TheCambridge Record
Agenda ItemsCity Manager's Agenda

CMA 2018-224

Additional proposed amendments, as requested by the City Council at the meeting of June 25, 2018, to Chapter 2.76 of the Cambridge Municipal Code (the “Human Rights Ordinance”)

How it started
Sep 17, 2018 · Submitted by Louis A. DePasquale, City Manager.
What happened
Sep 17, 2018 · ⚖️ Became law. Ordained unanimously, and now part of the Municipal Code. (Ordained, unanimous)

Voted yes (9), unanimous

  • Dennis Carlone
  • Jan Devereux
  • Craig A. Kelley
  • Alanna Mallon
  • Marc McGovern
  • Sumbul Siddiqui
  • E. Denise Simmons
  • Timothy J. Toomey
  • Quinton Zondervan
Roll call of Sep 17, 2018 · from the city’s record · photos: City of Cambridge
What’s next
Entered the Municipal Code: these amendments became law as ordained in September 2018. The Code can be amended at any time; its current text is the authority on what’s in force today. (This page is the transmittal; the path ran through the Ordinance Committee, timeline below.)
The document Agenda item attachment · 16 pages

Chapter 2.76 - HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION

Sections: 2.76.010 - Established. A. There shall be a Cambridge Human Rights Commission consisting of eleven members, which may be altered by an amendment to the ordinance codified in this chapter by the City Council. B. The Commission shall be considered a department of the City, with all the rights and responsibilities thereof. The Executive Director of the Commission shall be considered the Department Head. (Ord. 1016 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 25 § 1) 2.76.020 - Purpose.

The Cambridge Human Rights Commission shall work with the City Manager and/or their

assistants on matters pertaining to the human rights of City citizens. The main purpose for which the ordinance codified in this chapter is enacted is to protect the human rights of all the citizens of the City. (Ord. 1016 (part), 1984: prior code Ch. 25 § 3(D)) 2.76.030 - Definitions.

As used in this chapter: "Age" means the actual or supposed chronological age of an individual eighteen years or older. "Bona fide occupational qualification" means a valid consideration of race, color, sex, age, religious creed, disability, national origin or ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, family status, military status or source of income that is a requirement for employment and has been certified as such by the Cambridge Human Rights Commission (referred to in this chapter as "the Commission") or by the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination under Chapter 151B of the Massachusetts General Laws. "Disability" means a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more of a person’s major life activities, a record of having such impairment, or being regarded as having such impairment. "Discrimination" means a policy or practice that by design or effect segregates, creates unequal status, separates or has a disproportionate impact on the basis of race, color, sex, age, religious creed, disability, national origin or ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, family status, military status or source of income.

Page 2 5. "Educational facility" means any person, whether organized for profit or not-for-profit, that holds itself out to the public as providing instruction in the arts, sciences, trades or any other area of learning. 6. "Family status" means the actual or supposed condition of having minor children living with the individual or not. 7. “Gender Identity” means a person’s gender-related identity, appearance or behavior, whether or not that that gender-related identity, appearance or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the person’s physiology or assigned sex at birth. 8. "Labor organization" means any association, regardless of its form of organization, or employees or persons involved in similar trades or industries for the purpose of collective bargaining, resolving grievances in the terms and conditions of employment, or any other mutual aid or protection. 9. "Marital status" means the actual or supposed state of being or having been married, separated or divorced, or not. 10. "Military status" means the actual or supposed condition of being or having been in the service of the military, or not. 11. “Person” includes one or more individuals, partnerships, associations, corporations, labor organizations, legal representatives, mutual companies, joint-stock companies, unincorporated organizations, fiduciaries, trustees, trustees in bankruptcy, receivers, the City of Cambridge, and all political subdivisions, boards, and commissions thereof. 12. a. "Public accommodation" means any place or site, business or other establishment, or medium of communication, whether owned privately or by a public agency, that is intended for the patronage or use or convenience, whether for a charge or fee or not, of the general public, including but not limited to, inns, hotels, motels, roadhouses, trailer parks, campsites, any place where food or beverage is sold, retail stores, shopping malls, dispensaries, clinics, hospitals, rest homes, nursing homes, hospices, physicians' offices or other medical facilities, rest rooms, bathhouses, parks, public grounds, gardens, theaters, lecture halls, newspapers and magazines and other publications, barber shops, beauty parlors, motion picture houses, music halls, bowling alleys, amusement parks and arcades, skating rinks, ball parks, billiard and pool parlors, recreation parks, fairs, golf courses, gymnasiums, health clubs, shooting galleries, art galleries, libraries, laundries, garages, all public conveyances whether owned privately or by a public agency, transportation terminals and stations, public portions of buildings accommodating the public, clubs, societies and social associations that are public or quasi-public banks, finance companies, insurance companies, streets and parking lots. b. Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed to include or apply to any place of accommodation that is by its nature distinctly private; provided, that where public use is permitted that use shall be covered by this chapter and further provided, that an establishment that has membership requirements but otherwise

Page 3 qualifies as a public accommodation shall be deemed a public accommodation for the purpose of this chapter if its membership requirements (1) consist only of the payment of fees or dues; (2) consist of requirements under which a substantial portion of the residents of or visitors to the City could qualify; or (3) consist primarily of a discrimination or exclusion based upon race, color, sex, age, religious creed, disability, national origin or ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, family status, military status or source of income.

13. "Real estate transaction" means any intercourse among any persons that involves a building, structure or portion thereof, or parcel of land, developed or undeveloped, whether privately owned or owned by a public agency, including the design, construction, alteration, repair, sale, lease, sublease, mortgage, rental or other provision, term or offer of the same. 14. "Religious creed" means the actual or supposed faith, belief or moral philosophy of an individual or the lack thereof. 15.

“Same sex" means occupying the same social and identity roles as another with respect to being male or female. (Ord. 1182, Amended, 02/24/1997; Ord. 1155, Amended, 01/10/1994) 16. "Sexual orientation" means the actual or supposed heterosexuality, homosexuality or bisexuality of an individual. 17. "Source of income" means public assistance recipiency. "Source of income" shall not include income derived from criminal activity. (Ord. 1155, Amended, 01/10/1994; Ord. 1016 (part), 1984: prior code Ch.

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🗓 The meeting where this was taken up: Sep 17, 2018