Ord 2001-065 - Laserfiche WebLink

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(c) The hearing shall be open to the public and conducted in a fair, impartial and orderly manner. A record of the proceedings shall be kept. All costs incurred for the development of the record of the proceedings shall be borne by the city. The record of the proceedings shall be open to the public. Both parties shall personally appear or be represented by legal counsel or other representatives, and thc fail hou5ing offiecl and the parties shall have the right to present evidence and cross examine witnesses in all matters relating to the complaint. Failure of either party to appear at the public hearing, after notice as provided in this section, shall be deemed a waiver by this party of the right to present evidence before the fair housing officer col1ulli5sion. If, after the hearing, the fair housing officer commi5sion determines that the complaint is justified, the fair housing officer commissiol1 shall issue to the respondent a written request for voluntary discontinuance of the discriminatory housing practice within a reasonable time. The time period set by the fair housing officer conmlission will not exceed 30 days. (d) If, the fair housing officer determines that irreparable injury to the complainant may occur if an immediate hearing is not held, the fair housing officer may provide notice of the hearing to the parties in a method and using a notice period other than those prescribed in subsection (a). In doing so, the fair housing officer shall provide notice in a manner reasonably calculated to notify the parties of the hearing. (e) If the fair housing officer cOlmnission determines that a complaint involves the legality of a city zoning or other land use ordinance, the fair housing officer commission shall immediately refer the matter to the city attorney for appropriate action. (f) If the fair housing officer commission determines that no reasonable cause exists to believe that a discriminatory housing practice occurred or is about to occur as alleged in a complaint, the commission shall promptly dismiss the complaint. (g) The fair housing officer commission shall make public disclosure of each dismissal. Sec. 46.057. Certification of violation. If the fair housing officer commission determines that a discriminatory housing practice has occurred and the efforts of the fair housing officer commission to secure voluntary compliance have been unsuccessful, the fair housing officer commission shall transmit its findings in writing to the prosecuting attorney having jurisdiction over the violation and request the attorney to prosecute the violation in an appropriate court. Sec. 46.058. Cooperation with state and federal agencies. ( a) The conmussion and the fair housing officer is are authorized to cooperate with the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development and the Attorney General of the United States in the enforcement of the federal Fair Housing Act, as amended. The fair housing officer commission is encouraged to cooperate with the Texas Commission on Human Rights in the enforcement of C:\TEMP\board and comm'n repeal.wpd 6