County government will promptly investigate all properly submitted complaints of alleged discrimination. The county will also attempt to resolve such complaints and take corrective action upon a finding of a substantiated complaint.
(A) Complaint investigation procedures.
(1) The Title VI and ADA Coordinators will make a determination to accept, reject or refer to the appropriate agency a complaint within seven working days of its receipt. County government will determine whether the person or entity purportedly engaged in the alleged discriminatory act is a sub-recipient of federal funds. If the complaint does not specifically mention that the alleged discriminatory actor is a sub-recipient of federal funds, county government may presume so in deciding whether to accept the complaint for further processing.
(2) These procedures apply to all complaints filed under: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its related statutes, regulations and directives; the Americans with Disability Act of 1990, as amended; and § 504 of the Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1973. These procedures do not affect the right of the complainant to file formal complaints with other state or federal agencies, or to seek private counsel for complaints alleging discrimination. These procedures are part of an administrative process that does not provide for remedies that include punitive damages or compensatory remuneration for the complainant.
(3) County government will make every effort to facilitate a voluntary early resolution of complaints at the lowest level possible. The county may exercise the option of informal resolution at any stage of the process.
(B) Who may file a complaint. Any person who believes that he or she has been excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of or otherwise subjected to discrimination under any county government service, program or activity whether federally funded or not, based on their race, color, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, age, low income status or limited English proficiency may file a complaint. A complainant’s representative may also file a complaint on behalf of such a person.
(C) Timeliness of complaints. For a complaint to be considered timely, it must be filed within 180 calendar days after the alleged incident has occurred. The file date of a complaint is the earlier of the postmark or date received by county government.
(D) Location/availability of complaint forms. County government will make complaint forms available online via the county website. Additionally, persons may contact the Title VI or ADA Coordinators to request a copy of the complaint form via email, facsimile or United States mail. Copies of complaint forms in alternative formats will be available upon request.
(E) How to file a complaint. A person may file his or her complaint by mail, facsimile or email. Any person with a disability may request to file his or her complaint using an alternative format. County government will acknowledge a complaint received by facsimile or email and will formally process it once the county receives the signed, original document. County government recommends, but does not require, the complainant to use the county complaint form for submitting his or her complaint.
(F) Elements of a complete complaint.
(1) A complete complaint is written and signed. Verbal complaints must be reduced to writing and provided to the complainant for confirmation, review and signature before processing. The complaint form is available from the county and on the county website. A complete complaint is filed within 180 calendar days of the alleged discriminatory act(s) and includes, at a minimum, the following:
(a) The full name and address of the complainant;
(b) The full name and address of the respondent, the individual, agency, department or program that allegedly discriminated against complainant; and
(c) A description of the alleged discriminatory act(s) that violated Title VI (i.e., an act of intentional discrimination or one that has the effect of discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, age, low-income status or limited English proficiency) and the date of occurrence.
(2) The following are not acceptable as a complete complaint:
(a) Anonymous complaint(s);
(b) Inquiries seeking advice or information;
(c) Newspaper articles;
(d) Courtesy copies of court pleadings;
(e) Courtesy copies of complaints addressed to other agencies; and/or
(f) Oral complaints.
(G) Processing complaints. The Title VI or ADA Coordinators will process all complaints and shall:
(1) Maintain a log of all complaints;
(2) Acknowledge receipt of a complaint and inform the complainant of the action taken or proposed action to be taken to process the complaint;
(3) Inform respondent of the allegations and request a position statement and response to ail aspects of the complainant’s allegations;
(4) Coordinate the investigation; and
(5) Contact the complainant at the conclusion of the investigation.
(H) Corrective action.
(1) If county government recommends corrective action, the county will give the respondent 30 calendar days to respond with their plan to bring them into compliance. The Title VI or ADA Coordinators shall monitor the progress of the respondent’s corrective action plan.
(2) Corrective action may include performance that the respondent must complete at a future date, apart from the initial 30-day time frame, and must include the projected date of completion.
(3) If the respondent has not complied with the recommended corrective action within the allowed time frame, county government will take appropriate action to bring the respondent into compliance with Title VI and its implementing regulations. Non-compliance not corrected by informal means as described above may be subject to sanctions as per 49 C.F.R. § 21.13.
(I) Pre-investigation/administrative closures.
(1) It is the general practice of county government to investigate all complete complaints; however, the county may administratively close a complaint at its discretion.
(2) The types of complaints that may be administratively closed and not investigated include, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) Complaints that fall to state a claim or provide any substantial or coherent claim;
(b) Complaints that are outside the scope of the county’s Title VI jurisdiction;
(c) Untimely complaints filed more than 180 days after the alleged discriminatory acts;
(d) Complaints voluntarily withdrawn by the complainant;
(e) Complaints in which the investigation has been impaired by the county’s inability to locate and speak with the complainant;
(f) Complaints that are a continuation of a pattern of previously filed complaints involving the same or similar allegations against the same recipient, or other recipients that repeatedly have been found factually or legally unsubstantiated by county government;
(g) Complaints containing the same allegations and issues that have been addressed in a recently closed complaint or compliance review conducted by county government;
(h) Complaints containing allegations that are foreclosed by previous decisions by federal courts, Department of Justice or county policy determinations;
(i) Complaints filed for complainants or parties who refuse to cooperate with the investigation and whose lack of cooperation substantially impairs the completion of the investigation; and
(j) Complaints where the death of a complainant makes it impossible to fully investigate the allegations.
(3) County government shall notify the complainant in writing when a determination is made to administratively close a case without further investigation. The notification shall include an explanation of the basis for the administrative closure.
(J) Confidentiality. In accordance with DOT Order 1000.12, county government shall keep all complainants’ identities confidential except to the extent necessary for carrying out an investigation. If an investigator determines that it is necessary to disclose the complainant’s identity to the responder or a third party, the investigator must first obtain the complainant’s written permission.
(K) Records. County government shall maintain all records of an investigation in a confidential area for three years after the completion of the investigation following the state’s General Records Retention and Disposition Schedule.
(Res. 2016-001, passed 1-6-2016)