ISSUES REGARDING THE HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION AND VANDERBURGH COUNTY
There is a written agreement between the City and the County setting up the Human Relations Commission. The county’s financial participation is minimal.
The HRC presented to the county commissioners an ordinance that they wanted passed by the county. They, by their own admission, had been working on this ordinance for over two years. Yet, in all that time, they could not find enough time to talk to the commissioners about the ordinance so that the commissioners would be well informed about this ordinance priorto being asked to vote on it.
The timing of the HRC is an issue with the county commissioners.
The HRC, by their own admission, have presented an ordinance that cannot be enforced because the local government does not have the authority to pass an ordinance such as this as that power lies with the State. That makes this ordinance illegal because an ordinance is, by definition, an enforceable law of government. This illegal act is an issue with the county commissioners.
The HRC could, if this ordinance is passed, investigate, publicize and harass a business for a perceived violation of this ordinance although they have no legal basis for this. The attorney for the HRC could not guarantee the county commissioners that they would not be on the receiving end of a lawsuit if a company had to defend itself against an action based on this illegal ordinance. This exposure of companies to baseless lawsuits is an issue with the county commissioners.
The HRC director has said to each commissioner individually and separately that she serves at the pleasure of the mayor and not the county commissioners. Thus, it is obvious that she does not feel she must respond to our questions and suggestions. The county commissioners serve at the pleasure of the taxpayers and we must have a voice in any agency that wholly or partially funded. This treatment of the county commissioners by the executive director of the HRC is an issue with the county commissioners.
The HRC has made many comments to employers and conducted investigations that have led to complaints from citizens to the county commissioners. They commissioners have attempted to discuss
this with the executive director but she has refused to discuss it citing confidentiality. However, the commissioners questioned procedure; not individual cases. The hiding behind confidentiality as a reason to dismiss the commissioners is an issue with the county commissioners.
The HRC has made more than one financial contribution to agencies that are not advertised as a recipients of money from the tax funded entity. This type of fiscal mismanagement is an issue with the
county commissioners.
For these reasons, the Vanderburgh County Board of Commissioners presented a budget request for 2013 to the Vanderburgh County Council which reduced the county’s contribution to the HRC by 20%.
The Vanderburgh County Council has funding authority and they may elected to fund this agency at any level they wish.
Some of us hate it when we have to agree with Marsha! But, as some great author once said “Even a broken clock is right twice a day.” Give the county employees better insurance and quit funding stuff for the special interest! Marsha, there is so much more work to be done!
prime example of a City-County entity that is controlled by the City but has significant jurisdiction over the lives and safety of county residents…. best reason to consolidate or to unravel the thirteen plus “joint” City-County entities… Marsha has fired the first shot to dissolve one of these joint entity relationships…..
I also hate when I agree with this “Right Wing” nut Marsha Abell.
Take it to them Marsha!
I’m sorry to say that the gay people and their family members are really disappointed in you Marsha.
Glad to hear that you shall never run again for political office ever again.
You are exaggerating your power by 100 times big guy or big girl which ever you want to be called.
Marsha I’m totally disappointed in you.
Wish you well in your political retirement, please take Joe Kiefer with you.
Sorry Marsha Abell, this statement is not what you told all your gay buddies concerning your feelings about the HRC during the last election.
Glad to hear your not running for re-election.
A big thank you to Commissioner Abell, keep up the good work!
When this was originally mentioned in The Evansville Courier & Press, in additiion to the special circumstances mentioned above, the C&P article also included a category of “perceived gender identification” whatever that means.
Can anyone clarify what “perceived gender idenification” means?
I assume that means how a person perceives her or his own gender, or how he or she identifies himself or herself by gender. And I say it’s a free country … or sort of anyway.
My vote for Marsha was more of a vote against Troy. That said, Marsha has it right in this article about the HRC. We have an existing body of law out here covering discrimination, and we have a Prosecutor’s Office.
What we do not need is a partisan commission with the ability to sow the seeds of dissension where no actual dissension existed. I get the feeling that these people would like to build some stocks on the public square and be the sole decider of who to place in them.
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