Q&A
Impact of proposed bills on CCHR's caseload and staffing needs
0:47:53
·
118 sec
Council Member Farías inquires about the anticipated effect of proposed bills (Intros 808, 871, and 984) on CCHR's caseload and staffing requirements. Deputy Commissioner Ward responds, explaining that while new laws typically increase workload, CCHR staff has historically adapted to handle new responsibilities within existing capacity. She emphasizes CCHR's focus on prevention and compliance efforts.
- Ward expresses confidence in CCHR's ability to handle potential increases in complaints
- Existing expertise in reasonable accommodations is highlighted as beneficial for implementing caregiver accommodation requirements
- The importance of prevention efforts in addition to complaint handling is emphasized
Amanda Farías
0:47:53
I'm just gonna ask a couple, questions regarding to the hiring or the requirement of the hiring of new staff.
0:47:59
I think both intro, 808, 871, and 984, my bill, would all require hiring new staff.
0:48:07
So roughly speaking, how would you folks anticipate that each law would affect CCHR's case load?
0:48:12
For example, would each one be expected to generate a lot or relatively few new inquiries or complaints?
JoAnn Kamuf Ward
0:48:22
So I think when we're talking about the the there's the 2 or 3 that amend the human rights law.
0:48:29
Right?
0:48:29
Caregiver, pay transparency, and 1064, which I don't have a good name for at this at this time.
0:48:36
I think, each time this the human rights law has been amended, and chair Williams has heard me say this many times, so she will not be surprised, our staff has stepped up.
0:48:47
And with our existing capacity, we handle those complaints.
0:48:52
And I will say a huge part of our efforts at compliance with the human rights law is also something that we've alluded to, the prevention piece.
0:49:00
So for every amendment that, impacts the rights and responsibility of And we've done that consistently with all of the amendments that we're talking about today and would do so if the law was amended.
0:49:14
I think, as we've said, we can always do more with more, but we feel very confident in the ability of our staff to handle some of these complaints.
0:49:23
I think 808 a, in particular, is is is largely something that is already covered by our law.
0:49:30
We've seen an uptick in inquiries in that area.
0:49:33
We think that trend could continue, but it's something that we've been able, able to to handle.
0:49:38
And I think, when we look at 871 and caregiver accommodations, it's an area where our staff has deep expertise already, given the four areas of reasonable accommodations that that already exist.