by Paul Liotta - Staten Island Advance
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Members of the New York City Council and housing-rights advocates renewed their push Thursday to end landlords’ ability to check their tenants’ criminal histories.
Proposed legislation, known as the “Fair Chance for Housing Act,” failed in previous council iterations, but had 29 co-sponsors in the City Council, enough for a majority, according to the bill’s prime sponsor, City Councilman Keith Powers (D-Manhattan).
by Susan M. Corcoran, Templeton N. Timothy - JacksonLewis
Florida’s new Miya’s Law, Fla. Stat. 83.515, imposes background screening and other specific requirements on landlords regarding their employees who work in apartments that can be classified as “nontransient” or “transient.”
Miya’s Law is named after Miya Marcano, who was killed in her apartment by a maintenance worker having access to her apartment.
by Jay Wallis - WFAA
DALLAS — A Dallas County jury found Charter Communications, which also operates as Spectrum, acted negligently in hiring a field technician who killed one of its customers. The company now owes billions of dollars in damages.
The jury awarded $7 billion in punitive damages against Charter for "systemic safety failures" in connection to the 2019 murder of 83-year-old Betty Thomas by one of the technicians. Earlier in June, a jury also said Charter had to pay 90% of $375 million in compensatory damages to Thomas' family.
by Joseph Cioffi, Nicole Serratore - Reuters
July 27, 2022 - Is a consumer with a FICO score below 620 actually a greater risk? How would you know? Evidence suggests originators can no longer rely solely on FICO scores to identify subprime borrowers or those with weaker credit prospects.
Alternative data, such as bank account/cash flow, rental payment history, professional licensing or education information, along with machine learning and artificial intelligence, are available to help gauge credit risk more accurately. But the use of alternative data carries particular legal risks. As credit performance softens across markets, and, in particular, for non-prime auto loans, non-compliance with law in the origination process could become the basis of claims by investors and other parties, if they start to incur losses.
by Sashwata Saha - Medianama
In a move towards strengthening data and privacy protection rules, the Liberal Party of Canada tabled Bill C-27, the Digital Charter Implementation Act 2022, before the country’s Parliament, a month ago, on June 16. The charter includes a collection of three new laws: the Consumer Privacy Protection Act, the Personal Information and Data Protection Tribunal Act and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act.
Read more: https://www.medianama.com/2022/07/223-canada-new-digital-charter-bill-summary/
by Mitch Perry - Bay News 9
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa City Council voted unanimously Thursday to move forward with a plan to reward businesses contracting with the city when they hire individuals who have been involved in the criminal justice system.
by Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Anna Hiller - JD Supra
Miya’s Law: Mandatory Employee Background Screenings, Unit Key Log Maintenance, 24 Hours’ Notice for Entry into Dwellings
On June 27, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis signed Miya’s Law, Senate Bill (SB) 898, to heighten the safety requirements for residential apartments. Miya’s Law, effective July 1, 2022, will have a significant impact on the daily operations of Florida landlords and property managers.
Read more: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/new-requirements-for-residential-6456951/
by Paul Lynd, ArentFox Schiff - JD Supra
California employers do not have to pay applicants for time or expenses related to taking a pre-employment drug test, when the employer made hiring contingent on passing the test, according to a recent decision. Under those facts, the US Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held in Johnson v. WinCo Foods, LLC that the individuals were not yet employees, so their prospective employer thus did not owe them wages or expenses for taking the test.
Read more: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/california-employers-not-liable-for-pre-9832136/
by Jeremy Bauer-Wolf - Higher Ed Dive
Dive Brief:
The Delaware Senate pushed through a bill this month that would forbid the state’s public and private colleges from inquiring about applicants’ criminal histories.
This is what’s known as “ban the box” legislation. Often, such measures limit employers from asking about a criminal record on job applications, but they have gained ground with colleges in the last several years.
Delaware’s proposal would permit colleges to ask about students’ criminal backgrounds once they were admitted so they can offer counseling or restrict participation in campus life. It also makes an exception for such offenses as stalking and sexual assault.
by Lisa Barnett Sween, Sayaka Karitani - The National Law Review
In a recent decision by the Ninth Circuit, the Court of Appeals upheld the district court ruling in favor of grocery chain WinCo Holdings, Inc., holding that plaintiffs who were not yet employees when they took drug tests were not entitled to compensation for the time spent being tested.
In Johnson v. WinCo Foods Holdings, Inc, et al. (WinCo), a class of applicants who successfully received job offers and subsequently were hired as employees of WinCo brought claims alleging, they should have received compensation as an employee for the time and expense of taking a pre-employment drug test. Under WinCo’s procedures at the time, a hiring manager would call successful applicants to extend a job offer contingent on the completion of a background check and drug test. WinCo paid for the testing fee but did not compensate for travel expenses or the time required to undergo the testing.
