More on the human rights commission.

The vote may have been 9-0 on both first and second readings, but we mustn't assume a clean sweep on the third. City council contact information is at the municipal website, and I recommend residents in favor of the human rights commission to take a few minutes and communicate with the relevant district reps and the at-large troika.

Human rights commission one vote away in New Albany; Board could convene by the end of the summer, by Daniel Suddeath (N and T)

NEW ALBANY — A human rights commission could convene within 30 days if it is approved on final reading later this month, New Albany City Councilman Greg Phipps said this week.

On Monday, the council unanimously approved the establishment of the commission, which Phipps vowed to back when he campaigned for office last year.

Phipps said there’s a need for a local board to weigh human rights complaints.

“We need to fill those positions and have a resource available if [residents] do encounter discrimination,” he said.

And there’s a wide variety of groups that could experience discrimination that should be protected, Phipps continued.

The commission’s charge would be to uphold equal opportunity for education, employment, property acquisition and access to public accommodations for residents regardless of race, religion or gender.

The human rights ordinance would replace an existing fair housing measure but would still uphold the same protections only with additional securities added.