[Ord. No. 1051 §1, 12-21-1989]
The Board of Aldermen of the City of Hermann hereby declares
it to be the public policy of the City to eliminate unlawful discrimination
in housing and safeguard the right of any person to sell, purchase,
lease, rent or obtain real property without regard to race, sex, religious
affiliation, handicap, color, religion, national origin or ancestry.
This Chapter shall be deemed an exercise of the police powers of the
City of Hermann for the protection of the public welfare, prosperity,
health and peace of the people of Hermann.
[Ord. No. 1051, §2, 12-21-1989]
A. For
the purpose of this Chapter the following terms, phrases, words and
their derivations shall have the meaning given herein unless the context
otherwise indicates.
AGGRIEVED PERSON
Any person within the City of Hermann who:
1.
Claims to have been injured by a discriminatory housing practice,
or
2.
Believes that such person will be injured by a discriminatory
housing practice that is about to occur.
COMPLAINANT
The person who files a complaint pursuant to this Chapter.
CONCILIATION
The attempted resolution of issues raised by a complaint,
or by the investigation of such complaint, through informal negotiations
involving the aggrieved person, the respondent, and the Fair Housing
Committee.
DWELLING
Any building, structure, or portion thereof which is occupied
as, or designed or intended for occupancy as, a residence by one (1)
or more families, and any vacant land which is offered for sale or
lease for the construction or location thereon of any such building,
structure, or portion thereof.
FAMILIAL STATUS
One (1) or more individuals (who have not yet attained the
age of eighteen (18) years) being domiciled with:
1.
A parent or another person having legal custody of such individual
or individuals, or
2.
The designee of such parent or other person having such custody,
with the written permission of such parent or other person.
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The protections afforded against discrimination on the basis
of familial status shall apply to any person who is pregnant or is
in the process of securing legal custody of any individual who has
not attained the age of eighteen (18) years.
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FAMILY
Includes a single individual.
HANDICAP
With respect to a person:
1.
A physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one
(1) or more of such person's major life activities,
2.
A record of having such an impairment, or
3.
Being regarded as having such an impairment.
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But such term does not include current, illegal use of or addiction
to a controlled substance (as defined in 21 U.S.C. Section 802 or
in Chapter 195, RSMo.)
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PERSON
One or more individuals, corporations, partnerships, associations,
labor organizations, legal representatives, mutual companies, joint-stock
companies, trusts, unincorporated organizations, trustees, trustees
in cases under Title 11 of the United States Code, receivers, and
fiduciaries.
RESPONDENT
The person or other entity accused in a complaint of an unfair
housing practice.
[Ord. No. 1051 §3, 12-21-1989]
A. It
shall be a discriminatory practice and a violation of this Chapter
for any person to:
1. 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, national origin, ancestry, sex, religious affiliation
or handicap. If other bona fide offers to rent or buy have been made,
the owner, lessor, or his agent may accept such offers without violating
Chapter 213, RSMo.
2. 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, religious affiliation, familial status, or national origin.
3. 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 a preference, limitation, or discrimination
based on race, color, religion, sex, religious affiliation, handicap,
familial status, or national origin, or an intention to make any such
preference, limitation, or discrimination.
4. Represent to any person because of race, color, religion, sex, religious
affiliation, 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.
5. 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, religious affiliation, handicap, familial status, or national
origin.
6.
a. Discriminate in the sale or rental, or to otherwise make unavailable
or deny, a dwelling to any buyer or renter because of a handicap of:
2) A person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after
it is so sold, rented or made available, or
3) Any person associated with that buyer or renter.
b. Discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions, or privileges
of the sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of services
or facilities in connection with such dwelling, because of a handicap
of:
2) A person residing in or intending to reside in that dwelling after
it is so sold, rented, or made available, or
3) Any person associated with that person.
c. For purposes of this Subsection
(6), discrimination includes:
1) A refusal to permit, at the expense of the handicapped person, reasonable
modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied by such
person if such modifications may be necessary to afford such person
full enjoyment of the premises, except that, in the case of a rental,
the landlord may where it is reasonable to do so condition permission
for a modification on the renter agreeing to restore the interior
of the premises to the condition that existed before the modification,
reasonable wear and tear excepted;
2) A refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices,
or services, when such accommodations may be necessary to afford such
person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a dwelling; or
3) In connection with the design and construction of covered multi-family
dwellings for first occupancy after the date that is thirty (30) months
after the date of enactment of the Fair Housing Amendments Act of
1988 (enacted September 13, 1988), a failure to design and construct
those dwellings in such a manner that:
a)
The public use and common use portions of such dwellings are
readily accessible to and usable by handicapped persons,
b)
All the doors designed to allow passage into and within all
premises within such dwellings are sufficiently wide to allow passage
by handicapped persons in wheelchairs, and
c)
All premises within such dwellings contain the following features
of adaptive design:
i.
An accessible route into and through the dwelling,
ii.
Light switches, electrical outlets, thermostats, and other environmental
controls in accessible locations,
iii.
Reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow later installation
of grab bars, and
iv.
Usable kitchens and bathrooms such that an individual in a wheelchair
can maneuver about the space.
d)
Compliance with the appropriate requirements of the American National Standard for buildings and facilities providing accessibility and usability for physically handicapped people (commonly cited as "ANSI A117.1") suffices to satisfy the requirements of Subsection
6 c, 3), c), of this Section.
e)
As used in this Subsection
(6), the term
"covered multi-family
dwellings" means:
i.
Buildings consisting of four (4) or more units if such buildings
have one (1) or more elevators, and
ii.
Ground floor units in other buildings consisting of four (4)
or more units.
f)
Nothing in this Subsection
(6) requires that a dwelling be made available to an individual whose tenancy would constitute a direct threat to the health or safety of other individuals or whose tenancy would result in substantial physical damage to the property of others.
[Ord. No. 1051 §4, 12-21-1989]
A. It
shall be unlawful for any person or other entity whose business includes
engaging in residential real estate-related transactions to discriminate
against any person in making available such a transaction, or in the
terms or conditions of such a transaction, because of race, color,
religion, sex, religious affiliation, handicap, familial status, or
national origin.
B. As used in this Section
225.040, the term "
residential real estate
— related transaction" means any of the following:
1. The making or purchasing of loans or providing other financial assistance:
a. For purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing, or maintaining
a dwelling, or
b. Secured by residential real estate; or
2. The selling, brokering, or appraising of residential real property.
C. Nothing
in this Chapter prohibits a person engaged in the business of furnishing
appraisals of real property to take into consideration factors other
than race, color, religion, national origin, sex, religious affiliation,
handicap, or familial status.
[Ord. No. 1051 §5, 12-21-1989]
It shall be unlawful to deny any person access to or membership
or participation in any multiple-listing service, real estate brokers'
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, religious
affiliation, handicap, familial status, or national origin.
[Ord. No. 1051 §6, 12-21-1989]
A. The provisions of Section
225.030 of this Chapter, other than Subsection (3) thereof, shall not apply to the following:
1. Any single-family house sold or rented by an owner; provided that
such private individual owner does not own more than three (3) such
single-family houses at any one (1) time; and provided further, that
in the case of the sale of any such single-family house by a private
individual owner not residing in such house at the time of such sale
or who was not the most recent resident of such house prior to such
sale the exemption granted by this Subsection shall apply only with
respect to one (1) such sale within any twenty-four (24) month period;
and provided further, that such bona fide private individual owner
does not own any interest in, nor is there owned or reserved on his
behalf, under any express or voluntary agreement, title to or any
right to all or a portion of the proceeds from the sale or rental
of more than three (3) such single-family houses at any one (1) time;
and provided further, that the sale or rental of any such single-family
house shall be excepted from the application of this Chapter only
if such house is sold or rented:
a. Without the use in any manner of sales or rental facilities or rental
services of any real estate broker, agent, or salesman or of such
facilities or services of any person in the business of selling or
renting dwellings, or of any employee or agent of any such broker,
agent, salesman, or person, and
b. Without the publication, posting or mailing, after notice, of any advertisement in violation of Section
225.030, Subsection (3), of this Chapter; but nothing in this Subsection shall prohibit the use of attorneys, escrow agents, abstractors, title companies, and other such professional assistance as necessary to perfect or transfer the title.
2. Rooms or units in dwellings containing living quarters occupied or
intended to be occupied by no more than four (4) families living independently
of each other, if the owner actually maintains and occupies one (1)
of such living quarters as his residence.
B. For the purpose of Subsection
(A) of this Section
225.060,
a person shall be deemed to be in the business of selling or renting dwellings if:
1. He has, within the preceding twelve (12) months, participated as
principal in three (3) or more transactions involving the sale or
rental of any dwelling or any interest therein, or
2. He has, within the preceding twelve (12) months, participated as
agent, other than in the sale of his own personal residence, in providing
sales or rental facilities or sales or rental services in two (2)
or more transactions involving the sale or rental of any dwelling
or any interest therein, or
3. He is the owner of any dwelling designed or intended for occupancy
by, or occupied by, five (5) or more families.
C. Nothing
in this Chapter shall prohibit a religious organization, association,
or society, or any non-profit 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, 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. Nor shall anything in this
Chapter regarding familial status apply with respect to housing for
older persons, as defined and as provided in 42 U.S.C. Section 3607
(b).
[Ord. No. 1051 §7, 12-21-1989]
A. There
is hereby created a Fair Housing Committee, whose membership shall
consist of five (5) residents of the City of Hermann who shall be
appointed by the Mayor with the approval of the Board of Aldermen.
B. Every
complaint of a violation of this Chapter shall be referred to the
Fair Housing Committee. The Fair Housing Committee shall forthwith
notify the person against whom the complaint is made of the nature
of the complaint and the identity of the aggrieved person. If the
Fair Housing Committee, after investigation, finds there is no merit
to the complaint, the same shall be dismissed. If the Fair Housing
Committee finds that there is merit in the complaint, the Committee
will endeavor to eliminate the alleged discriminatory practice by
conference and conciliation with the parties.
C. If
the Fair Housing Committee is unable to eliminate the alleged discriminatory
practice by conference and conciliation, then the Committee shall
forward said complaint to the City Attorney. The final determination
of whether or not to prosecute on said complaint shall be by the City
Attorney.
[Ord. No. 1051 §8, 12-21-1989]
A. Any
person who violates any provision of this Chapter shall be guilty
of a misdemeanor.
B. The
City Attorney, as an alternative remedy to filing a complaint in the
Municipal Division of the Circuit Court, may seek to have the alleged
discriminatory practices abated by commencing an action for an injunction
in the Circuit Court of Gasconade County, Missouri.
[Ord. No. 1051 §11, 12-21-1989]
This Chapter shall be interpreted and its various provisions
applied consistent with the legislative intent of and judicial interpretations
applicable to the Fair Housing Act of 1968 and the Fair Housing Amendments
Act of 1988, 42 U.S.C. Section 3601, et seq.