(A) There is hereby created an Elkhart Human Relations Commission consisting of a Commission of 5 members. They shall be appointed by the Mayor of the city with the approval of the Council. Of the 5 members first appointed, 2 shall be appointed for a term of 1 year, 2 shall be appointed for a term of 2 years, and 1 shall be appointed for a term of 3 years. Thereafter, each appointment shall be for a period of 3 years.
(B) No more than 3 Commissioners shall be members of the same political party.
(C) The Commission, at its first meeting of every calendar year shall elect from among their number a Chairperson who shall serve until the first meeting of the following calendar year. Any Commissioner shall be eligible for the position of Chairperson.
(D) If a member dies or resigns, his or her successor shall be appointed to serve the unexpired period of the term to which his or her predecessor had been appointed.
(E) The Mayor may remove Commission members for cause which shall include repeated failures to attend meetings of the Commission, failure or refusal to discharge duties as a Commissioner, commission of a felony, willful or repeated failure or refusal to follow lawful procedures in the conduct of office, or gross misconduct bringing himself or herself, the city or the Commission into discredit. In the event of the removal, the Mayor shall certify in writing to the City Clerk the cause for the removal. A Commission member shall forfeit his or her appointment to the Commission if he or she misses in excess of 3 scheduled meetings during a calendar year.
(F) The expenses for carrying on the Commission’s activities shall be budgeted for and paid out of funds in the City Treasury, appropriated by the Council for such purposes; however, the Commission shall also have the authority to accept gifts or bequests or other payments, public or private, to help finance its activities.
(G) It shall take the concurrence of a majority of the Commission membership to take legal or official action, except that a determination of probable cause may be based upon a concurrence of a majority of Commissioners voting upon the case excluding members abstaining.
(1979 Code, § 35.35) (Ord. 2069, passed 2-17-1965; Am. Ord. 2307, passed 6-24-1968; Am. Ord. 4235, passed 1-8-1996; Am. Ord. 4962, passed 4-17-2006
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