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 Howard County
 Code of Ordinances
 Title 12. HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES
 SubTitle 2. HUMAN RIGHTS

  § 12.207A. Unlawful housing practices—Subpoenas; evidence; conciliation; civil action.  

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  • The procedures and requirements provided in section 12.207A and 12.207B shall apply only to matters involving unlawful housing practices. Procedures governing complaints, settlements, investigations, findings of reasonable cause, administrative hearings, appeals, oaths, injunctive relief, and enforcement that are not otherwise contained in this section shall be in accordance with section 12.212 of this subtitle.

    I.

    Subpoenas, etc.:

    (a)

    Right to subpoena. The Human Rights Administrator and the Human Rights Commission may issue subpoenas and order discovery in aid of investigations and hearings concerning unlawful housing practices. Discovery shall be conducted as expeditiously and inexpensively as possible consistent with the need to obtain relevant evidence.

    (b)

    Requirement to respond to subpoena to provide evidence. A person may not willfully fail or neglect to attend and testify, to answer any lawful inquiry, or to produce records, documents, or other evidence, if it is in the person's power to do so, in obedience to the subpoena or other lawful order issued pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection.

    (c)

    False or incomplete evidence; destruction of evidence. A person, with intent to mislead another person in a proceeding concerning unlawful housing practices, may not:

    (1)

    Make or cause to be made any false entry or statement of fact in a report, account, record or other document produced pursuant to subpoena or other lawful order issued pursuant to paragraph (a) of this subsection;

    (2)

    Willfully neglect or fail to make or to cause to be made full, true and correct entries in the reports, accounts, records, or other documents; or

    (3)

    Willfully mutilate, alter, or by another means falsify any documentary evidence.

    (d)

    Penalty for providing false or incomplete, evidence or for destroying evidence. Pursuant to Section 20-1102 of the State Government Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, a person who is convicted of violating the provisions of paragraph (b) or (c) of this subsection shall be fined not more than $100,000.00 or imprisoned not more than one year or both.

    II.

    Conciliation:

    (a)

    Settlement by conciliation. A complaint alleging unlawful housing practices may be settled by conciliation at any time in the process. During the entire period after a complaint is filed, the Human Rights Administrator and, where appropriate, the Human Rights Commission, shall engage in conciliation.

    (b)

    Conciliation agreement made public. A conciliation agreement shall be made public unless the State Public Information Act or other state or federal law permits it to be withheld from disclosure.

    (c)

    Confidentiality. Except in a proceeding to enforce a conciliation agreement, nothing said or done in the course of conciliation may be made public or used as evidence in a subsequent proceeding under this subtitle without the written consent of the persons concerned.

    (d)

    Breach of conciliation agreement. If the Administrator or the Commission has reasonable cause to believe that a respondent has breached a conciliation agreement, the Administrator may institute litigation to enforce the conciliation agreement in the same manner as provided in this section for the enforcement of an order of the Commission.

    III.

    Civil Action. After a complaint of alleged unlawful housing practices is filed, if the Human Rights Administrator or the Human Rights Commission concludes that prompt judicial action is necessary to carry out the purposes of this subtitle regarding unlawful housing practices, the Administrator or the Human Rights Commission (if the Commission initiated the complaint) may authorize a civil action in the Circuit Court for Howard County for appropriate temporary or preliminary relief pending final disposition of the complaint pursuant to this subtitle. The commencement of a civil action does not affect the initiation or continuation of administrative proceedings pursuant to this subtitle.

(C.B. 138, 1991; C.B. 4, 2015, § 1)

State law reference

Civil actions for discriminatory acts, Ann. Code of Md. art. 49B, § 42.