This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "City of
Fulton Fair Housing Law."
For the purpose of providing and ensuring fair housing opportunities
for all within the City of Fulton, the Common Council of the City
of Fulton, in the County of Oswego, State of New York, under the authority
of the General Municipal Law, hereby obtains, enacts and publishes
this chapter.
Except as exempted by §
324-7, it shall be unlawful within the City of Fulton:
A. To refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer or
to refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of or otherwise to make
unavailable or deny a dwelling to any person because of race, color,
religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.
B. To discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions or privileges
of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of services or
facilities in connection therewith, because of race, color, religion,
sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.
C. To make, print or publish, or cause to be made, printed or published,
any notice, statement or advertisement with respect to the sale or
rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference, limitation or
discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial
status or national origin or an intention to make any such preference,
limitation or discrimination.
D. To represent to any person because of race, color, religion, sex,
handicap, familial status or national origin that any dwelling is
not available for inspection, sale or rental when such dwelling is
in fact so available.
E. For profit, to induce or attempt to induce any person to sell or
rent any dwelling by representations regarding the entry or prospective
entry into the neighborhood of a person or persons of a particular
race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national
origin.
It shall be unlawful within the City of Fulton for any bank, building and loan association, insurance company or other corporation, association, firm or enterprise whose business consists in whole or in part in the making of commercial real estate loans to deny a loan or other financial assistance to a person applying therefor for the purpose of purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing or maintaining a dwelling or to discriminate against him in the fixing of the amount, interest rate, duration or other terms or conditions of such loan or other financial assistance because of the race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin of such person or of any person associated with him in connection with such loan or other financial assistance or the purposes of such loan or other financial assistance or of the present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants or occupants of the dwelling or dwellings in relation to which such loan or other financial assistance is to be made or given, provided that nothing contained in this section shall impair the scope or effectiveness of the exception contained in §
324-7.
It shall be unlawful within the City of Fulton to deny any person
access to or membership or participation in any multiple-listing service,
real estate broker's organization or other service organization
or facility relating to the business of selling or renting dwellings
or to discriminate against him in the terms or conditions of such
access, membership or participation on account of race, color, religion,
sex, handicap, familial status or national origin.
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit a religious organization,
association or society or any nonprofit institution or organization
operated, supervised or controlled by or in conjunction with a religious
organization, association or society from limiting the sale, rental
or occupancy of dwellings which it owns or operates for other than
a commercial purpose to persons of the same religion or from giving
preference to such persons, unless membership in such religion is
restricted on account of race, color, sex, handicap, familial status
or national origin, nor shall anything in this chapter prohibit a
private club not in fact open to the public, which as an incident
to its primary purpose or purposes provides lodgings which it owns
or operates for other than a commercial purpose, from limiting the
rental or occupancy of such lodgings to its members or from giving
preference to its members.
The authority and responsibility for publicizing, administering
and enforcing this chapter shall be in the City's Fair Housing
Officer, designated by the Mayor of the City of Fulton to be the Director
of the City of Fulton Community Development Agency.
Violations of this chapter shall be reported in person or in
writing to the City Fair Housing Officer, the Director of the City
of Fulton Community Development Agency, within a year of the alleged
discriminatory housing practice.
Where sufficient cause exists to believe that the terms of this
chapter have been violated, the Fair Housing Officer shall institute
a suit in City Court against the alleged violator within 120 days
following the issuance of the charge.
Where a person or organization has been found, after a trial
on the merits, in violation of this chapter, a fine shall be imposed
on such person or organization not to exceed $10,000 for a first offense
and $25,000 for a second offense and $50,000 for third offense. Each
and every separate violation of this chapter shall be deemed an offense
for the purposes of imposing the appropriate fine.
The Common Council may, on its own initiative or on petition,
amend, supplement or repeal the provisions of this chapter in conformity
with applicable law after public notice and hearing.
In their interpretation and application, the provisions of this
chapter shall be held to be minimum requirements adopted for the promotion
of the public health, morals, safety or the general welfare. Whenever
the requirements of this chapter are at variance with the requirements
of any other lawfully adopted rules, regulations or ordinances, the
most restrictive or that imposing the highest standards shall govern.