Chapter 46
HUMAN RELATIONS*
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Cross references: Administration, ch. 2; businesses, ch. 22; offenses and miscellaneous provisions, ch. 58.
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Article I. In General
Secs. 46-1– 46-25. Reserved.
Article II. Fair Housing
Sec. 46-26. Declaration of policy.
Sec. 46-27. Definitions.
Sec. 46-28. Penalty for violation of article.
Sec. 46-29. Unlawful practices.
Sec. 46-30. Exemptions.
Sec. 46-31. Complaint procedure.
Sec. 46-32. Other remedies.
ARTICLE I.
IN GENERAL
Secs. 46-1– 46-25. Reserved.
ARTICLE II.
FAIR HOUSING*
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Cross references: Advertising, ch. 6.
State law references: Fair housing, 65 ILCS 5/11-11.1-1; Illinois Human Rights Act, 775 ILCS 5/1-101 et seq.
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Sec. 46-26. Declaration of policy.
It is hereby declared to be the policy of this city in the exercise of its police power for the public safety, public health, and general welfare to assure equal opportunity to all persons to live in decent housing facilities regardless of race, color, religion, sex, creed, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service, and, to that end, to prohibit discrimination in housing by any persons.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 1, 6-24-91)
Sec. 46-27. Definitions.
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
Discrimination or discriminatory housing practice means any difference in treatment based upon race, color, religion, sex, creed, ancestry, national origin, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service; or any act that is unlawful under this article.
Financial institution means any person engaged in the business of lending money or guaranteeing losses.
Housing accommodation or dwelling means any building, mobile home or trailer, structure, or portion thereof which is occupied, or designed or intended for occupancy, as a residence by one or more families and vacant land which is offered for sale or lease for the construction or location thereon of any such building, mobile home or trailer, structure, or portion thereof, or any real property used or intended to be used for any of the purposes set forth in this definition.
Mortgage broker means an individual who is engaged in or who performs the business or services of a mortgage broker as the same are defined by state statutes.
Open market means the market which is informed of the availability for sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation, whether informed through a real estate broker, by advertising, by publication, by signs or by other advertising methods directed to the public or any portion thereof, indicating that the property is available for sale, purchase, rental or lease.
Owner means a lessee, sublessee, cotenant, assignee, managing agent or other person having the right of ownership or possession, or the right to sell, rent or lease any housing accommodation.
Person means and includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations and all other groups or combinations.
Real estate broker or real estate salesman means any individual qualified by law who, for a fee, commission, salary or for other valuable consideration, or who with the intention or expectation of receiving or collecting same, lists, sells, purchases, rents or leases any housing accommodations, including options thereupon, or who advertises or holds himself out as engaged in such activities; or who negotiates or attempts to negotiate a loan, secured by a mortgage or other encumbrance, upon transfer of any housing accommodation; or who is engaged in the business of charging an advance fee or contracting for collection of a fee in connection with a contract whereby he undertakes to promote the sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation through its listing in a publication issued primarily for such purpose; or an individual employed by or acting on behalf of any of these.
Real property means and includes buildings, structures, real estate, lands, tenements, leaseholds, interests in real estate cooperatives, condominiums, and hereditaments, corporeal and incorporeal, or any interest therein.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 2, 6-24-91)
Cross references: Definitions generally, § 1-2.
Sec. 46-28. Penalty for violation of article.
Any person violating any provision of this article shall, upon conviction thereof, be punished as provided in section 1-5.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 7, 6-24-91)
Sec. 46-29. Unlawful practices.
In connection with any of the transactions set forth in this section which affect any housing accommodation on the open market, or in connection with any public sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation, it shall be unlawful within the city for any person, owner, financial institution, real estate broker or real estate salesman, or any representative of the above, to:
(1) Refuse to sell, purchase, rent or lease, or deny to or withhold any housing accommodation from a person because of his race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service;
(2) Discriminate against a person in the terms, conditions or privileges of the sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation, or in the furnishing of facilities of services in connection therewith;
(3) Refuse to receive or transmit a bona fide offer to sell, purchase, rent or lease any housing accommodation from or to a person because of his race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service;
(4) Refuse to negotiate for the sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation to a person because of his race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service;
(5) Represent to a person that any housing accommodation is not available for inspection, sale, purchase, rental or lease when in fact it is so available, or to refuse to permit a person to inspect any housing accommodation, because of his race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service;
(6) Make, publish, print, circulate, post or mail, or cause to be made, published, printed, circulated, posted or mailed, any notice, statement or advertisement, or to announce a policy, or to sign or to use a form for application for the sale, purchase, rental, lease or financing of any housing accommodation, or to make a record of inquiry in connection with the prospective sale, purchase, rental, lease or financing of any housing accommodation, which indicates any discrimination;
(7) Offer, solicit, accept or use a listing of any housing recommendation for sale, purchase, rental or lease with the understanding that a person may be subjected to discrimination in connection with such sale, purchase, rental or lease, or in the furnishing of facilities or services in connection therewith;
(8) Induce, directly or indirectly, or attempt to induce, directly or indirectly, the sale, purchase, rental or lease, or the listing for any of the above, of any housing accommodation by representing that the presence or anticipated presence of persons of any particular race, color, religion, creed, sex, national origin, ancestry, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or discharge from military service in the area to be affected by such sale, purchase, rental or lease will or may result in either:
a. The lowering of property values in the area;
b. An increase in criminal or antisocial behavior in the area; or
c. A decline in the quality of schools serving the area;
(9) Make any misrepresentations concerning the listing for sale, purchase, rental or lease, or the anticipated listing for any of the above, or the sale, purchase, rental or lease of any housing accommodation in any area in the city for the purpose of inducing or attempting to induce any such listing or any of the above transactions;
(10) Engage in, or hire to be done, or conspire with others to commit, acts or activities of any nature, the purpose of which is to coerce, cause panic, incite unrest or create any play upon fear, with the purpose of either discouraging or inducing, or attempting to induce, the sale, purchase, rental or lease, or the listing for any of the above, of any housing accommodation;
(11) Retaliate or discriminate in any manner against a person because he has opposed a practice declared unlawful by this article, or because he has filed a complaint, testified, assisted or participated in any manner in any investigation, proceeding, hearing or conference under this article;
(12) Aid, abet, incite, compel or coerce any person to engage in any act of the practices prohibited by this article; or to obstruct or prevent any person from complying with the provisions of this article or any order issued thereunder;
(13) By canvassing, to commit any unlawful practices prohibited by this article;
(14) Otherwise deny to or withhold any housing accommodation from a person because of his race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service;
(15) For any bank, building and loan association, insurance company or other corporation, association, firm or enterprise whose business consists, in whole or in part, in the making of commercial real estate loans, to deny a loan or other financial assistance to a person applying therefor for the purpose of purchasing, constructing, improving, repairing or maintaining a dwelling, or to discriminate against him in the fixing of the amount, interest rate, duration, or other terms or conditions of such loans or other financial assistance because of the race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, national origin, sex, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service of such person or of any person associated with him in connection with such loan or other financial assistance or of the present or prospective owners, lessees, tenants or occupants of the dwellings in relation to which such loan or other financial assistance is to be made or given; or
(16) Deny any qualified person access to or membership or participation in any multiple-listing service, real estate broker's organization, or other service, organization or facility relating to the business of selling or renting dwellings, or to discriminate against him in the terms or conditions of such access, membership or participation on account of race, color, religion, creed, ancestry, sex, national origin, place of birth, physical or mental handicap, age, marital status or unfavorable discharge from military service.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 3, 6-24-91)
Sec. 46-30. Exemptions.
This article shall not apply to:
(1) A religious organization, association or society, or any nonprofit institution or organization, operated, supervised or controlled by or in conjunction with a religious organization, association or society, which limits the sale, rental or occupancy of dwellings which it owns or operates for other than commercial purposes to persons of the same religion, or which gives preference to such persons, unless membership in such religion is restricted on account of race, color or national origin.
(2) Any single-family house sold or rented by an owner; provided, that such private individual owner does not own more than three such single-family houses at any one time; provided further, that in the case of the sale of any such single-family house by a private individual owner not residing in such house at the time of such sale or who was not the most recent resident of such house prior to such sale, the exemption granted by this subsection shall apply only with respect to one such sale within any 24-month period; provided further, that such bona fide private individual owner does not own any interest in, nor is there owned or served on his behalf, under any express or voluntary agreement, title to or any right to all or a portion of the proceeds from the sale or rental of more than three such single-family houses at any one time; provided further, that the sale or rental of any such single-family house shall be excepted from the application of this article only if such house is sold or rented:
a. Without the use in any manner of the sales or rental facilities or the sales or rental services of any real estate broker, agent or salesman, or of such facilities or services of any person in the business of selling or renting dwellings, or of any employee or agent of any such broker, agent, salesman or person; and
b. Without the publication, posting or mailing, after notice, of any advertisement of written notice in violation of the provisions of 42 USC section 3604(c) or of section 46-29 of this article; but nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the use of attorneys, escrow agents, abstractors, title companies, or other such professional assistance as necessary to perfect or transfer the title.
(3) Rooms or units in dwellings containing living quarters occupied or intended to be occupied by no more than four families living independently of each other, if the owner actually maintains and occupies one of such living quarters as his residence.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 4, 6-24-91)
Sec. 46-31. Complaint procedure.
Any person aggrieved by an unlawful practice prohibited by this article may file a complaint with the city attorney within 30 days after the aggrieved person becomes aware of the alleged unlawful practice, and in no event more than 60 days after the alleged unlawful practice occurred. The city attorney or his duly authorized representative shall investigate each complaint and attempt to resolve each complaint. Failure to achieve a resolution acceptable to both parties and compliance with this article shall cause the city attorney to forward the complaint and his findings to appropriate state and federal officials.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 5, 6-24-91)
Sec. 46-32. Other remedies.
Nothing contained in this article shall prevent any person from exercising any right or seeking any remedy to which he might otherwise be entitled or from filing his complaint with any appropriate governmental agency.
(Ord. No. 91-13, § 6, 6-24-91)