[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Seward 8-3-1993 by Ord. No. 24-93 (Ch. 12, Art. 1, of the 1976 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
(Neb. RS 20-301 through 20-322)
The purpose of this article is to promote the general welfare
of the residents of Seward, Nebraska, by endorsing the provisions
of the Nebraska Fair Housing Act (Neb. RS 20-301 through 20-344),
to the effect that there shall be no discrimination in the City of
Seward, Nebraska, in the acquisition, ownership, possession or enjoyment
of housing in accordance with Article 1, Section 25, of the Constitution
of the State of Nebraska. (Neb. RS 20-113)
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
Includes any person who:[1]
The Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission.
Any building, structure, or portion thereof which is occupied
as or designed or intended for occupancy as a residence for one 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.
One or more minors being domiciled with:
With respect to a person:
A physical or mental impairment, excluding the current illegal
use of or addiction to a controlled substance as defined in Neb. RS
28-401, which substantially limits one or more of such person's major
life activities;
A record of having such an impairment; or
Being regarded as having such an impairment.
Includes one or more individuals, corporations, partnerships,
limited-liability companies, associations, labor organizations, legal
representatives, mutual companies, joint-stock companies; trusts,
unincorporated organizations, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers,
and fiduciaries.[2]
Includes lease, sublease, let, and otherwise grant for consideration
the right to occupy premises not owned by the occupant.
Any specification limiting the transfer, rental, or lease
of any housing because of race, creed, religion, color, national origin,
sex, handicap, familial status, or ancestry.
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(Neb. RS 20-304 through 20-317)
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A.
Except as exempted by § 244-1.7, it shall be unlawful to:
(1)
Refuse to sell or rent after the making of a bona fide offer,
refuse to negotiate for the sale or rental of or otherwise make unavailable
or deny, refuse to show, or refuse to receive and transmit an offer
for a dwelling to any person because of race, color, religion, national
origin, familial status, or sex;
(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, national origin, familial status, or sex;
(3)
Make, print, 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, national origin, handicap,
familial status, or sex or an intention to make any such preference,
limitation, or discrimination;
(4)
Represent to any person because of race, color, religion, national
origin, handicap, familial status, or sex that any dwelling is not
available for inspection, sale, or rental when such dwelling is in
fact so available;
(5)
Cause to be made any written or oral inquiry or record concerning
the race, color, religion, national origin, handicap, familial status,
or sex of a person seeking to purchase, rent, or lease any housing;
(6)
Include in any transfer, sale, rental, or lease of housing any
restrictive covenants or honor or exercise or attempt to honor or
exercise any restrictive covenant pertaining to housing;
(7)
Discharge or demote an employee or agent or discriminate in
the compensation of such employee or agent because of such employee's
compliance with this article or the Nebraska Fair Housing Act; or
(8)
Induce or attempt to induce, for profit, 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, national origin, handicap, familial status,
or sex.
B.
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 minor.
(Neb. RS 20-318)
A.
Except as exempted by § 244-1.7, it shall be unlawful to:
(1)
Discriminate in the sale or rental of or otherwise make unavailable
or deny a dwelling to any buyer or renter because of a handicap of:
(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 with a dwelling because of a
handicap of:
B.
For purposes of this section, discrimination shall include:
(1)
A refusal to permit, at the expense of the handicapped person,
reasonable modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied
by the person if the modifications may be necessary to afford the
person full enjoyment of the premises; except that in the case of
rental, the landlord may, when 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 the handicapped person equal opportunity to use or enjoy a
dwelling; and
(3)
In connection with the design and construction of covered multifamily
dwellings for first occupancy after September 1, 1991, a failure to
design and construct the dwellings in such a manner that:
(a)
The public use and common use portions of the dwelling are readily
accessible to and usable by handicapped persons;
(b)
All the doors designed to allow passage into and within all
premises within the dwellings are sufficiently wide to allow passage
by handicapped persons in wheelchairs; and
(c)
All premises within the dwellings contain the following features
of adaptive design:
[1]
An accessible route into and through the dwelling;
[2]
Light switches, electrical outlets, thermostats, and other environmental
controls in accessible locations;
[3]
Reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow later installation
of grab bars; and
[4]
Kitchens and bathrooms such that a handicapped person in a wheelchair
can maneuver about the space.
C.
Compliance with the appropriate requirements of the American National Standards Institute standard for buildings and facilities providing accessibility and usability for physically handicapped people, ANSI A117.1, shall satisfy the requirements of Subsection B(3)(c) of this section.
E.
Nothing in this section shall require 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.
(Neb. RS 20-319)
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person or other entity whose business
includes engaging in transactions related to residential real estate
to discriminate against any person in making available such a transaction
because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status,
or national origin.
B.
For purposes of this section, "transaction related to residential
real estate" shall mean any of the following:
C.
Nothing in this section shall prohibit a person engaged in the business
of furnishing appraisals of real property from taking into consideration
factors other than race, color, religion, national origin, handicap,
familial status, or sex.
(Neb. RS 20-320)
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 any person in the terms or conditions of such access, membership,
or participation on account of race, color, religion, national origin,
handicap, familial status, or sex. (Neb. RS 20-321)
A.
Nothing in this article 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 a dwelling which it owns or operates for other than
commercial purposes to persons of the same religion or from giving
preferences to such persons unless membership in such religion is
restricted on account of race, color, national origin, handicap, familial
status, or sex.
B.
Nothing in this article shall 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
commercial purposes, from limiting the rental or occupancy of such
lodging to its members or from giving preference to its members.
C.
Nothing in this article shall prohibit or limit the right of any
person or his or her authorized representative to refuse to rent a
room or rooms in his or her own home for any reason or for no reason
or to change tenants in his or her own home as often as desired, except
that this exception shall not apply to any person who makes available
for rental or occupancy more than four sleeping rooms to a person
or family, within his or her home.
D.
Nothing in this article regarding familial status shall apply with
respect to housing for older persons. For purposes of this subsection,
"housing for older persons" shall mean housing:
(1)
Provided under any state program that the Nebraska Equal Opportunity
Commission determines is specifically designed and operated to assist
elderly persons or defined in the program;
(2)
Intended for and solely occupied by persons 62 years of age
or older; or
(3)
Intended and operated for occupancy by at least one person 55
years of age or older per unit.
(Neb. RS 20-322)
The Municipal Clerk, upon request, shall make available to an
aggrieved person, or any other person, information regarding the Nebraska
Fair Housing Act and the Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission without
cost to such individual.
Any person who violates the prohibitions or provisions of this
article shall be deemed guilty of a violation. The penalty for such
violation shall be an amount not to exceed $500 for any one offense,
recoverable with costs, and in default of said payment the offender
shall stand committed to the County Jail until such fine and costs
are paid. Each period of 24 hours during or on which a violation occurs
or continues shall be deemed a separate offense.
