular Meeting October 21, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 6:30 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Vice-Chair, Kathryn Laughon, called the meeting to order at 6:35 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Kathryn Laughon ii. Jeanette Abi-Nader iii. Ernest Chambers iv. Jessica Harris v. Wolfgang Keppley vi. Lyndele Von Schill c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. Janice Redinger 1. Todd attended Mayor’s “Imagining a Just Cville” work group, of which Janice is a part, to talk about OHR and HRC a. Janice asked if the Office handles complaints of discrimination from City employees b. These are referred to the EEOC because of potential conflicts of interest 2. Why are complaints not handled locally? a. Seems that the City Attorney can recuse herself and you can get other representation 3. Section 2-437B of the ordinance said that if there is another agency that has jurisdiction over a complaint, OHR refers the complaint out—what does the Office actually handle, and what enforcement efforts is it involved in? 4. There are references to the Director in the ordinance—who does the Director’s work in their absence, and under what authority? 5. Another issue is that the City has very unsatisfactory employment practices a. Even if you prevail in a grievance, there is no provision in the City’s grievance policy for attorney fees to be reimbursed b. Few people outside of management can afford a lawyer alone, so they do not end up filing; this is an equity issue 6. Related: 2019 report generated by City Manager Mike Murphy’s advisory group on organization equity a. On City webpage b. Pg. 9 talks about how Black employees earn less than white co-workers, as well as city demographics i. "There are significantly fewer Black employees represented in management and protective pay bands, while Black employees are disproportionately represented in the technical band.” ii. “Black employees earn significantly less than the average salary in the professional and technical bands.” 7. After the report was published, the city took little action; Janice is hoping HRC could spearhead a study to update this report ii. Tanesha Hudson 1. The way that Black leadership has walked out of City Hall is a human rights issue 2. Expresses deep disappointment in HRC’s performance addressing racial issues in the city and City government following its creation by the Dialogue on Race a. Believes the HRC has failed the Black community, Black employees, and the organization 3. Says Kathryn and Mary challenged the Chief of Police in May 4. Unacceptable that the city does not allow people of color in leadership positions to do their job; their treatment is on record 5. Is also unacceptable that the interim Chief was responsible for the SWAT that got punished and is now acting Chief 6. Shows the world that the City only hires Black people to be puppets 7. HRC has all of the resources to have been defending the Black community during recent events, but instead, HRC took the side of the City 8. Hopes HRC creates a plan and solution to take to Council and the people in power to right their wrongs iii. Ms. Martin 1. Agrees with Tanesha Hudson 2. The City attracts supposedly “highly qualified” Black people and hires them, but does not support them 3. No one seems to be questioning that African Americans are not thriving in City government 4. Something must change; asks the Commission to look into these issues 5. Hopes that something is done before the next hire is made 6. People are noticing the trend of African Americans coming to the City and getting destroyed in their careers b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. Kathryn 1. Two sets of issues 2. Looking at employment policies of the city can be discussed at a future meeting; will need to think about it and vote 3. Substantial wage issues can also be talked about in a future meeting a. Since publication of the 2019 report, the has City hired a Deputy City Manager for Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, who is likely looking at these issues— Commissioners will follow up with her ii. OHR staff in response to Janice Redinger’s questions 1. Agrees that handling city employee cases locally would be beneficial for complainants a. Challenge right now is that legal counsel for Commission and city is the same; the Commission is the adjudicating body in the determination of a complaint b. Currently, Allyson Davies from the City Attorney’s office is the liaison, which is the conflict i. Would have to rethink this; could potentially look into externalizing the legal representation ii. Todd can ask some more questions to find out how this is possible 2. Regarding Sec. 2-437(b) of the ordinance, Council has removed much of the previous outsourcing language; now, the Office has jurisdiction to look into employment complaints, housing, public accommodations, credit, and private education a. Can talk to Janice more about specific OHR details, especially about other things OHR does that are not directly related to complaints of discrimination 3. Director reference has been variable over the past two years a. Once Charlene left, the City Attorney’s office advised that the Director’s responsibilities shift to the next-in- command, the City Manager, which changed many times in a short amount of time b. Now, the power rests with the Deputy City Manager for REDI, Ashley Reynolds Marshall i. Acts as administrative judge for determination on any case the Office investigates c. Once there is a new Director, the power would shift, though investigatory staff is still necessary i. Separation of responsibility is necessary between the investigator and the person making the determination iii. Vice-Chair says one of the agenda items of this meeting is to talk about writing a letter to the City about pattern of losing high-level Black employees iv. Jeanette is interested in reaching out to Ashley to talk about if any action on the 2019 report has been made 1. Ashley said once there is a Human Resources Director, there is money set aside in the CIP for a class and comp study, but there is no Director right now 2. Jeanette would like access to the 2019 report—probably posted online 3. Asks if it is accurate that Commissioners can FOIA and not be charged, while non-Commissioners do get charged a. Yes, this is accurate 4. Confirms that the Commission as an entity was never opposed to Chief Brackney 5. Affirms speakers’ comments and suggests thinking about implementing some kind of time restriction on public speakers to prevent personal attacks a. Vice-Chair agrees that Planning Commission’s time restraint model may be effective v. Jessica agrees and adds that the concerns brought up by the speakers will be discussed later in the meeting vi. Wolfgang says Commission will discuss Charlottesville’s Black leadership and the lack of respect that has been shown to them later in the meeting 1. Also says they are excited to see the OHR Director position filled, and gives the reminder that Commissioners are all volunteers 3. MINUTES a. Unable to vote due to insufficient number of Commissioners to create a quorum 4. BUSINESS MATTERS a. Chair update i. There were a few updates from Mary from committee meetings, but no update from Mary about how anything has moved forward ii. Mary had invited Hansel Aguilar (new Police Civilian Review Board Director) to introduce himself 1. Vice-Chair says there is overlap between the HRC and PCRB, so collaboration will probably occur in the future 2. Hansel Aguilar explains how his role is to provide functional administrative support to the PCRB; agrees there is overlap 3. Civilian oversight of the police has been used as a mechanism to bridge gaps 4. Has been doing this work in Fairfax County, and was a Police Misconduct Investigator in Washington, DC a. Worked with OHR in DC, specifically with a robust language access plan 5. Believes there is opportunity for joint work and joint lobbying a. Believes some issues should not be police matters, and advocates for relieving police of certain duties and providing alternative avenues b. OHR Staff report i. Report is attached in agenda packet ii. Waiting to hear back from Eric Steinecker regarding amendments to ordinance to bring it to an equivalent of federal fair housing law 1. Would like to present it to the full Commission at the November meeting iii. Wants to verify during committee meetings who was present for the HR21-1 vote iv. Contact Todd about city email address password if not done already and do quick security form v. Acknowledges this would be Sue Lewis’s last HRC meeting 5. WORK SESSION a. Deputy City Manager memo: Remembrance of 2017 & FY23 Commemorative Dates i. Ashley sent memo to Mary over the summer about: 1. Noting next year will be the 5th year since the 2017 summer hate events a. Asks if HRC would like to work with her office on commemorations, since OHR played a role in Equity Days 2. Affirming idea for observing commemorative months (African American History in February, Women’s History in March, Autism Awareness and Arab-American Heritage in April, etc.) a. Typically done through proclamations in council, but there is no consistent, systematic public commemoration ii. Commissioner expresses support for both of these ideas and asks what the commemorations would look like 1. Ashley says she is open to suggestions 2. There is no budget-line item for this, so she would like to get Commissioners’ thoughts so she can prepare an appropriate ask iii. Commissioners express surprise and disappointment that the Office of Race, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion was not allocated funds iv. Vice-Chair suggests that she is in favor of generally recognizing the months in a systematic way 1. Commissioner says these are days of not only celebration, but also awareness 2. Another Commissioner suggests having social media could help HRC participate in commemoration v. Commissioner expresses support for some kind of Unity Days-like event to remember the events of 2017 1. Vice-Chair says she would rather the city give a more substantive response than from what it gave at the time if it held a Unity Days event vi. Commissioner says this would be a good opportunity to reach out to community partnerships to see how they commemorate the months and form some kind of collaboration vii. Ashley offers to do some brainstorming and to take into account the actions of other community groups and other cities to ask for money while the Commission continues to think about the events of 2017 (especially because she was not present for them) 1. Vice-Chair suggests the Community Engagement committee take this up—she will put this on their agenda b. Committee reports i. Accessibility (Chair – Wolfgang) 1. Invites Commissioners to join the committee since Sue is leaving 2. Disability PSA project with the City is beginning a. Participants are involved in sharing others’ stories ii. Community Engagement (Chair – Jessica) 1. Worked on A21-1 about how to proceed on action items between meetings a. Is drafted and can be voted upon in a future meeting 2. Lyndele has been advocating for providing plain language documents for all HRC documents a. Provided an example of the plain language version of the resolution 3. Jeanette worked on the proposal template of statements a. Has not yet been formalized, but working on it now 4. Next to work on is creating visualizations/plain language versions to explain the process of filing a complaint iii. Housing (Chair – Kathryn) 1. Talked about how owner of Midway Manor (low-income housing for mainly elderly individuals) re-upped contract for two years instead of thirty a. Has caused concern that they will end the low-income housing contract b. Settled that role of HRC is to amplify the work of other community organizations c. OHR staff adds that he has been in touch with Midway residents; is scheduling a time tomorrow to talk about their protections under VA fair housing law and hopes to coordinate with someone from LAJC to talk about rights under Landlord and Tenant Act 2. Mary is going to follow up with Council about the right to counsel issue regarding need for ordinance and additional funding iv. Legal Representation 1. Kathryn says this committee (same two members as Housing) talked about the same issues 2. OHR staff adds that this committee, for those who are not aware, is about legal representation for parties to a complaint filed with OHR rather than legal representation in eviction cases, for which the Commission is also advocating a. Eviction prevention and representation is the HRC’s primary concern at the moment, so this item is on hold c. Commissioner discussion regarding Black leadership turnover in City government i. Going to write a letter ii. Vice-Chair acknowledges HRC does not have access to confidential personnel members, but it seems there is a pattern of targeting Black leadership iii. Commissioner agrees that this is a very concerning issue and is a systemic issue with the City 1. Vice-Chair adds the differences in salary referenced in the report that the report Janice Redinger was talking about is also part of a pattern iv. Commissioner expresses longtime concern with racial issues as a resident 1. He has not often witnessed minorities present at public worksites 2. Is also concerned with how Black leadership is fired seemingly without reason, but simultaneously expressing support for this community a. Also references individual resigning and blaming reasoning on the Mayor 3. Questions what the Commission can do to respond a. Also questions whether someone on the Commission should be listening to City Council meetings during these kinds of issues and ensuring there is someone on the public comment side b. Community is waiting to hear from the Commission— there should be something in place to respond between meetings c. Make the community know the Commission hears them v. Vice-Chair asks if Resolution A21-1 has been voted upon yet 1. Community Engagement committee made some amendments for the full Commission to review, but there is not a quorum to vote this meeting 2. At the end of the packet are the materials that lay out advocacy and action 3. Wants to make sure voting on A21-1 is on next meeting’s agenda vi. Vice-Chair suggests Mary writing the letter to Council, Commission working on it via email, and sending it before the next meeting 1. Mary will likely go to City Council and speak as well as send it to Council via email vii. Commissioner says that not speaking up does not mean the Commission is not dedicated to the work 1. Expresses frustration with how the Mayor has been treated 2. Bystander training in workplaces is necessary with racial issues a. Racism can be especially devastating when white colleagues do not step up to say anything b. Suggests bystander training for everyone, especially City government 3. Wants more opportunities to engage with the public, such as hosting Facebook or Instagram Lives 4. Asks what the Commission is able to do besides letter-writing viii. Commissioner says that the Commission sees high-level leadership, but not necessarily across all levels of leadership in the community 1. Commission as a whole could look into this 2. Concerned citizens have brought up disproportionate contact in CPS on basis of race, and HRC brought in CPS to give a presentation—maybe something similar could happen with City HR a. Maybe when there is an HR Director ix. Commissioner suggests including recommendations in the letter 1. Work with Ashley to find out what she wants in her budget or otherwise support her vision for the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion 2. Suggests more Commission members than Mary and Kathryn show up at City Council meeting to show strong support 3. Shares Ashley’s comments from the Zoom chat a. One recommendation of the 2019 report was the establishment of the Office for Race, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, no steps have been taken since report’s publication b. Per December 2, 2020 Council meeting, Council asked Dr. Richardson to consult with new HR Director and bring up proposal before Council for Equity Report, but this was likely never completed due to staffing changes i. Commissioner expresses interest in supporting Ashley in this 4. Expresses support for a community listening session x. OHR staff says city emails are still being worked on, which would be helpful for holding some kind of public event online 1. Could create city-connected social media account 2. Can ask Communications about town hall platforms 3. Asks if Commission would like to use its time focusing on the town hall-style meeting or the four committee meetings a. Vice-Chair says a community meeting should take some planning, so committee meetings make more sense right now b. Community Engagement committee could possibly take this on c. Vice-Chair suggests holding only a longer Community Engagement committee that more people could attend xi. Vice-Chair suggests that town hall meeting could include bystander training 1. Can put it on the agenda to talk about xii. Commissioner suggests that, during the town hall, the HRC clarify to the public what the Commission has and does not have the power to do xiii. Commissioner suggests having some kind of code of conduct for the town hall meeting 1. Kathryn can ask Planning Commission Chair to send her their code of conduct, which she can then email to HRC members xiv. There will be only the Community Engagement ad-hoc committee this month, during which Commissioners will discuss a town hall (potentially with bystander intervention training), guidelines for working together, commemorative event planning, and plain language version of filing a complaint xv. Commissioner clarifies Mary’s letter will specifically ask Council to monitor and ensure the Mayor is not attacked in addition to bystander training 1. Another Commissioner adds that allowing Council to disrespect the Mayor allows the general public to disrespect the Mayor 2. Expresses deep frustration in the treatment Mayor Walker has received xvi. Commissioner adds that Mayor Walker has been supportive of other Councilors and expresses frustration that the same treatment has not been reciprocated xvii. Commissioner suggests proposing Council also create plain language versions or quick executive summaries of their documents in order to be more accessible 6. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. Tanesha Hudson 1. Expresses frustration with the Commission’s lack of taking action on behalf of Black City leadership 2. Would like Ashley, Sam Sanders, and Chip Boyles to address why Chief Brackney was terminated 3. Agrees that the Mayor is frequently left out 4. Offers to give input if the Commission needs help ii. Ang Conn 1. Black leadership is leaving at an alarming rate, and there should be something done about it 2. Urges the Commission to take action and think about their priorities 3. References the ill treatment and verbal assault Mayor Walker receives; urges the Commission to take a stance iii. Janice Redinger 1. Is a criminal defense attorney 2. Says Charlottesville has never had a Police Chief before Chief Brackney who has been interested in and took action in reforming policing a. She has been disrespected the entire time 3. She has been a leader in the “Imagining a Just Cville” and Marcus Alert groups 4. Urges the Commission to voice their concerns, as she fears the progress the City has made will deteriorate b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. Vice-Chair says the Commission has a plan for the issues addressed and hopes it will address the public’s concerns ii. Jessica said the Mayor sent out a compilation video last week showing her asking for the reason for Chief Brackney’s termination 1. Clarifies that Ashley did not play a role in hiring decisions or firing the Chief iii. Jeanette asks Dr. Marshall directly if she had a role in firing the Chief 1. Ashley replied that she did not 7. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. Acknowledges Sue Lewis’s role as one of the founding members of the Human Rights Commission i. Has put years of effort into the Commission and will be deeply missed ii. Jessica and Ernest share their appreciation for Sue’s presence on the Commission b. Community Engagement committee meeting i. Todd will make sure 11/4/21 at 1pm works with Communications and does not conflict with Diwali 1. Will last around an hour 8. NEXT STEPS a. General Next Steps i. Contact Todd about City email address password if not done already and do quick security form ii. Vote on Resolution A21-1 at next meeting b. Mary i. Follow up with Council regarding right to counsel, specifically about need for ordinance and additional funding ii. Draft letter to Council about Black City leadership 1. Commission will give feedback via email 2. Mary will send letter to Council via email 3. May speak at City Council meeting about letter as well c. Kathryn i. Ask Planning Commission Chair for their code of conduct and send it to Human Rights Commissioners d. Community Engagement committee meeting: 11/4/21 at 1pm 9. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 8:25 pm Attachment 9 Human Rights Commission Meeting Minutes Committee Engagement Committee Meeting November 4, 2021 Virtual/Electronic Meeting 1:00 pm Public link to meeting rebroadcasts on Boxcast: https://boxcast.tv/channel/vabajtzezuyv3iclkx1a Public link to HRC documents on Box: https://app.box.com/s/xty3wnn2s1tj8h7trkknvd79bipyxezy 1. WELCOME a. CALL TO ORDER i. Chair, Jessica Harris, called the meeting to order at 1:06 pm b. ROLL CALL i. Lyndele Von Schill ii. Andrew Orban iii. Jessica Harris iv. Kathryn Laughon c. MISSION (recited by all): Act as a strong advocate to justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights. 2. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 3. MINUTES a. Review of minutes from 10/14/21 i. Motion to approve 1. Lyndele ii. Second 1. Jessica iii. Vote 1. In favor: 2 2. Opposed: 0 3. Abstained: 2 4. WORK SESSION a. Draft Resolution A21-1 i. Approved the changes described in the comments; now Lyndele needs to make these final changes in a new document 1. Not yet finished with official version, so need to finish that before making changes to plain language version 2. Lyndele will send the finished version to the entire Commission to be voted upon at the next regular meeting ii. After approving the plain language version of this document, there are plans to make plain language versions of other documents, as well 1. Include flyer (to use as a future model) and plain language version for approval, as well iii. Hyperlinks to other documents will not be included, as if the location of the other documents change the links will break iv. Could write resolution in plain language that all resolutions going forward (and past ones, potentially) will be drafted in plain language 1. Then, it would not be necessary to recognize the plain-language counterpart at the bottom of every formal-language document 2. Written like other resolutions 3. Lyndele can draft this plain language resolution b. August 11-12, 2017 recognition during 2022 i. Ashley wanted feedback regarding the memo sent over the summer about the City’s five-year remembrance of August 2017 events and recognition of commemorative dates and months throughout the year ii. There is no funding for this currently, though Todd can look at the OHR budget iii. Committee Chair asks if there has been any other event since August 2017 1. 2019 Unity Days: Charlene worked with City Manager’s Office and Communications to gather ideas from community members a. They had funding for various initiatives; Todd has the calendar of the Unity Days events iv. Todd would not be able to put on a large event, so it would have to be a feasible initiative for people involved 1. Commissioner says Ashley requests feedback more than putting on events v. Commissioner says she would rather the City apologize and provide more transparency than commemorate this 2017 event 1. Another Commissioner agrees and says she would rather the City address the lingering effects of August 2017, such as the ongoing attacks on Black officials 2. Commissioners want the City to specifically address salary equity, grievance policies, housing, non-racist zoning, more functional PCRB 3. Commissioner says the City can explain how the events of 2017 were a catalyst for current local relations now, but they should accompany this with concrete action a. And continued reparations vi. Chair asks how Commissioners should share their thoughts 1. OHR staff recommends bringing the committee’s thoughts to the entire Commission, then allowing the HRC Chair to issue a response vii. Ashley included some ideas of her own in the memorandum that Commissioners could also comment on viii. Commissioner summarizes that the Commission is not interested in a commemorative event; it is interested in action 1. This is one of Ashley’s suggestions (“education and outreach on systemic racism, e.g., rebooting the Commission’s Dialogue on Race”) a. Pursuing Dialogue on Race reboot could be effective as long as project organizers consult Charlottesville’s Black residents b. Ashley also asks if there is any budgetary request with the Commission’s recommendations i. Could recommend that Council fund something ix. Chair does not want it to be commemorative; she would rather give a voice to those who do not have one, potentially through the Dialogue on Race 1. There is lots of documentation about the original Dialogue on Race in 2007; it is the reason for HRC’s creation a. Task forces, drafting Human Rights Ordinance, other initiatives, etc. b. City of Promise is another outcome x. Commissioner says second iteration of the Dialogue on Race was less productive in that there were no programs that came out of it 1. Todd and interns could look through Charlene’s old files on paper and computer 2. Some written history on the timeline of the Dialogue on Race could be helpful 3. There was little regular meeting of the task forces by the time Todd arrived—could be a good time for a reboot 4. There is a Facebook page that captures some of the publicly- available work xi. Commissioner says listening to the Black community and the Dialogue on Race may be different things 1. She has heard community members express that Charlottesville does not need another Dialogue on Race, as it was structured to bring white people into the conversation 2. Now, the city needs action, not conversation 3. Is interested in outreach to silenced communities rather than a formal Dialogue on Race xii. Chair agrees and proposes bringing back the Dialogue on Race, but with more action and engaging with communities 1. Commissioner suggests having a different name so as not to closely associate the different versions a. Says biggest problem is getting white people to listen to the Black community, rather than the Black community not speaking up b. Expresses strong support for bystander training and says the Commission can insist we change the way we listen to people xiii. Kathryn met with Ashley to talk about bystander intervention 1. Ashley is planning to organize it for City employees and is hopeful that what she plans will be available via Zoom to the general public, as well 2. Commissioners can be invited 3. Organizations like Hollaback! provide this training xiv. Chair says a clever poster or other creative way to get the Black community’s voices to Council would be more effective/engaging than a letter 1. Summarizes the Commission would like to recommend to Ashley more of a call to action to City Council; wants the Commission to hold them accountable but also reflect what the Black community actually wants 2. Commissioner says some kind of community event where people can come and contribute to some kind of poster or other visual could be effective a. Don't just insist people get the training, but also use it xv. Chair asks if Ashley herself is going to take on these projects 1. She is currently just brainstorming c. Recognition of commemorative dates and months i. Ashley’s ideas look good ii. OHR staff says Commission could, in their recommendations, write a letter to Council advocating for funding 1. She would like feedback from the Commission on how the events might take place while being meaningful and not just tokens iii. Chair says she recommends all of the things listed 1. Mix of explaining significance and amplifying a community’s voices, and explaining how one can support that community iv. OHR staff says VA Beach’s Human Rights Commission has a primary focus of outreach, so getting in contact with them may be helpful for ideas v. Commissioner says it feels like a lot of consistent work would be necessary to do these events effectively; is concerned about the Commission’s ability to keep up with them 1. OHR staff says Ashley is more interested in the what than the how, and wants feedback to ask Council for support 2. Expectations are not that Commission carries out the programmatic details vi. Commissioner says City should focus on the informational aspect of commemorating the events vii. Chair summarizes that the Commission recommends to Ashley that yes, her ideas are valuable; the city should focus on the educational aspect of these events and amplifying the voices of marginalized communities 1. Also, whoever takes on this task should partner with VA Beach’s Commission since they have a focus on outreach d. Community Town Hall i. Context comes from the public comment from the last regular meeting; Chair would like the Commission to engage more effectively with the public ii. Chair says doing the town hall after a bystander training could help both Council and members of the public adhere more to a community code of conduct 1. Commissioner stresses the importance of having a “team” mindset where all members of a community must be willing to defend their colleagues in order to be engaged 2. Chair says creating norms for treating one another would be beneficial to prevent individuals from being attacked a. Must come from City Council as a model b. Could have some way to pause or stop public comment when things turn personal e. Guidelines for working together and public comment i. Commissioner says Lyle Solla-Yates of the Planning Commission created a statement that Commission could use at the beginning of meetings 1. He also cuts off members of the public as soon as they begin a personal attack 2. Chair says a non-verbal way to trigger an action would be effective, such as Lyle’s ability to mute a. Copying the Planning Commission’s statement could encourage Council to do the same so that there is consistency ii. Commissioner says a time limit would also be helpful 1. 3 minutes? 2. OHR staff says the agenda has a statement that the Chair has discretion over stopping public comment, but this is not verbalized a. Can ask Communications if putting a timer on the screen would be possible iii. Will share the Planning Commission’s statement with the entire Human Rights Commission 1. Do not have to vote on it since it is essentially the same as what is written at the top of every agenda a. Though codifying through resolutions and changes to bylaws is always a good idea 2. Just be cautious that HRC is not restricting first amendment rights iv. Chair says it would be nice to quickly summarize in plain language what the Commission is and is not able to do at the beginning of meetings f. Potential support of Jefferson School proposal for disposition of Civil War statues i. There were seven proposals received for the disposition of the Lee and Jackson statues, and the Jefferson School put in a 42-page proposal to transform the Lee statue into ingots; would then be transformed into another statue by a BIPOC artist with public discussion 1. The only local proposal and the only proposal by a Black-led organization; the most detailed proposal that has received much support ii. There was a request for the Commission to craft a statement in support of this proposal, as well as urge Council to make a decision iii. Commissioner asks if Mary could make a statement at the next Council meeting on behalf of the Commission without a vote 1. Wanted to get out the statement before the next HRC regular meeting 2. Would like Council to make their decision at their next meeting 5. MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC a. PUBLIC COMMENT i. None b. COMMISSION RESPONSE TO MATTERS BY THE PUBLIC i. None 6. COMMISSIONER UPDATES a. Andy and other present Commissioners offer congratulations on Todd’s new role as Director at OHR i. Could begin the process of hiring more staff 7. NEXT STEPS a. General Next Steps i. Recommendations to Ashley 1. August 2017 Commemoration: Commission would like to see more of a call to action; wants to hold City Council accountable while reflecting what the Black community actually wants 2. Commemorative months/days: Ashley’s ideas are valuable, and the city should focus on the educational aspect of these events, as well as amplifying the voices of marginalized communities b. Lyndele i. Will send the finished version of A21-1 to the entire Commission to be voted upon at the next regular meeting ii. Draft plain-language resolution saying that all resolutions going forward (and past ones) have plain-language versions c. Todd i. Circulate Planning Commission’s statement with the entire HRC to put into use in future meetings d. Mary i. Make statement in support of the Jefferson School proposal at the next City Council meeting 8. ADJOURN a. Meeting adjourned at 2:08 pm Attachment 10 The following excerpts are included in this agenda packet for guidance regarding the discussion over revision of what constitutes a quorum of the Human Rights Commission. Excerpt from the Charlottesville Human Rights Ordinance: Sec. 2-432.(d) All meetings of the Commission shall be advertised in advance and in the manner required by law, and shall be open to the public except for meetings lawfully closed pursuant to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act. The Commission may adopt bylaws and procedures to govern the conduct of its meetings; provided, however, that at the beginning and at the end of each of its public meetings the Commission will receive public comment in accordance with City Council’s adopted “Rules for Public Participation”. Excerpts from the HRC Rules & Procedures: 4.1 Quorum. A minimum of seven members of the Commission (“quorum”) must be in attendance at a meeting of the Commission in order for business to be legally transacted. Except as expressly provided in Virginia Code Section 2.2-3708(G) or 2.2-3708.1, the Commission shall not conduct a meeting where its business is discussed or transacted through any means of communication where the members are not physically assembled. 7. Amendments. These bylaws, rules and procedures may be amended by vote of a majority of the Commission at any meeting provided, however, notice of such proposed amendment shall be given to each member of the Commission in writing at least five days prior to such meeting. Attachment 11 Midway Manor Resident Meeting 11/10/2021 Resident Concerns: 1. Elevators: fire risk, risk for residents with disabilities a. Get stuck b. No repairs until February c. Currently not level with floor d. Elevators outdated – hard to find parts 2. Unclear communication regarding subsidy renewal 3. Management not addressing maintenance/safety concerns to W.H.H. Trice (such as cleaning of stairs) 4. No ventilation in stairwell 5. Air filters reused instead of replaced 6. HUD inspections a. Do they look at overall quality of building/units? i. Wall cracks (repairs promised but not completed) b. No paper trail for work completed 7. Corporate Office a. Non-responsive b. Require things in writing, though some residents are unable to write c. Not all residents want to be involved for fear of retaliation and other reasons 8. Concerns about residents with conflicts with other residents a. Formerly homeless 9. Concerns that property may be sold 10. No reliable 24/7 maintenance 11. Electric stoves and ovens not functioning properly a. Overheating/under heating 12. No regular extermination 13. Common areas still closed 14. Lobby bathrooms remain closed a. Challenging for people trying to get from lobby to room 15. Heating not working a. No guidance to use system (especially for people who are unable to read) 16. Bed bugs a. Slow response/insufficient treatment b. Health hazard c. No reimbursement for hotel stays or replacement of furnishings 17. Front door sometimes does not open a. Power failures Potential Actions: 1. HUD Complaint 2. Complaint to W.H.H. Trice 3. Individual tenant’s assertion 4. Fair Housing – if discrimination (individual, potentially group) a. Disability b. Age 5. Raise with City Council a. Poor quality housing b. HRC can communicate c. Broader: all low-income housing Next Steps: 1. Mary B will put on HRC meeting agenda (11/18) 2. LAJC can open individual cases 3. Office of Human Rights can open individual fair housing cases 4. Bring group complaint a. LAJC letter b. HRC/OHR letter c. Letter from Fire Department regarding elevator Attachment 12 Office of Human Rights Todd Niemeier Monthly Staff Report November 2021 Service Provision Data: • Data entered through the end of October 2021 o Note that data for November is only partially entered o Data for open and closed inquiries is still in progress as we need to review the list and update status on ongoing cases o Lily Gates, OHR Intern, continues to be the data entry superhero – Thanks, Lily! o Note, data does not reflect the total number of contacts in Spanish (this is likely a glitch in the system that needs to be fixed) • Revisiting a secure web-based customized case management system with IT o Ongoing effort to move from an Excel-based system to a customized system that would standardize data entry and allow for easier use by multiple staff o IT presented a new version of the case management system for testing on 9/14/2021 o OHR staff and intern reviewed the new system presented by IT and will be providing a summary of feedback  At present, the existing Excel-based system has more functionality o As of this month, we have not circled back with IT on a new system o We may explore uploading the current Excel-based system onto One Drive  One Drive would allow for multi-staff access and simultaneous edits  Need to confirm that One Drive has the same level of confidentiality protection as the City network Measures Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTALS Open office days in the month 22 20 21 22 23 20 22 22 20 23 19 18 252 Total Incoming & Outgoing Contacts 171 139 145 133 197 272 307 287 330 442 128 0 2551 Total Incoming Contacts 83 70 71 68 131 176 195 210 239 308 92 0 1643 Average Incoming & Outgoing Contacts/Day 8 7 7 6 9 14 14 13 17 19 7 0 10 Average Incoming Contacts/Day 4 4 3 3 6 9 9 10 12 13 5 0 6 Referrals from Sin Barreras 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Contacts in Spanish 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Staff Follow-ups (Outgoing) 49 33 30 30 39 45 48 32 47 49 23 0 425 Total Third-Party Contacts (Outgoing) 39 36 44 35 27 51 64 45 44 85 13 0 483 Total Client Follow-ups (Incoming) 45 34 36 27 65 120 105 128 154 157 56 0 927 Total Third-Party Contacts (Incoming) 28 28 19 30 45 40 73 54 74 130 24 0 545 Total General Contacts (Incoming) 3 4 3 4 6 12 10 15 2 9 8 0 76 Total New Inquiries (Incoming) 6 3 12 7 14 4 6 11 9 11 2 0 85 Total New Complaints (Incoming) 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 2 0 1 2 0 10 Total Allegations (Both I&C) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: Locality - Cville 6 3 5 3 12 3 6 9 5 5 2 0 59 Total I&C: Locality - Albemarle 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 5 Measures Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTALS Total I&C: Locality - Other or Not Specified 0 1 7 2 3 1 1 4 3 6 0 0 28 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Employment 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 1 1 2 0 0 8 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Housing 6 3 8 5 8 1 6 4 4 5 0 0 50 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Public Accommodation 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 0 6 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Credit 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Private Education 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Inquiries: P.A. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 2 0 4 3 0 4 3 3 0 0 19 Total Complaints: P.A. - Employment 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 4 Total Complaints: P.A. - Housing 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 0 6 Total Complaints: P.A. - Public Accommodation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Complaints: P.A. - Credit 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Complaints: P.A. - Private Education 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Complaints: P.A. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total employment discrimination allegations 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Employment allegations in Charlottesville 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Employment allegations in Albemarle Co. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Emp. allegations in Cville referred to EEOC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Emp. allegations in Alb. Co. ref. to EEOC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total housing discrimination allegations 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Housing allegations in Charlottesville 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Housing allegations in Albemarle 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total public accommodation discrimination allegations 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Public accommodation allegations in Cville 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Other (Unprotected) activity allegations 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Age 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Disability 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 7 Total I&C: P.C. - Marital Status 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - National Origin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 Total I&C: P.C. - Pregnancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Childbirth or Related Medical Conditions 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Race 1 1 0 1 0 0 1 3 0 2 1 0 10 Total I&C: P.C. - Color 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Religion 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total I&C: P.C. - Sex 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Total I&C: P.C. - Gender Identity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 Measures Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTALS Total I&C: P.C. - Sexual Orientation 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 Total I&C: P.C. - Source of Funds 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Total I&C: P.C. - Not specified 4 3 12 5 12 4 5 8 5 6 0 0 64 Total I&C: P.C. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 5 Total Counseling Contacts 17 21 16 8 18 20 18 16 6 10 3 0 153 Total Employment Counseling 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 2 1 0 7 Total Housing Counseling 17 21 15 6 12 18 12 13 4 7 1 0 126 Total Public Accommodation Counseling 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 3 Total Credit Counseling 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Private Education Counseling 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Other (Unprotected) Counseling 0 0 1 0 5 2 5 1 1 1 0 0 16 Total Contacts resulting in Referrals 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to CSRAP 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to LAJC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to CVLAS 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to PHA 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to EEOC 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to DPOR 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Referrals to Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Age 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Disability 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Marital Status 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - National Origin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Pregnancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Childbirth or R.M.C. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Race 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 0 3 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Color 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Religion 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Sex 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Gender Identity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Sexual Orientation 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Not specified 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Employment Complaints: P.C. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Age 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Measures Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTALS Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Disability 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 3 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Marital Status 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - National Origin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Pregnancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Childbirth or R.M.C. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Race 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Color 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Religion 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Sex 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Gender Identity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Sexual Orientation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Source of Funds 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Not specified 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Housing Complaints: P.C. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Age 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Disability 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Marital Status 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - National Origin 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Pregnancy 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Childbirth or R.M.C. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Race 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Color 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Religion 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Sex 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Gender Identity 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Sexual Orientation 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Not specified 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Pub. Accom. Comp.: P.C. - Other (Unprotected) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Open Inquiries 3 Total Closed Inquiries 14 Total Dismissed Inquiries 0 Total Open Complaints 5 Total Closed Complaints 2 Total Dismissed Complaints 0 Primary Service: Appointment Set-up 3 2 1 0 8 19 11 2 3 3 4 0 56 Measures Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec TOTALS Primary Service: Clerical Assistance 0 5 1 0 3 13 18 3 0 1 0 0 44 Primary Service: Counseling 17 21 16 8 18 20 18 16 6 10 3 0 153 Primary Service: Event Information 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Primary Service: Investigation Activity 7 27 39 33 35 12 22 18 23 14 1 0 231 Primary Service: Information 144 84 87 87 128 206 227 238 292 404 116 0 2013 Primary Service: Mediation Related Services 0 0 0 5 4 0 11 8 6 10 4 0 48 Primary Service: Outreach Coordination 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 3 Primary Service: Public Hearing 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Primary Service: Volunteer Coordination 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Primary Service: Helpline - COVID Response 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Total Formal Investigations: - Employment 1 Total Formal Investigations: - Housing 1 Total Formal Investigations: - Public Accommodation 0 Total Formal Investigations: - Credit 0 Total Formal Investigations: - Private Education 0 Administrative and Reporting: • 2020 Departmental Scorecard update completed o Link to Scorecard: Human Rights (clearpointstrategy.com) o Still need to upload data regarding satisfaction surveys  Lily has been working on an analysis of the service satisfaction data for 2019 and 2020  We should be able to post this on the scorecard before the end of November o Need to create and distribute collaborative partner satisfaction surveys  This may be a good project for December 2021 • 2020 Annual Report in progress o Will use Departmental Scorecard as basis for the annual report o No requests from Council yet for annual or quarterly reports o No progress made on the report this month, as intake and service provision continue to dominate staff time • Amendments to Charlottesville Human Rights Ordinance for FHAP substantial equivalence in progress o Feedback received from HUD Fair Housing Office o Ordinance edits appear to meet substantial equivalence for federal fair housing protections o Next step is to complete the rest of the revisions and present to City Attorney’s Office • No new work on FEPA agreement, as FHAP process take precedence o Recall that the FHAP agreement provides substantial opportunities and resources to expand and improve the OHR, whereas the FEPA really only just increases workload with insufficient support to increase staffing or training Complaints pending further action: • Case 2021-9 o Housing discrimination on the basis of disability  Complainant may drop complaint  Awaiting follow-up from complainant • Case 2021-10 o Employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, and sex  Awaiting guidance regarding jurisdiction Active Investigations: • Case 2020-2 o Housing discrimination on the basis of race  Investigative Report submitted 9/2/2021  Under review for determination by Deputy City Manager for Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion • Case 2021-4 o Employment discrimination on the basis of sex  Investigation authorized 05-03-2021  Investigation in progress Active Fact-finding Inquiries: • None. Active Mediation: • Case 2021-2 o Employment discrimination on the basis of race  Mediation in progress • Case 2021-3 o Public Accommodation discrimination on the basis of sex and disability  Mediation in progress • Case 2021-5 o Employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and race  Mediation in progress • Case 2021-7 o Employment discrimination on the basis of race  Mediation in progress Closed Cases: • Case 2021-1 o Housing discrimination on the basis of source of funds  Complaint non-jurisdictional due to Respondent exemption under state law • Case 2021-6 o Housing discrimination on the basis of race  Informal conciliation reached • Case 2021-8 o Credit discrimination on the basis of color, national origin, race, and sex  Complaint was non-jurisdictional because respondent was operating from out of state Outreach: • Service Provision o Most outreach on hold given staff capacity to address the overwhelming volume of active and incoming inquiries o Midway Manor  HRC Chair, LAJC Attorney Victoria Horrock, and OHR staff visited residents on 11/10/2021  Residents are seeking assistance with resolving ongoing issues listed in the notes included in the agenda packet • Education & Awareness o On hold due to staff capacity • Facilitation & Leadership o Outdoor Equity  OHR Interns continue work on building Racial and Ethnic history presentation as relates to outdoor spaces o Public Housing Association of Residents – Residents for Respectful Research (RRR)  MOU with UVA IRB • Approved by IRB legal counsel • Approved by PHAR R3 legal counsel • Awaiting signatures  PHAR preparing to hire first Resident Reviewers  PHAR conducting information sessions in public housing communities about R3 o Affordable Housing  Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission (TJPDC) preparing submission of Virginia Eviction Reduction Program (VERP) implementation grant  Piedmont Housing Alliance has opened the Financial Opportunity Center and Housing Hub • OHR staff engaged to provide input regarding barriers to affordable housing and perspective on housing navigation • The FOC & Housing Hub may serve as the future home of the affordable housing database developed by Code of Charlottesville in partnership with PACEM and the OHR o Stakeholder meeting held on 11/4 to discuss potential data sharing across affordable housing navigation databases o CRHA Resident Services Committee – Neighborhood Crisis Intervention sub committee  Continued monthly and sometimes bi-monthly meetings to develop a potential alternative, peer-supported crisis intervention system that can supplement and support clinical services and can intervene in lieu of ECO/TDO system Attachment 13 RESOLUTION TO ESTABLISH PROCEDURES FOR ADVOCACY AND ACTION CHARLOTTESVILLE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION RESOLUTION #: A21-1 WHEREAS, the Charlottesville Human Rights Ordinance, hereinafter “the Ordinance,” states that the role of the Charlottesville Human Rights Commission, hereinafter “the Commission,” is to act as a strong advocate for justice and equal opportunity by providing citywide leadership and guidance in the area of civil rights (City code Article XV. Sec. 2-433.); and WHEREAS, the Ordinance states that the Commission will collaborate with the public and private sectors for the purpose of providing awareness, education, and guidance on methods to prevent and eliminate discrimination citywide (City code Article XV. Sec. 2-433.b); and WHEREAS, the Ordinance states that the Commission will identify and review policies and practices of the City of Charlottesville and its boards and commissions and other public agencies within the City and advise those bodies on issues related to human rights issues City code Article XV. Sec. 2- 433.c); and WHEREAS, the Ordinance states that the Commission will prepare recommendations to City Council as to policies and procedures the Commission believes are necessary for the performance of the roles, duties and responsibilities assigned to the Commission within this article, and for modifications of operating procedures approved by City Council (City code Article XV. Sec. 2-433.f); and WHEREAS, the Ordinance states that the Commission will be responsible for identifying and reviewing policies, practices and systems of an institutional nature that may not constitute unlawful discriminatory practices but nevertheless which produce disparities that adversely impact or affect individuals on the basis of a status such as their race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions, national origin, age, marital status, criminal record, income or disability (City code Article XV. Sec. 2-435.a.2); therefore BE IT RESOLVED that the Commission hereby declares its intent to take specific action as a strong advocate for human and civil rights; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Commission may undertake specific advocacy action following a majority vote of approval during a publicly-noticed regular meeting of the Commission, except in limited situations between regular meetings of the Commission, when a human or civil rights issue requires prompt action that must occur before the Commission can convene in a publicly noticed meeting, in which case the Commission authorizes the Commission Chair to take advocacy action, on behalf of the whole Commission, without a prior majority vote of approval during a publicly-noticed regular meeting; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Commission Chair, when taking advocacy action on behalf of the Commission between public meetings, shall, whenever possible prior taking action, provide a draft of the proposed statement or a summary of action to be taken and allow 24 hours for feedback from the Commission, except when a particular situation requires an urgent response, in which case the Commission Chair shall send an email notification to the Commission, with a copy of any public statements. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that specific advocacy action, proclaiming the Commission’s position on an issue related to human and/or civil rights, may include one or more of the following: 1. Writing and delivering letters to a. City Council b. The City Manager c. Non-profit organizations or other community groups d. State government officials e. Federal government officials f. Local media outlets 2. Adding the Human Rights Commission to online petitions 3. Adding the Human Rights Commission to sign-on letters 4. Creating and publishing Public Service Announcements 5. Attendance and participation in public events including but not limited to a. Protests b. Counterprotests c. Rallies d. Marches e. City Council meetings 6. Managing Human Rights Commission social media accounts Dated this ___________ of ________________, 2021. ___________________________________________ Mary Bauer, Chair, Human Rights Commission Attachment 14 CHARLOTTESVILLE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION ADVOCACY AND ACTION RESOLUTION #: A21-1 PLAIN LANGUAGE VERSION* The Charlottesville Human Rights Ordinance says that the Charlottesville Human Rights Commission will: • support justice and equal opportunity by guiding the City on civil rights issues • work with the public and organizations to prevent and stop discrimination • review the City’s policies and practices and advise the City on human rights issues • make recommendations to City Council about policies and procedures that support justice and equal opportunity • look for policies and practices that may not be illegal, but that negatively affect people because of their protected identities We commit to being a strong advocate for human and civil rights. Sometimes, a human or civil rights issue will require quick action between regular Commission meetings. When this happens, we give the Commission Chair permission to act on our behalf. Examples of action include: • writing and delivering letters to government officials, to organizations, and to the media • adding the Human Rights Commission to online petitions and sign-on letters • writing and publishing Public Service Announcements • participating in public events like protests, counterprotests, rallies, marches, and government meetings • managing our social media accounts ___________________________________________ ___________ Mary Bauer, Chair, Human Rights Commission Date The Commission is guided by the Charlottesville Human Rights Ordinance: City code Article XV. Sec. 2-433. *What we mean by Plain Language: We will use clear, simple language to describe our work. We believe that understanding the work of government is a basic human right. Attachment 15 Attachment 16 CHARLOTTESVILLE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION PLAIN LANGUAGE RESOLUTION #: The purpose of the Charlottesville Human Rights Commission is to act as a strong advocate for justice and equal opportunity. It is important that our work be easily understood by everyone. We know that legal and other forms of formal writing can be barriers to easy understanding of documents. To make sure that the public understands our work, we will make our documents and other forms of communication available in Plain Language. What is Plain Language? Plain language means that a communication’s wording, structure, and design are so clear that the intended readers can easily find what they need, understand what they find, and use that information.1 Plain language allows the audience to focus on the message instead of being distracted by complicated language.2 We commit to ensuring that, when reading our communications, the public can easily: • find what they need • understand what they find • use what they find to meet their needs We will use plain language because human rights work should be easy to understand. ___________________________________________ ___________ Mary Bauer, Chair, Human Rights Commission Date 1 International Plain Language Federation 2 Short definition of Plain Language, Robert Eagleston, Australia