The mission of the Community Affairs Department, Human Relations Division is to eradicate unlawful discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations and to promote increased awareness and sensitivity to the issue of illegal discrimination through the dissemination of public information and educational outreach to the community. The Division also serves as a liaison between citizens, advocacy groups, community organizations, and government to work together to improve and maintain the highest possible quality of life for the whole community

The Human Relations Division is a neutral agency with authority to process and investigate allegations of illegal discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations, provided that certain legal jurisdictional requirements are met. The Human Relations Division derives its authority from and enforces Chapter 15 of the St. Petersburg City Code, as amended, Chapter 70 of the Pinellas County Code, as amended, Title VII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and Title VIII of the U.S. Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, which prohibit discrimination in employment, housing, and public accommodations. The Community Affairs Department contracts with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Pinellas County to enforce the federal laws and county code.

If you believe that you have been discriminated against because of your race, color, religion, ancestry, sex, national origin, age, disability, place of birth, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, or in retaliation for having complained of discrimination or participating in a protected activity, you may be able to file a Charge or Complaint of Discrimination with the Community Affairs Department. All Charges and Complaints of Discrimination must be filed in writing, under oath, with this Department. The Department neither represents nor advocates for the charging party or the respondent, but rather investigates the allegations as a neutral agency that is dedicating to discovering the facts and making appropriate recommendations regarding the merits of each case.

The Human Relations Officer is appointed to oversee the investigative process, to seek mediation and conciliation of complaints, to make determinations, to issue final orders, and to administer the selection of Hearing Examiners, who conduct formal administrative hearings if a determination of reasonable cause has been made by the Human Relations Officer.

The Human Relations Review Board hears and determines appeals from determinations of the Human Relations Officer and recommended adjudicative orders of the Hearing Examiners. The Board has the power to uphold, reverse or modify such orders, or to remand a case to the Human Relations Officer and Hearing Examiners for further proceedings. The Board is comprised of volunteer citizens, who are chosen by the City Council to serve on the Board on the basis of their community representativeness, civic pride, integrity, and experience and interest in human relations. For more information on the Human Relations Review Board, click on the link to the right of this page.

If you are interested in filing a Charge or Complaint of Discrimination with this Department, you must contact this office to schedule an intake interview with the Intake Specialist. You may download a Complaint of Discrimination Intake Form from this web page, which should be completed before arriving for an intake interview.

Theresa D. Jones, Human Relations Officer/Director
Community Affairs Department

Peter Genova, Equal Opportunity Coordinator
Human Relations Division
P.O. Box 2842
St. Petersburg, FL 33731-2842

Telephone: (727) 893-7345
Facsimile: (727) 892-5064
TDD/TTY: (727) 892-5259

Community Affairs Department, Human Relations Division is located at:
175 Fifth Street North
City Hall Building
St. Petersburg, FL 33701

"U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment Commission"
www.eeoc.gov

"U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development"
www.hud.gov/offices/fheo

"Pinellas County Office of Human Rights"
www.co.pinellas.fl.us/bcc/Humanrights