Source: http://www.mainelegislature.org/legis/bills/bills_129th/billtexts/HP121701.asp
Timestamp: 2019-07-21 11:01:57
Document Index: 456905646

Matched Legal Cases: ['§4554', '§5', '§4566', '§3', '§36', '§4566', '§4', '§1', '§4566', '§6', '§7', '§4566', '§10', '§8', '§4566', '§11', '§9', '§4612', '§19', '§29', '§4614', '§3', '§4622', '§1', '§3']

HP1217, LD 1702, item 1, An Act To Enhance the Administration of the Maine Human Rights Act
LD 1702 Session - 129th Maine Legislature
LR 2282
Sec. 1. 5 MRSA §4554, sub-§§5 and 6 are enacted to read:
5. Act to be construed broadly. This Act must be construed to provide broad protection from discrimination; where the Act differs from federal antidiscrimination law, the Act may not be construed to provide less coverage than the federal law. Any exceptions and defenses to the Act's coverage must be construed narrowly.
6. Commission interpretation and rules. The commission's interpretation of the Act is entitled to deference in a court of law and must be upheld unless it is plainly contrary to the language of the Act.
Sec. 2. 5 MRSA §4566, sub-§3, as amended by PL 1985, c. 785, Pt. B, §36, is further amended to read:
3. Personnel. To appoint a full-time executive secretary director and counsel to the commission, not subject to the Civil Service Law, and determine their remuneration ; and to appoint, subject to the Civil Service Law, other personnel including, but not limited to, investigators, attorneys, compliance personnel and secretaries, as it shall deem necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act; . The executive director has authority to appoint or hire additional personnel, subject to the Civil Service Law, as the executive director considers necessary to effectuate the purposes of this Act.
Sec. 3. 5 MRSA §4566, sub-§4, as enacted by PL 1971, c. 501, §1, is amended to read:
Sec. 4. 5 MRSA §4566, sub-§6, as amended by PL 2005, c. 10, §7, is further amended to read:
Sec. 5. 5 MRSA §4566, sub-§10, as amended by PL 2005, c. 10, §8, is further amended to read:
Sec. 6. 5 MRSA §4566, sub-§11, as amended by PL 2005, c. 10, §9, is further amended to read:
Sec. 7. 5 MRSA §4612, as amended by PL 2011, c. 613, §§19 and 20 and affected by §29, is further amended to read:
6. Right to sue. If, within 180 days of a complaint being filed with the commission, the commission has not filed a civil action in the case or has not entered into a conciliation agreement in the case, the complainant may request a right-to-sue letter, and, if a letter is given, the commission shall end its investigation. The executive director of the commission may issue a right-to-sue letter in any case in which the commission has not filed a civil action in the case or has not entered into a conciliation agreement in the case within 180 days of the complaint being filed, whether or not such a letter has been requested by the complainant.
Sec. 8. 5 MRSA §4614, as enacted by PL 1981, c. 255, §3, is amended to read:
Sec. 9. 5 MRSA §4622, sub-§1, ¶A, as amended by PL 1993, c. 327, §3, is further amended to read:
1.	Specifies that the Act must be construed to provide broad protection from discrimination; that it may not be construed to provide less coverage than the federal law; and that the interpretation of the Act by the Maine Human Rights Commission is entitled to deference by the court;
2.	Authorizes the executive director of the commission to appoint or hire additional necessary personnel subject to the Civil Service Law;
3.	Replaces certain references to the enumerated potential bases for discrimination with references to "protected class characteristics, membership or status";
4.	Specifies that funds received by the commission for the purpose of implementing a 3rd-party neutral mediation program are not subject to any statewide cost allocation plan;
5.	Designates as confidential certain information that is collected during the investigation of a complaint under the Act and exempts such information from the definition of "public record" for purposes of the Freedom of Access Act;
6.	Authorizes the executive director of the commission to administratively dismiss a complaint brought under the Act for specified reasons;
7.	Provides that any post-finding conciliation agreement that includes the commission as a signatory is a public record;
8.	Authorizes the executive director to issue a right-to-sue letter in any case in which the commission has not filed a civil action in the case or has not entered into a conciliation agreement in the case within 180 days of the complaint being filed, whether or not such a letter has been requested by the complainant; and
9.	Prohibits the awarding of attorney's fees and costs to the commission and specifies that the commission is not liable to pay attorney's fees and costs of another party.