Sullivan County in New York is considering reviving its long-defunct Human Rights Commission (HRC) to investigate human rights complaints. The county has not had an independent commission separate from the state for five to 10 years. Last year, the New York State Division of Human Rights awarded nearly $7 million to over 1,000 victims of discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodation. Legislators in Sullivan County are discussing the next steps, with some supporting the idea of a full-time director for the commission. However, concerns have been raised about the cost of hiring a full-time director. To gain the ability to investigate cases, the commission would need to change county law. Julie Diescher, the county's commissioner of human resources, emphasized the importance of the commission in providing guidance and support to individuals facing human rights issues. The New York State Division of Human Rights aims to eliminate discrimination and promote equal opportunity.
Meanwhile, the Justice Department has secured settlement agreements with four Texas counties to resolve violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) related to their election websites. The settlements involve Colorado County, Runnels County, Smith County, and Upton County. The Justice Department found that these counties maintained election websites that discriminated against individuals with vision or manual disabilities. Under the agreements, the counties will make all future and existing online election content accessible to people with disabilities. They will also hire an independent auditor to evaluate the accessibility of their election websites, adopt new policies and training for relevant personnel, provide notice to visitors about accessibility barriers, and designate an employee to coordinate these efforts. These investigations are part of the department’s ADA Voting Initiative, which aims to safeguard the voting rights of individuals with disabilities. The settlement agreements also fall under the Civil Rights Division’s Tech Equity Initiative, which combats disability discrimination through technology.
In Anne Arundel County, Maryland, the County Council unanimously passed the county's first-ever comprehensive civil rights statute. The law expands protections to private employment and public accommodations such as hotels, restaurants, movie theaters, sports stadiums, and retail establishments. It prohibits discrimination based on age, ancestry, citizenship, color, creed, disability, familial status, gender identity or expression, marital status, national origin, occupation, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or source of income. Complaints will now be reviewed by the county's Human Relations Commission instead of the Maryland Commission for Civil Rights and U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Anne Arundel is the only large Maryland county without a civil rights ordinance. The expanded authority of the Human Relations Commission aims to address discrimination more effectively and efficiently. The law is part of a larger effort by County Executive Steuart Pittman's office to bolster the human rights bureau of the county.
Esbjerg Municipality in Greenland has decided to discontinue the use of psychological tests that are not adapted to the language and culture of Greenlandic parents for parenting competence assessments in social care cases. The decision comes after the Institute for Human Rights raised concerns about the discriminatory nature of these tests. The municipality will now use tests that are specifically tailored to the language and culture of Greenlandic parents [1d2e188a].