(a) The County Executive must designate an interagency fair housing coordinating group. The purpose of the coordinating group is to facilitate and promote the County's efforts to prevent discrimination in housing.
(b) The County Executive appoints the members of the coordinating group, subject to confirmation by the County Council. The coordinating group consists of one or more employees of each of the following agencies:
(1) Office of Community Outreach in the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer;
(2) Human Rights Commission;
(3) Housing Opportunities Commission;
(4) Department of Housing and Community Affairs;
(5) Community service centers;
(6) Department of Health and Human Services;
(7) Commission for Women; and
(8) Commission on People with Disabilities.
(c) The Executive also may designate, subject to confirmation by the County Council, one or more members of the Executive's staff, and employees of any other County department or office, to serve on the coordinating group. The Executive must also invite the County Council, the Montgomery County public schools, the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation, and the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission to designate one or more staff members to serve as full members of the group.
(d) The Executive must designate a chair of the coordinating group, subject to confirmation by the County Council. The chair or the Executive may call meetings. The group may form its own subcommittees.
(e) Meetings of the coordinating group and its subcommittees are subject to the Maryland Open Meetings law. In order to create a public forum and encourage diverse participation, the Executive must invite representatives of the housing industry and active community groups to participate in meetings. The group must not be governed by
Chapter 2 or
Chapter 2A.
(f) With staff support from the Fair Housing Coordinator, the coordinating group must submit to the County Council and County Executive an annual report on housing discrimination in the County. This report must:
(1) assess County, State and Federal laws prohibiting discrimination in housing, and evaluate their enforcement in the County;
(2) recommend changes in law, policy, programs or priorities needed to reduce discrimination in housing;
(3) include a work program for the coming year;
(4) include a progress report on the previous year's work program; and
(5) include the views of the Fair Housing Coordinator and any member whose views differ from those of the report. (1988 L.M.C., ch. 1, § 3; 1995 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 13, § 1; 1996 L.M.C., ch. 14, § 1; 2001 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1; , § 1.)
Editor’s note—, § 8 also states, in part: All other provisions of this Act take effect 180 days after the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation is designated under Section 30B-2.
Section 5 of 1995 L.M.C., ch. 13, reads as follows: "Sec. 5. A regulation that implements a function assigned to the Department of Health and Human Services by 1995 LMC ch. 13 continues in effect but is amended to the extent necessary to provide that the regulation is administered by the Director of the Department of Health and Human Services."
Section 27-26B, formerly § 27-26H, was renumbered and amended pursuant to 2001 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1.
Former Section 27-26B, relating to statutory civil liability, derived from 1983 L.M.C., ch. 26, § 1; 1990 L.M.C., ch. 31, § 1, was repealed by 2001 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1.
Former Sections 27-26C, 27-26D, 27-26E, 27-26F, 27-26G, and 27-26H, were renumbered and amended to Sections 27-23, 27-24, 27-25, 27-26, 27-26A and 27-26B, respectively, by 2001 L.M.C., ch. 9, § 1.
Cross reference—Discrimination in housing, §
27-12 et seq.
