(A) Purpose. It is the public policy of the City of Kokomo to provide all of its citizens equal opportunity for education, employment, access to public conveniences and accommodations, and acquisition through purchase or rental of real property including, but not limited to, housing, and to eliminate segregation or separation based on race, religion, color, sex, disability, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, Veteran status, marital status, familial status, and age, since such segregation is an impediment to equal opportunity. Equal education and employment opportunities and equal access to and use of public accommodations and equal opportunity for acquisition of real property including, but not limited to, housing are hereby declared to be civil rights. The exclusion of a person from or failure or refusal to extend to a person equal opportunities because of a protected class status or the promotion of racial segregation in any manner, is hereby declared to be unlawful discriminatory practices and is hereby declared to be illegal.
(B) Prohibited conduct.
(1) No person shall discriminate against any other person in education, employment, access to public conveniences and accommodations based on a protected class status. Such discrimination or denial of equal opportunity shall be an unlawful practice.
(2) Unlawful discriminatory practices shall include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) Housing. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a person to violate fair housing provisions as set forth in the City Fair Housing Code, Chapter 151 of this code of ordinances, adopted by the Common Council on July 25, 1994, or state or federal statutes regulating fair housing practices.
(b) Financial. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for a financial institution or an individual employed by or acting on behalf of a financial institution as set forth in the city's Fair Housing Code:
1. To use a form of application for financial assistance or to make or keep a record of inquiry in connection with applications for financial assistance which indicates directly a limitation, specification or discrimination as to a protected class status or, an intent to make such a limitation, specification or discrimination;
2. To discriminate on the basis of a protected class status against any applicant in the fixing of amount, interest rate, duration or other terms or conditions of a loan or other financial assistance, or to make a lower appraisal evaluation because of a protected class status of any applicant.
(c) Employment. It is discrimination for an employer:
1. To fail or refuse to hire, promote or upgrade, or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individuals with respect to their compensation, tenure, terms, conditions or privileges of employment because of such individual's protected class status;
2. To limit, segregate or classify their employees in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive any individuals of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect their status as an employee because of such individual's protected class status;
3. To publish or cause to be published any notice or advertisement with respect to employment which indicates any specification, limitation, preference or discrimination based on an individual's protected class status; or
4. To fail to provide reasonable accommodation for an otherwise qualified disabled employee or prospective employee, unless an employer can demonstrate that the accommodation would impose an undue hardship on the conduct of an employer's business.
(d) Labor organizations. It is discrimination for a labor organization:
1. To exclude or to expel from its membership, or otherwise to discriminate against, any members or applicants for membership because of his/her protected class status;
2. To limit, segregate or classify its membership, or to classify or fail or refuse to refer for employment any individuals, in any way which would deprive or tend to deprive these individuals of employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect their status as employees or as applicants for employment because of such individual's protected class status;
3. To cause or attempt to cause an employer to discriminate against an individual in violation of this action; or
4. To discriminate against any individuals or to limit, segregate or qualify its membership in any way which would tend to deprive such individuals of employment opportunities, or would limit their employment opportunities or otherwise adversely affect their status as employees or as applicants for employment or would affect adversely their wages, hours of employment conditions because of such individual's protected class status.
(e) Apprenticeship or training. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer, labor organization or joint labor management committee controlling apprenticeship or apprentice training or retraining, including on-the-job training programs, to discriminate against any individuals because of a protected class status in admission to, or employment in, any program established to provide apprenticeship or other training.
(f) Employment agencies. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employment agency to fail or refuse to classify properly, refer for employment, or otherwise, to discriminate against any individual because of his/her protected class status, or to conduct business under a name which directly or indirectly expresses any limitation, specification, or discrimination, as to a protected class.
(g) Public accommodations. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person who is the owner, lessor, proprietor, manager, superintendent or employee of any place of public accommodation or amusement:
1. To discriminate against any person because of such individual's protected class status, by refusing, withholding or denying to such person any of the services, accommodations or amusement, in any manner that conflicts with state or federal statutes.
2. To publish, circulate, issue, display, post or mail, directly or indirectly, any written or printed communication, notice or advertisement to the effect that any of the services, accommodations, advantages, facilities or privileges of any place of public accommodations or amusement will be refused, withheld or denied to any person on account of his/her protected class status, or that the patronage of any person of any protected class is unwelcome, objectionable or not acceptable.
(h) Educational institutions. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for any educational institution to deny admittance to any prospective student or enrollee, or to deny any service offered by such institution to any person, otherwise qualified for such service, on the ground of his/her protected class status.
(i) Other unlawful practices.
1. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person, including but not limited to, any employer, employment agency, labor organization, educational institution, financial institution or any owner or any real estate operator to discharge, expel or penalize any individuals in any manner because they have filed a complaint, assisted or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this subchapter.
2. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person to aid, abet, incite, compel or coerce the doing of any act declared unlawful by this subchapter;
3. It is an unlawful discriminatory practice for any person to knowingly obstruct the fair, equal and lawful enforcement of this subchapter by coercing or intimidating any complainant or prospective complainant, or any witness to any act made unlawful herein, or by destroying or altering any records, documents or other evidence relevant to any alleged unlawful discriminatory practice as defined herein, after such person had received actual notice of a discrimination complaint or has been served with notice of a complaint filed.
(C) Exceptions.
(1) Protections herein against discriminatory practices with regard to sexual orientation or gender identity shall not apply to decisions of a person or an employer which is a religious society or order, association, organization, institution or related entity or business that is organized under 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code when such protections affect the definition, advancement of the mission(s), practice(s) or belief(s) of such religious society or order, association, organization, institution or related entity or business charged with the implementation of such decision or decisions, and no requirement of this Article shall compel any person to act in a manner contrary to that which has been granted specific protection by the United States Supreme Court in Boy Scouts of America and Monmouth Council, et al. v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000).
(2) The protections in this Article against discriminatory practices regarding sexual orientation or gender identity in employment shall not be construed to require that health care plans, insurance, pension, or similar additional benefits provided by employers and benefitting the spouses of employees be extended to non-married domestic partners of any employee.
(3) (a) The denial of housing rights and opportunities based on familiar status as prohibited by this article shall not apply to housing intended for and solely occupied by persons over 62 years of age or older or which is designed and operated to assist elderly persons under a federal or state program.
(b) If there are persons living in such housing under age 62, this exception applies provided that:
1. All occupants after September 13, 1988 are at least 62 years old;
2. Any unoccupied units are reserved for occupancy by persons at least 62 years old; and
3. Any persons under age 62 occupying said housing after September 13, 1988 are employees of the housing and their family members residing in the same unit, and such employees perform substantial duties directly related to the management or maintenance of the housing.
(4) The determination of whether any housing unit falls within the exception created by this section shall be made by the Commission and shall be consistent with any determinations already made by the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development.
(Ord. 5925, passed 8-29-94; Am. Ord. 6127, passed 7-12-99; Am. Ord. 6820, passed 3-14-16)