Grievance Procedure

ADA Grievance Procedure

The City of Jacksonville has developed an internal grievance procedure providing for prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any action prohibited by the U.S. Department of Justice regulations implementing Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Title II states, in part, that “no otherwise qualified disabled individual shall, solely by reason of such disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of or be subjected to discrimination: in programs or activities sponsored by a public entity”. Complaints should be addressed to: City Manager, P O Box 128, Jacksonville NC 28541-0128.

A complaint should be filed in writing or verbally, contain the name and address of the person filing it, and briefly describe the alleged violation of the regulations. A complaint should be filed within 60 days after the complainant becomes aware of the alleged violation. (Processing of allegations of discrimination, which occurred before this grievance procedure was in place, will be considered on a case-by-case basis).

An investigation, as may be appropriate, shall follow a filing of complaint. The investigation shall be coordinated by the ADA Coordinator who works with an internal technical staff to identify where local, state and/or federal laws might be in violation. This process is informal but provides a thorough investigations, affording all interested persons and their representatives, if any, an opportunity to submit evidence relevant to a complaint.

A written determination as to the validity of the complaint and a description of the resolution, if any, shall be issued by the ADA Coordinator and a copy forwarded to the complainant no later than 30 days after its filing. The ADA Coordinator shall maintain the files and records of the City of Jacksonville relating to the complaints filed.

The complainant can request a reconsideration of the case in instances where he or she is dissatisfied with the resolution. Since the ADA Coordinator works with both private and public businesses, the extent of the remedy may be limited depending on the complaint filed. The request for reconsideration should be made in writing within 30 days to the ADA Compliance Committee, which shall be appointed by the City Manager. The Committee will conduct the initial review and determination. The decision of the Committee shall be final.

The right of a person to a prompt and equitable resolution of the complaint filed hereunder shall not be impaired by the person’s pursuit of other remedies such as the filing of an ADA complaint with the responsible federal department or agency. Use of this grievance procedure is not a prerequisite to the pursuit of other remedies.

These rules shall be construed to protect the substantive rights of interested persons to meet appropriate due process standards and to assure that the City of Jacksonville complies with the ADA and implementing regulations.

ADA Complaint Form (PDF)