[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Schodack 6-23-2011 by L.L. No.
1-2011. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building code administration — See Ch. 90.
It is the policy of the Town of Schodack in the exercise of
its police power for the public health, safety and general welfare
to ensure that all persons have equal opportunity for housing choices
without regard to race, color, religion, sex, handicap, family status
or national origin and to prohibit all forms of discrimination which
are contrary to this objective.
A.
General. For the purpose of this chapter, certain words or phrases
herein shall be interpreted as follows: except where the context clearly
indicates otherwise, words used in the singular include the plural;
words used in the present tense include the future tense; the word
"person" includes a corporation as well as an individual; and the
word "shall" is always mandatory.
B.
DISCRIMINATORY HOUSING PRACTICE
DWELLING
FAMILY
PERSON
TO RENT
Specific words or phrases. For the purpose of this chapter, certain
terms or words herein shall be interpreted as follows:
An act that is unlawful under this chapter.
Any building, structure or portion thereof which is occupied
as or designed or intended for occupancy as a residence by 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.
Includes a single individual.
Includes any individual, corporation, partnership, association,
labor organization, legal representative, mutual company, joint-stock
company, trust, unincorporated organization, trustee, trustee in bankruptcy,
receiver or fiduciary.
Includes to lease, to sublease, to let and otherwise to grant
for a consideration the right to occupy premises not owned by the
occupant.
Except as exempted by this chapter, it shall be unlawful within
the Town of Schodack:
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 make
unavailable or deny a dwelling to any person because of race, color,
religion, sex, handicap, family 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, family 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, family
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, family status or national origin that any dwelling is not
available for inspection, sale or rental when such dwelling is in
fact so available; or
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, family status or national origin.
It shall be unlawful within the Town of Schodack to:
A.
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
B.
Discriminate against any person in the terms or conditions of such
access, membership or participation on account of race, color, religion,
sex, handicap, family status or national origin.
A.
It shall be unlawful within the Town of Schodack 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:
(1)
Deny a loan or other financial assistance to a person applying therefore
for the purpose purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing or
maintaining a dwelling because of race, color, religion, sex, handicap,
family status or national origin; or
(2)
Discriminate against any person 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,
family status or national origin of such person or of any person associated
with him or her in connection with 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.
B.
Nothing contained in this section shall impair the scope or effectiveness
of the exceptions contained in this chapter.
A.
Sales/rentals by owners.
(1)
Nothing in § 115-3 (other than Subsection C) shall apply to any single-family house sold or rented by an owner, provided that:
(a)
Such private individual owner does not own more than three such
single-family houses at one time;
(b)
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, the exception granted by this subsection shall apply only
with respect to one such sale within any twenty-four-month period;
(c)
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 any right to all or a portion of
the proceeds from the sale or rental of more than three such single-family
houses at one time; and
(d)
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:
[1]
Without the use in any manner of the sales or rental facilities
or the sales 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
[2]
Without the publication, posting or mailing, after notice, of any advertisement or written notice in violation of § 115-3; but
[3]
Nothing in this proviso shall prohibit the use of attorneys,
escrow agents, abstractors, title companies and other such professional
assistance as may be necessary to prefect or transfer the title.
(2)
Nothing in § 115-3 (other than Subsection C) shall apply to rooms or units in dwellings containing living quarters occupied or intended to be occupied by no more than four families living independently of each other, if the owner actually maintains and occupies one of such living quarters as his residence.
(3)
For the purpose of this exemption, a person shall be deemed to be
in the business of selling or renting dwellings if:
(a)
He or she has, within the preceding 12 months, participated
as principal in three or more transactions involving the sale or rental
of any dwelling or any interest therein;
(b)
He or she has, within the preceding 12 months, participated
as agent, other than in the sale of his or her own personal residence,
in providing sales or rental facilities or sales or rental services
in two or more transactions involving the sale or rental of any dwelling
or any interest therein; or
(c)
He or she is the owner of any dwelling designed or intended
for occupancy by or occupied by five or more families.
A.
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 dwelling 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, family status
or national origin.
B.
Nothing in this chapter 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
a commercial purpose, from limiting the rental of occupancy of such
lodgings to its members or from giving preference to its members.
A.
Authority and responsibility. The Fair Housing Officer shall have the authority and responsibility for publicizing, administering and enforcing this chapter. The Fair Housing Officer shall be the Code Enforcement Officer appointed pursuant to the provisions of § 90-3 of the Code of the Town of Schodack.
B.
Enforcement. The following procedure shall be used when a situation
is identified which might be a violation of this chapter:
(1)
The Fair Housing Officer shall respond to all inquiries regarding
the applicability of his or her local fair housing law and all applicable
state or federal laws and shall maintain documentation of such activities
detailing the source of the inquiry, the nature of the problems identified
and any actions taken.
(2)
Whenever a possible violation of the local fair housing law is identified,
the Fair Housing Officer shall accept a complaint on a Form HUD-903
and initiate an investigation, as follows:
(a)
Within two weeks after receiving a formal complaint, the Fair
Housing Officer shall conduct an investigation and, to the extent
possible, verify the circumstances involved.
(b)
The fair Housing Officer will inform the owner, realtor, financier
or their agents or other responsible parties that a formal complaint
has been filed under the fair housing law and that an investigation
is in process.
(c)
The Fair Housing Officer will attempt to resolve the problem
by discussions between the parties involved in each complaint. If
these efforts succeed and the complaint is resolved within 30 days,
the case will be held open for six months and then closed if a final
check verifies that there is no further problem or complaint regarding
that case.
(d)
If the original complaint is not resolved in 30 days, the matter
will be referred to the United States Department of Housing and Urban
Development for further action under Title VIII of the Civil Rights
Act of 1968, as amended.
(3)
Where sufficient cause is found to show that the provisions of the
local fair housing law have been violated, the Fair Housing Officer
may file a civil action against the violator in Town Court and seek
any remedies or penalties permitted by law.
C.
Penalties. Any person who has been found to be in violation of this
chapter, after trial in Town Court, may be subject to a fine not to
exceed $500 for a first offense or $1,000 for each additional offense.
For the purpose of this subsection, each separate violation shall
be deemed a separate offense.
D.
In addition to the enforcement provisions set forth above, the Fair
Housing Officer shall be responsible for displaying fair housing brochures
and posters in public places in the Town Hall.
A.
Amendment. The Town Board 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.
B.
Interpretation. 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.
C.
Validity. The invalidity of any section or provision of this chapter
shall not invalidate any other section or provision thereof.
D.
Short title. This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the
"Schodack Fair Housing Law."
