L.L. 2005/085

Enactment date: 10/3/2005

Int. No. 22-A

By Council Members Brewer, the Speaker (Council Member Miller), Comrie, Jackson, Jennings, Koppell, Lopez, Martinez, Monserrate, Perkins, Quinn, Sanders Jr., Seabrook, Stewart, Vann, DeBlasio, Reyna, Moskowitz, Gonzalez, Rivera, James, Yassky, Gerson, Barron, Palma, Baez, Katz, Weprin, Clarke, Liu, Dilan, Reed, Sears, Boyland, Gentile, Recchia, Foster, Avella, Arroyo, Gioia, Gennaro and The Public Advocate (Gotbaum)

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the City of New York, in relation to the human rights law.

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. The purpose of this local law, which shall be known as the "Local Civil Rights Restoration Act of 2005," is to clarify the scope of New York City's Human Rights Law. It is the sense of the Council that New York City's Human Rights Law has been construed too narrowly to ensure protection of the civil rights of all persons covered by the law. In particular, through passage of this local law, the Council seeks to underscore that the provisions of New York City's Human Rights Law are to be construed independently from similar or identical provisions of New York state or federal statutes. Interpretations of New York state or federal statutes with similar wording may be used to aid in interpretation of the New York City Human Rights Law, viewing similarly worded provisions of federal and state civil rights laws as a floor below which the City's Human Rights law cannot fall, rather than a ceiling above which the local law cannot rise.

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[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

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§ 12. This local law shall take effect upon enactment.