(a) After a Complaint is filed, the Complaint Officer shall:
(1) Send a notice to the Aggrieved Person and the Complainant, indicating the date the Complaint was received by the City. If the Aggrieved Person differs from the Complainant, said notice shall also inform the Aggrieved Person of his or her right to withdraw the Complaint if it was filed without proper authority.
(2) Within five (5) Business Days of receipt, serve the Complaint on each Respondent and notify each Respondent of its procedural rights and obligations under this Chapter.
(b) Within ten (10) Business Days after the Complaint Officer serves the Complaint, a Respondent may file an answer ("Answer") to the Complaint. An Answer shall be: in writing, under oath, and in a form prescribed by the Complaint Officer. An Answer may be amended at any time prior to the Complaint being heard by the Board. A failure to file an Answer shall be deemed a denial of all substantive allegations of the Compliant.
(c) After receiving the Answer or after the time to answer has expired, whichever is later, the Complaint Officer shall initiate a Preliminary Investigation. The Preliminary Investigation shall be conducted by the Complaint Officer with any assistance deemed necessary by the Complaint Officer and may include, but is not limited to, interviews of the Complainant, Aggrieved Person, Respondent, and witnesses; requests for documents; planned or unplanned site visits; and any other methods deemed necessary by the Complaint Officer.
(d) During the Preliminary Investigation, the Complaint Officer may attempt to facilitate Conciliation between the Complainant and the Respondent. Successful Conciliations shall be captured in a written Conciliation Agreement, which shall be subject to approval by the Board.
(e) After completing the Preliminary Investigation, the Complaint Officer shall issue a Recommendation to the Board, setting forth in writing the reason for the Recommendation, including a statement of the relevant facts. Recommendations may include, but are not limited to:
(1) Dismissal for failure to state an Unlawful Discriminatory Practice or because the limitation period set forth in Section 749.17 has expired;
(2) Dismissal because the Preliminary Investigation did not reveal that it is probable that Unlawful Discriminatory Practices have been or are being engaged;
(3) Dismissal because the Complaint could be heard under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Office of Civil Rights for the U.S. Department of Education, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission, or other similar civil rights agency;
(4) Approval of a proposed Conciliation Agreement;
(5) An Administrative Hearing because the Preliminary Investigation revealed it is probable that an Unlawful Discriminatory Practice has been or is being engaged; or
(6) Any other action that the Complaint Officer determines is appropriate.
(f) If a Recommendation has not been issued by forty (40) Business Days after the receipt of the Complaint, the Complaint Officer shall send a written explanation of the reason for the delay to the Complainant, Aggrieved Person, Respondent, and the Board. If the delay is unreasonable, any Party may submit a written request to the Board that an Administrative Hearing be held prior to the issuance of a Recommendation. The Board shall decide to proceed with an Administrative Hearing if it finds that the delay is unreasonable or wait for a Recommendation if the delay is reasonable. This decision shall be in writing and served on the Parties.
(g) After receiving the Recommendation, the Board shall meet to deliberate within twenty-five (25) Business Days, unless good cause is shown, and determine how to proceed. The Board shall make a Determination which may follow the Complaint Officer's Recommendation or take any other action set forth in subsection (e) herein. All Determinations shall be reduced in writing and shall be served to the Complainant, Aggrieved Person, and Respondent within ten (10) Business Days of said meeting.
(h) In response to a Determination resulting in a dismissal, the Complainant may submit a written appeal to the Board within five (5) Business Days of service. The Board shall meet within twenty-five (25) Business Days, unless good cause is shown, and determine how to proceed. The meeting shall be a public meeting and notice of the meeting shall be served on the Parties. The Parties and the Complaint Officer shall be given an opportunity to address the Board but no additional evidence shall be taken. The Board shall decide whether to grant the appeal and proceed with an Administrative Hearing or deny the appeal.
(i) A document is served under this Chapter by:
(1) Mailing to a Party's last known address, in which event service is complete three (3) days after the mailing; or
(2) By emailing it to a Party if email service is requested by said Party, in which event service is complete upon transmission.
(Ord. 123-2014. Passed 11-3-14.)