Accessibility

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

Employment

The City of St. Charles does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations overseen by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under Title I of the ADA.

Effective Communication

The City of St. Charles will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services to facilitate effective communication for individuals with disabilities so they can participate equally in the City’s programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or vision impairments.

Modifications to Policies and Procedures (e.g. participation in City meetings)

The City of St. Charles will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in its programs, services, and activities.

Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication, or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a program, service, or activity of St. Charles should contact the City’s ADA Coordinator (contact information listed below) as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours prior to the scheduled event to ensure sufficient time for acquisition or modification of equipment or devices. Complaints that a program, service, or activity of St. Charles is not accessible to persons with disabilities should be directed to the ADA Coordinator (contact information listed below).

The City of St. Charles 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, reasonable modifications of policy, barrier removal, or alternatives to barrier removal required to ensure individuals can participate in all services and programs.

Filing an ADA Grievance

The City of St. Charles adopted the following grievance procedure providing for prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any action prohibited by Title I and Title II of the ADA.

Title I of the ADA states that “no covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual on the basis of disability in regard to job application procedures, the hiring, advancement, or discharge of employees, employee compensation, job training, and other terms, conditions, and privileges of employment.”  Title II of the ADA states that “no qualified individual with a disability shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity.”

In the event citizens, employees, or other participants in the City’s programs, services, and activities believe the City has violated their rights under the ADA, a complaint may be filed in accordance with the following guidelines:

1. Complaints should be addressed to:  Director of Human Resources/ADA Coordinator, City of St. Charles, 2 E. Main St., St. Charles, IL 60174. The Director of Human Resources is designated to coordinate ADA compliance efforts.  They shall maintain the files and records of the City relating to the complaints filed and ensuing investigations.
2. A complaint may be filed either in writing (via mail or email) or verbally.  It should consist of the name and contact information of the person filing it or on whose behalf it is filed, and a brief description of the alleged violation of the ADA regulations.
3. An investigation will follow the filing of a complaint. The Director of Human Resources, or designee will investigate the complaint within 15 days following the filing of the complaint.  The investigation will be informal but thorough, affording all interested people and their representatives an opportunity to submit relevant information.
4. A written determination and a resolution of the complaint will be issued by the Director of Human Resources to the complainant within 15 days following the filing of the complaint.
5. The complainant may request a reconsideration of the case in instances where they are dissatisfied with the resolution. The request for reconsideration should be sent to:

   City Administrator
   City of St. Charles
   2 E. Main Street
   St. Charles, IL 60174
   (630) 377-4445
   (800) 526-0844 (TDD)
   cao@stcharlesil.gov

   The City Administrator will review the records of the complaint and may conduct further investigation to obtain additional relevant information. The City Administrator will issue their decision on the request for reconsideration within 15 days of the filing of the request for reconsideration. A copy of the decision will be provided to the complainant.

6. The complainant’s right to prompt and equitable resolution of the complaint will not be impaired by their pursuit of other remedies, such as the filing of a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice or any other appropriate federal agency. Furthermore, the filing of a lawsuit in state or federal district court can occur at any time. The use of this grievance procedure is not a prerequisite to pursue other remedies.
7. All written complaints received, appeals to the City Administrator, and responses will be retained by the City of St. Charles for at least three years.
8. These rules shall be construed to:

• Protect the substantive rights of interested persons.
• Meet appropriate due process standards.
• Comply with the ADA and implementing regulations.

City of St. Charles ADA Coordinator

Jennifer McMahon
Director of Human Resources/ADA Coordinator
2 E. Main Street, St. Charles, IL 60174-1984
(630) 377-4470
(800) 526-0844 (TTY)
jmcmahon@stcharlesil.gov