HERO Ordinance Battle far from Over

HoustonSeal The litigation between the organizers of the “anti-HERO” petition and the City of Houston reached a fever pitch this week, with the City sending subpoenas to five area pastors (not a party to the litigation), asking that they turn over sermons and communications related to issues of gender identity, sexuality, and the HERO ordinance. The Houston religious community responded in indignation, mostly due to the widespread fear that Houston officials would begin to suppress religious speech that went against the ordinance. In such a situation as this, legal nuance is key; so Bryant Law attorney Kyle Bryant weighed in on the issue with Christianity Today author Kate Shellnutt.

“Houston lawyer Kyle Bryant reviewed the legal grounds of the case on his blog and warned fellow Christians against reading too much into the subpoenas.” You can find more at the link below:

http://www.christianitytoday.com/gleanings/2014/october/houston-feels-pressure-after-subpoena-response-sermons.html

Petition to Send HERO Ordinance to the Ballot Fails

Soon after the Houston City Council passed the Equal Rights Ordinance in May, opponents of the measure began to organize a campaign to force a repeal referendum this coming November. On Monday, Mayor Parker announced that the petition organizers failed to meet the minimum number of signatures required by the city charter. Opponents needed a minimum of 17,269 valid signatures in order to put a referendum on the November ballot. Although they collected over 50,000 signatures, only 15,249 signatures were considered valid by City Attorney David Feldman.

While some supporters consider this a victory for the ordinance, Mayor Parker announced on Monday that she would delay implementation of the anti-discrimination measures in anticipation of a forthcoming legal battle. David Welch of the Houston Area Pastor Council led the petition effort, and he plans to organize the courtroom effort against the ordinance as well. He’s already claimed to have assembled the top election law lawyers in the state to take the case.

But he’ll have to hurry; the deadline to get a measure on the November ballot is approaching quickly. Until then, we wait and see.

In the News…

Bryant Law attorney Kyle Bryant will be a guest on Houston Public Media’s Houston Matters Radio show this coming Thursday, August 7, during the noon hour. He will be discussing the legal effect of “NIMBY-ism,” or to put it colloquially, when your neighbor doesn’t like that new development going in down the road. What legal challenges do homeowners and developers face? You can listen in at 88.7 FM or live online at http://www.houstonmatters.org.

Supreme Court 2013 Term in Review

The Supreme Court’s October Term 2013 came to a close at the end of June. Each year, the Court waits until May and June to release its most important and controversial rulings. This means that a media frenzy usually ensues and facts are hard to come by; however, several institutions host Supreme Court term reviews and spend considerable time reviewing the important legal rulings involved in the major cases. While most of the rulings do not affect peoples’ day-to-day lives (how often is one going to be making recess appointments to the NLRB? Not very often…), some of them will, and it is important to know the major legal trajectories of our nation’s highest court. For those who do not follow judicial developments, the linked video (from C-SPAN) will be helpful in discerning various legal trends that may affect your business or personal life (such as “can the police search my cell phone if they pull me over?”) And for those who do follow the Supreme Court’s antics, the following video will shed light on how journalists cover the Court for the watching public.

Supreme Court Term Review

Houston Passes Equal Rights Ordinance—What Does it Mean?

On Wednesday, May 28, Houston City Council passed the controversial Houston Equal Rights Ordinance after an 11–6 vote. The ordinance prohibits discrimination on the basis of protected characteristics in city employment, city services, city contracts, housing, public accommodations, and private employment.

Although the language in the ordinance was quite controversial, its passage raises a host of questions for individuals, employers, and small businesses in Houston. For example, what does the ordinance specifically protect? To whom exactly does it apply? What are the consequences if one disobeys the ordinance? The following is a bullet-point summary of the ordinance and what it prohibits:

The ordinance prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, familial status, military status, religion, disability, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity, or pregnancy.
The ordinance applies, with certain limited exceptions, to Employers with 50 or more employees (that number decreases to 25 employees in year two and 15 employees in year 3); City employment; City services; City contract awards; public accommodations; and housing.
Religious Organizations are exempt (Religious Organizations include churches, educational institutions controlled or managed by churches or denominations, and non-profits controlled or managed by churches or denominations).
People who believe they have been discriminated against must file a written complaint with the Inspector General within 180 days of the alleged violation.
Violations of the ordinance are punishable by fine up to $500 for the first offense and no more than $5,000 for the same complaint. It is also a Class C Misdemeanor for the first offense. Continue reading →