SENATE BILL No. 40

 

 

January 25, 2005, Introduced by Senator THOMAS and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

 

 

 

 

 

 

     A bill to amend 1976 PA 453, entitled

 

"Elliott-Larsen civil rights act,"

 

by amending section 605 (MCL 37.2605), as amended by 1992 PA 124.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:

 

     Sec. 605. (1) If the commission, after a hearing on a charge

 

issued by the department, determines that the respondent has

 

violated this act, the persons with disabilities civil rights act,

 

1976 PA 220, MCl 37.1101 to 37.1607, or the Michigan racial

 

profiling and report statistics act, the commission shall state its

 

findings of fact and conclusions of law and shall issue a final

 

order requiring the respondent to cease and desist from the

 

discriminatory practice and to take  such  any other action  as  it  

 

deems  considers necessary to secure equal enjoyment and protection

 


of civil rights. If at a hearing on a charge, a pattern or practice

 

of discrimination prohibited by this act,  or Act No. 220 of the

 

Public Acts of 1976  the persons with disabilities civil rights

 

act, 1976 PA 220, MCL 37.1101 to 37.1607, or the Michigan racial

 

profiling and report statistics act appears in the evidence, the

 

commission may, upon its own motion or on motion of the claimant,

 

amend the pleadings to conform to the proofs, make findings, and

 

issue an order based on those findings.  A  The commission shall

 

deliver a copy of the order  shall be delivered  to the respondent,

 

the claimant, the attorney general, and  to  any other public  

 

officers and persons as  officer or person the commission  deems  

 

considers proper.

 

     (2)  Action ordered  An order issued under this section may

 

include, but is not limited to, 1 or more of the following actions:

 

     (a) Hiring, reinstatement, or upgrading of employees with or

 

without back pay.

 

     (b) Admission or restoration of individuals to labor

 

organization membership  ,  or admission to or participation in a

 

guidance program, apprenticeship training program, on the job

 

training program, or other occupational training or retraining

 

program, with the utilization of objective criteria in the

 

admission of persons to those programs.

 

     (c) Admission of persons to a public accommodation or an

 

educational institution.

 

     (d) Sale, exchange, lease, rental, assignment, or sublease of

 

real property to a person.

 

     (e) Extension to all persons of the full and equal enjoyment

 


of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or

 

accommodations of the respondent.

 

     (f) Reporting as to the manner of compliance.

 

     (g) Requiring the posting of notices in a conspicuous place  

 

which  that the commission may publish or cause to be published

 

setting forth requirements for compliance with civil rights law or

 

other relevant information  which  that the commission determines

 

necessary to explain those laws.

 

     (h) Payment to an injured party of profits obtained by the

 

respondent through a violation of section 506 of this act or of  

 

Act No. 220 of the Public Acts of 1976  the persons with

 

disabilities civil rights act, 1976 PA 220, MCL 37.1101 to 37.1607.

 

     (i) Payment to the complainant of damages for an injury or

 

loss caused by a violation of this act, including a reasonable

 

attorney's fee.

 

     (j) Payment to the complainant of all or a portion of the

 

costs of maintaining the action before the commission, including

 

reasonable attorney fees and expert witness fees, if the commission

 

determines that the award  to be  is appropriate.

 

     (k) Payment of a civil fine for a violation of article 5 of

 

this act, an amount directly related to the cost to the state for

 

enforcing this statute not to exceed 1 of the following:

 

     (i) $10,000.00 for the first violation.

 

     (ii) $25,000.00 for the second violation within a 5-year

 

period.

 

     (iii) $50,000.00 for 2 or more violations within a 7-year

 

period.

 


     (l) Other relief the commission  deems  considers appropriate.

 

     (3)  In the case of  If a respondent is operating by virtue of

 

a license issued by  the  this state, a political subdivision, or

 

an agency of  the  this state or political subdivision,  if  and

 

the commission, upon notice and hearing, determines that the

 

respondent has violated this act and that the violation was

 

authorized, requested, commanded, performed, or knowingly permitted

 

by the board of directors of the respondent or by an officer or

 

executive agent acting within the scope of his or her employment,

 

the commission shall so certify to the licensing agency. Unless the

 

commission's finding is reversed in the course of judicial review,

 

the finding of the commission may be grounds for revocation of the

 

respondent's license.

 

     (4)  In the case of  If a respondent  who  violates this act

 

in the course of performing under a contract or subcontract with  

 

the  this state, a political subdivision, or an agency of  the  

 

this state or political subdivision,  where  and the violation was

 

authorized, requested, commanded, performed, or knowingly permitted

 

by the board of directors of the respondent or by an officer or

 

executive agent acting within the scope of his or her employment,

 

the commission shall so certify to the contracting agency. Unless

 

the commission's finding is reversed in the course of judicial

 

review, the finding is binding on the contracting agency.

 

     Enacting section 1.  This amendatory act does not take effect

 

unless all of the following bills of the 93rd Legislature are

 

enacted into law:

 

     (a) Senate Bill No. 41.                                    

 


         

 

     (b) Senate Bill No. 42.