Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

Notice Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)

In accordance with the requirements of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), the City of Irwindale will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities. 

Employment: The City of Irwindale does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations promulgated by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). 

Effective Communication: The City of Irwindale will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in its programs, services, and activities. This could include qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or visual impairments.. 

Modifications to Policies and Procedures: The City of Irwindale will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to enjoy all its programs, services, and activities. For example, individuals with service animals are welcomed in our offices, even where pets are generally prohibited. 

Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a City program, service, or activity, should contact the the office of the program, service or activity coordinator as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled event.

The ADA does not require the City of Irwindale to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services or impose an undue financial or administrative burden.

Complaints that a program, service, or activity of the City is not accessible to persons with disabilities should be directed to:

Mary Hull, ADA/504 Coordinator
City of Irwindale
5050 Irwindale Avenue
Irwindale, CA 91706
ADA@irwindaleca.gov
Phone: (626) 430-2200
TTY: by California Relay at 7-1-1

The City of Irwindale will not place a surcharge on a particular individual with a disability or any group of individuals with disabilities to cover the cost of providing auxiliary aids/services or reasonable modifications of policy, such as retrieving items from locations that are open to the public but are not accessible to persons who use wheelchairs.

Complaint and Grievance Procedure under the Americans with Disabilities Act

and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act

PURPOSE

This policy has been created to assist the City to comply with the ADA, 28 CFR Part 35.107.  The policy provides a procedure to be followed to respond to individuals, or a specific class of individuals, who wish to communicate a complaint alleging that they have been subject to discrimination on the basis of disability by the City.

DEFINITIONS

ADA:  Americans with Disability Act of 1990.

ADA Coordinator: Human Resources / Risk Manager or his/her designee who has a working knowledge of the requirements of ADA and designated to coordinate the City’s efforts to comply with and carry out the City’s ADA responsibilities.

CFR: Code of Federal Regulations.

TDD: Telecommunications Device for the Deaf.  

CONFIDENTIALITY

The ADA Coordinator maintains confidentiality with regard to complaints, consultations and mediations, unless disclosure is notwithstanding the requirements of litigation and court proceedings. If the disclosure of information to another person is necessary to proceed with an investigation, the complainant will be advised first and consulted on whether and/or how to proceed.

RETALIATION

Retaliation against a person who files a complaint of discrimination or harassment, participates in an investigation of such a complaint, or opposes an unlawful employment practice is prohibited by Federal and State law and City policy.  Anyone who believes she or he has been retaliated against for filing a complaint of discrimination or harassment is encouraged to report the retaliatory actions to the ADA Coordinator.

PROCEDURE

This procedure is established to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.  This procedure shall be liberally construed to protect the substantial rights of interested persons, to meet appropriate due process standards, and to assure compliance with the ADA.  It may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by the City. The City’s personnel rules govern employment-related complaints of disability discrimination.

The complaint should be in writing and contain information about the alleged discrimination, such as the name, address, and phone number of the complainant, and location, date, and description of the problem.  Alternative means of filing a complaint, such as a personal interview, use of a TDD, or a tape recording of the complaint, will be made available for persons with disabilities upon request.

The complaint should be submitted by the grievant and/or his/her designee as soon as possible, but no later than sixty (60) calendar days after the alleged violation to:

Mary Hull, ADA/504 Coordinator
City of Irwindale
5050 Irwindale Avenue
Irwindale, CA 91706
ADA@irwindaleca.gov
Phone: (626) 430-2200
TTY: by California Relay at 7-1-1

Within fifteen (15) twenty calendar days after receipt of the complaint, the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions.  Within fifteen calendar days of the meeting, the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in format accessible to the complainant, such as large print, Braille, or audio tape.  The response will explain the position of the City and offer options for substantive resolution of the complaint.

If the response by the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the complainant and/or his/her designee may appeal the decision within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the response to the City Manager or his/her designee.

Within fifteen (15) calendar days after receipt of the appeal, the City Manager will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions. Within fifteen (15) calendar days after the meeting, the City Manager or his/her designee will respond in writing, and, where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, with a final resolution of the complaint.

All written complaints received by the ADA Coordinator or his/her designee, appeals to the City Manager or his/her designee, and responses from these two offices will be retained by the City for at least three years.