CURRENT ISSUES

CHRO is in the process of revising its affirmative action regulations as they relate to state agencies and those who have contracts with the state.

1. What are your views on affirmative action?

2. Is there any tension between affirmative action and the laws prohibiting employers and others from discriminating against people?

3. What role should affirmative action play in enforcing discrimination laws relating to employment, housing, public accommodations, credit practices, and state services and programs?

The state is facing some very difficult fiscal problems.

1. What role can a commissioner play to ensure that the investigation process is working as cost effectively as possible?

2. What role can a commissioner play to ensure that commission resources are being used efficiently?

ISSUES RELATING TO AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES AND PROCEDURES

1. What background do you have in civil rights or other areas that makes you qualified to become a commissioner for the Connecticut Human Rights and Opportunities Commission (CHRO)?

2. How familiar are you with CHRO's organizational structure and operations?

3. What is CHRO's primary mission?

4. Is CHRO primarily a law enforcement agency or is it primarily a civil rights agency that strives to eliminate illegal discrimination by public and private entities?

5. How much power and influence should CHRO commissioners exercise over CHRO's day-to-day operations?

6. What role can a commissioner play to ensure the complaint investigation process is fair and is perceived as being fair and unbiased by complainants and respondents alike?

7. Under current law, human rights referees conduct hearings to determine whether discrimination has occurred and decide remedies if they conclude it has occurred. How much control, influence, or authority should CHRO have over referees?

8. Should referees treat CHRO the same as everyone else or should they give CHRO preferential treatment in any way?

9. What role, if any, should a commissioner play in ensuring that CHRO investigates complaints in a timely fashion?

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