Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission

Paula Gardner, Executive Director

The Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission (NEOC) is a quasi-judicial administrative agency of the State of Nebraska created by state law for the purpose of receiving, investigating, rendering formal determinations on, and conciliating charges of unlawful discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations. The NEOC provides information and assistance in the matters of civils rights law compliance to citizens and organizations upon request.

State of Nebraska population

Since July 1, 2020, 25,000 served directly and over 50,000 served indirectly

1965

1965

na

Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-1116

The NEOC is an independent, non-code agency. There is no parent agency.

7 Commissioners

Governor

no

Qualifications of the members are determined by the Governor.

Commissioners receive $50 per day

Commissioners receive expense reimbursements

3-year terms

Terms Rotate

The statute does not require a specific number of meetings

9

The statute does not require a specific number of meetings

10

The statute does not require a specific number of meetings

10

The NEOC has 4 support staff.

separate

$1,317,833 - general funds, $947,515 - federal funds ($2,265,3548 total funding)

$1,358,170 - general funds, $962,243 - federal funds ($2,320,413 total)

$1,443,415 - general funds, $1,021,723 - federal funds ($2,465,138)

The NEOC receives federal funds through work-sharing agreements with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These funds cover a portion of the cost to investigate charges du

The Nebraska Fair Employment Practice Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. 48-1116) gives the NEOC spending authority. The Commissioners approve the budget request and allocation of the funds appropriated by the legislature.

INVESTIGATIONCHARGE PROCESSINGSince July 1, 2020, the NEOC, in conjunction with OCIO, upgraded its case management system. This upgrade has assisted staff in being able to better track contacts from the public, as well as streamline the process from initial contact through post determination. The NEOC continues to look for opportunities to perform its investigative work efficiently, while still ensuring that the NEOC is meeting its mission of eradicating discrimination. One such endeavor was to create a more cohesive investigative unit where investigators are responsible for providing technical assistance, conducting intake interviews, drafting charges, and conducting investigations. Previously these functions were performed by two separate units. By having one unit perform the work, the public is receiving information and service from well-trained employees who are familiar with the whole NEOC process and corresponding laws. While the NEOC has seen an increase in charges filed since July 1, 2020, including a 31% increase in 2324, it has also been able to resolve more cases seeing a 26% increase in case completions.Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) continues to be an important program available to parties to mutually resolve a filed charge. ADR is a voluntary process, and any agreement reached is one that is driven by the parties, with the NEOC acting as the mediatorconciliator. The NEOC has no vested interest in the outcome of any settlement. The NEOC has a 76% success rate of the parties reaching an agreement when the parties participate in the ADR process. Since July 1, 2020, the NEOC has obtained over $5,000,000.00 in direct monetary relief for Complainants through ADR, settlements during investigations, and reasonable cause conciliations, which are all voluntary processes of the NEOC. In addition to monetary relief, the NEOC obtained targeted equitable relief for Complainants, including neutral references, adverse material removed from files, reasonable accommodations, reinstatement, training, changing in advertising, structural modifications, apologies, and changes to policies and practices. EDUCATION AND OUTREACHThere are several categories of education and outreach activities stemming from the work of the NEOC, in compliance with legislative intention and statutory requirements. The NEOC, without cost to recipients, has made available speakers who provided technical training, written materials that addressed guidelines for best practices for employers and housing industry professionals, and other technical resources through our website and telephone contact. The NEOC has also addressed employee and housing consumer issues through voluntary and mandatory participation in seminars and other settings. The NEOC has developed cooperative working relationships with federal, state and local partners to share information in the employment and housing industry to assure that anti-discrimination laws are enforced as well as. For the period of July 2020 through June 2024, NEOC staff made over 80 direct presentations to over 1,000 individuals around the state. These presentations included training and discussion regarding disability discrimination in employment and housing, harassment, reasonable accommodations, as well as other requested topics related to the NEOC and the work the NEOC does. These presentations may be the result of requests from the parties or pursuant to relief agreed to in a settlement.In addition to direct presentations, the NEOC has engaged in outreach and education activities through media sources, including a Nebraska Public Media produced 30-minute program focused on housing discrimination. Other activities include public service commercials on NPM and KOLNKGIN television stations, radio stations in the Omaha-metro area, KWTN, the Big Voice, for Winnebago and Omaha Tribes, billboards in Grand Island, a booth at the Nebraska State Fair, bus tail advertising in Lincoln and Omaha, and tables at events such as Disability Pride. These activities enable the NEOC to reach all parts of the state and share information about the NEOC and the state of Nebraskas anti-discrimination laws.