Minutes Human Rights 4 14 03DUBUQUE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
MINUTES OF
April f4, 2003
Judy Giesen called the meeting of the Dubuque Human Rights Commission to order at 4:15 p.m. on
Monday, Apd114, 2003, in Conference Room 2 at the City Hall Annex.
Roll Call:
Present:
Absent:
Staff:
Raydora Drummer
Codne Murray
Bill Ross
Chuck Ryan
Lou Oswald
Kelly Larson
Bill Blum
Evelyn Jackson
Judy Giesen
Vincent Vanden Huevel
Penny Ehlinger
Carol Spinoso
Commissioner Jackson moved to approve the meeting minutes of Mamh 10, 2003. Commissioner
Ryan seconded. Alt in favor.
Status of Dubuque Dispute Resolution Center
Hiram Melendez, Chair of the DDRC, spoke to Commissioners on the current status of the Dispute
Resolution Center. He stated that currently there are sixteen active mediators, and that the caseload
for the past 18 months has been rather light (3 mediations), except for the truancy cases, that average
60 per year. The lack of caseload has had an impact on the DDRC; therefore, the Advisory Board has
been discussing the possibility of expanding the services to include landlord/tenant and
employee/employer disputes. The board is still considering options.
Caseload Report
C_,aml summarized the March Caseload Report. There were thirty-eight intakes, zero cases in
backlog, six cases in active investigation, five cases in mediation, seven cases in administrative
review, one case in administrative law judge review, four cases in the public hearing process, zero
cases were filed, and eight cases were closed. The case synopsis involves racially based
discrimination in the area of employment.
Commissioner Giesen submitted a written synopsis of her involvement with vadous activities.
Kelly submitted a wdtten report summarizing her involvement with past and future initiatives.
She announced that the Kenniker case had been settled, so they won't need to take any action on the
request for attorney's fees in that case.
Kelly and Bill will be conducting civil dghts training for city staff in September, and invited
Commissioners to attend. This will be further discussed at the August meeting.
Discussion on Attorney's Fees in the Taylor vs. Farmland Foods Case:
Bill indicated that the Respondent in the Taylor vs. Farmland Foods complaint has requested that the
Iowa Supreme Court review the case. This review will take place on Friday, May 23, 2003.
Commissioner Ross moved to accept the attorney's fees of $71,701.12, as requested by the
Complainant's attorney. Evelyn seconded. Roll call:
Raydora Drummer Yes
Evelyn Jackson Yes
Bill Ross Yes
Vince Vanden Huevel Yes
Judy Giesen Yes
Corine Murray Yes
Charles Ryan No
The motion carries with a vote of 6 - 1.
Plan of Action for Established Goals
Banquet - Raydora, Evelyn
Commissioner Jackson stated that the committee met on Fdday to select the winners of the
Shining Moment Award, and that the program for the banquet is set.
Autism Update - Codne, Chuck
Commissioner Murray reported that they have had conversations with the Lt. Governor's Office
and have been sent informational materials from the Autism Society of Iowa. They continue to
explore this topic.
New Business
Commissioner Jackson suggested a sedes of workshops to educate the community on predatory
lending. This will be addressed at the Commission's next goal setting session.
Kelly distTibuted a project proposal that would create a resident group to perform surveys of local
businesses and make recommendations to improve accessibility. This will be discussed at next
month's meeting,
Adjournment
Commissioner Ryan moved and Commissioner Ross seconded to adjourn the meeting. All in favor.
The meeting adjourned at 6:05 p,m.
Minutes approved as submitted: ~ ~
Minutes approved as corrected: