Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout4 - Americans With Disability Act AGENDA NUMBER: PREPARED BY: SUBJECT: DATE: INTRODUCTION: BACKGROUND: 4 BRET WOODSON, ADMINISTRATIVE INTERN PRESENTATION ON THE AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT (ADA) AND CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION 93-25 MAY 3, 1993 On July 26, 1990, President George Bush signed into law the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This federal le9islation was designed to break down barriers 1n the lives of over 44 million Americans who have disabilities. The law provides federal protection in employment, accommodations, and public services to qualified Americans who suffer from physical or mental disabilities. The ADA applies to all state and local governments, including the city of Prior Lake. The following is a summary of the compliance efforts that have been accomplished and the steps that lie ahead. In simplest terms, the purpose of the ADA is to provide equal o~portunity and access to all individuals espec1ally those who qualified with disabilities in the areas of employment, public services, and pUbtic accommodations. I The ADA contains five T,' les, Title I governs employment provisions. itle II of the Act governs public service and transportation; this section prohibits exclusion of disabled individuals from ~articipating in, or being subjected to, d1scrimination by a public entity. Title III governs public accommodations and services operated by private employers and individuals. Title IV requires telecommunication carriers to provide services that permit speech or hearing impaired telephone users to communicate on an equivalent basis with non-impaired users. Lastlr, Title V ~rovides ~roscriptions against retal1ation aga1nst ind1viduals who bring claims under the ADA. 4629 Dakota S1. SE, Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372 / Ph. (612) 4474230 / Fax (612) 447-4245 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPlDYER Titles I and II are the sections of the ADA that local governments must focus their attention. To date, staff has done extensive work to comply with Title I of the Act. Staff placed Title I compliance as a top priority back in January in antici~ation of hiring five individuals within the f1rst half of 1993. This was phase one of our compliance efforts. Title I in part states: "No covered entity shall discriminate a9ainst a qualified individual with a d1sability, in re9ard to job application procedures, the h1ring, advancement, or discharge of em~loyees, employee compensation, job tra1nin9, and any other terms, conditions or priv1leges involving employment." To that end, Dick Hieser (a consultant from DCA stanton) and myself worked to bring the city into compliance before additional emplo~ees were hired. The attached "ADA Compl1ance Timeline: Title I" (please see Attachment A) shows the work that was done, the responsible party, and those who participated. As~ou can see, phase one involved three major act1vities. Dick and myself started the process by working with each department head to revam~ all of the City's job descriptions b~ ident1fying the essential functions and l1sting the pertinent mental and physical demands of the job. secondl~, it was imperative that training be prov1ded to the ~ersonnel involved in the hiring and 1nterviewing process. The last step to phase one was to train front line ~ersonnel on disability awareness and effect1ve customer service. As with most training, the training on ADA should be an ongoing process. Therefore, ADA training will be incorporated into the overall training needs of City employees on a periodic basis. DISCUSSION: Phase two of the City's compliance plan focuses on Title II of the ADA. Title II in part states: "No qualified individual with disability shall be excluded participation in or be denied a from the 2 benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity or be sub~ected to discrimination by an such ent~ty." An "ADA Compliance Timeline: Title II" (please see Attachment B) has been drafted to serve as a guide for Title II compliance. This is a much more complex section of the law. There are several key elements that must be included in our efforts. The first of which involves appointing an ADA Coordinator, presumably Assistant City Manager Kay Kuhlmann, to oversee the planning, trainin9' and implementation of compliance activit1es. As you can see from the Title II Timeline, our compliance efforts began last week with our first ADA Committee meeting. This committee consists of seven individuals (Kay, myself, Angie, Dee, Bill, Gary and Fiona) that represent areas that pertain to this Title of the law. These individuals represent the following components of the City: Administration, Parks, Recreation Programs, Building and Public Information. These areas represent a majority of Title II compliance activities. The law also requires the city to advertise in our official newspaper (Prior Lake American) to provide public notice as to who the ADA Coordinator is and our anticipated compliance steps. Additionally, through this notice, we will invite anyone from the public who is interested to join the committee and participate in the compliance process. Disabled individuals would be a great resource to assist the City in this effort. The committee will spend the rest of May conducting a comprehensive self-evaluation. This will focus on issues that affect the accessibility of our programs and practices, including the facilities. The committee will answer questions concerning the type of programs offered, the eligibility criteria, the availability of auxiliary aids, and the presence of physical or other barriers. This will also include an evaluation of our current facilities. 3 The month of June will be spent developing a transition plan to incorporate the improvements identified in the self-evaluation. During this process we will examine all possible alternatives and begin to assess the probable costs for implementation. At that time the committee will report its preliminary findin9s to the individual departments of the C1ty that are affected by the law. This will enable the City to incorporate any transitions or changes into the 1994 budget process, and 1994-1998 capital Improvement Program. After the self-evaluation and transition plan are completed, the followin9 three things must take place: l) all identif1ed non-structural changes to ~rovide program accessibility must begin immed1ately, 2) the structural changes identified in the transition plan must be completed by January 26, 1995, 3) the City's ADA Committee will meet on a quarterly basis to ensure that the identified changes are accomplished. FINANCIAL IMPACT: The financial and programic ramifications of this law on the City of Prior Lake are not able to be determined at this time. Upon completion of the self-evaluation and transition plan, we should have a better idea as to how the City will be affected. If, after completion of the self-evaluation or transition plan, the committee finds that it cannot meet the original timeline, modifications may need to be made. In the mean time we will be keeping you informed as to the developments and progress of the committee as compliance efforts continue. RECOMMENDATION: The City Council is encouraged to review and comment on the ADA compliance efforts to date, and also make a commitment to continue compliance with this federally mandated law by approving Resolution 93-25. Approval of Resolution 93-25 approvin9 Kay Kuhlmann as the City's official ADA Coord1nator and approving the timeline for Title II compliance is recommended. ACTION REQUIRED: Motion to approve Resolution 93-25 presented or modified is in order. as 4 RESOLUTION 93-25 RESOLUTION APPROVING ASSISTANT CITY MANAGER, KAY KUHLMANN AS THE OFFICIAL ADA COORDINATOR AND THE TIMELINE FOR ADA TITLE II COMPLIANCE MOTIONED BY SECONDED BY WHEREAS, the City Council is in support of the Americans with Disabilities Act compliance steps that have occurred Title I of this law; and the City Council understands that Title II requires a substantial amount of work, and the City to appoint an ADA Coordinator to compliance efforts; and federally mandated (ADA), and the to date regarding WHEREAS, of this law also requires oversee the WHEREAS, a Timeline for Title II compliance has been reviewed by the City Council and any changes or modifications have been made to reflect the concerns of the City Council; and WHEREAS, the compliance efforts will be fully documented, and the City Council and the public will be kept informed of all developments throughout the compliance process. NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE MAYOR AND CITY PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA, so hereby approve Assistant Kay Kuhlmann as the official ADA Coordinator and the ADA Title II compliance. COUNCIL OF City Manager Timeline for Passed and adopted this day of , 1993. YES NO Andren Fitzgerald Kedrowski Scott White Andren Fitzgerald Kedrowski Scott White Frank Boyles City Manager City of Prior Lake {Seal} 4629 Dakota S1. S.E., Prior Lake, Minnesota 55372 I Ph. (612) 447-4230 I Fax (612) 447-4245 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLDYER DATE COMPLETED 1/26/93 2/9/93 2/25/93 "ADA" ATTACHMENT A ADA COMPLIANCE TIME LINE TITLE I ACTION TAKEN Revamped all Job Descriptions Identified & designated Essential Functions Also identified the following for each description * Environmental Conditions * Physical Demands * Mental Demands * Training & Experience Qualifications Trained Personnel involved with the hiring procedures, including interviewing - Topics included * ADA Title I Compliance * Legal Considerations in Employment & Interviewing * Q and A Session Participants included: Kay Kuhlmann, Ralph Teschner, Dick Powell, steve Schmidt, Larry Anderson, Ray Johnson, Al Friedges, Fiona Keel, Bill Mangan, and Gary Staber Sensitivity Training for All Front-Line Personnel Topics Included * Disability Awareness and Effective Customer Service * ADA and its Implications * Q and A Session Participants included: Bret Woodson, Angie Jas~ers, Dee Birch, Fiona Keel, Nancy MCG1ll, Laurie Friedges, Judy Pint, Carol Goracke, Connie Carlson, and Bonnie Reck RESPONSIBLE PARTY Dick Hieser/ Consultant Bret Woodson Dick Hieser Bret Woodson Dave Roberts Monica Bogner ATTACHMENT B ADA COMPLIANCE TIME LINE TITLE II TARGET ~ 4/20/93 4/28/93 ACTION RESPONSIBLE PARTY Form ADA Committee First Committee Meeting Identif~: Timeframe & Respons~bilities Kay & Bret Committee: Kay, Bret, Angie, Dee, Gary, Bill, and Fiona 5/3 Council Presentation Overview of ADA Implications of Titles I-V Present Timeline for Compliance Council Assigns ADA Coordinator (Kay) Place Advertisement in Prior Lake American Bret for 5/10 Edition Seeking citizen participation on ADA Committee Identify the ADA Coordinator Identify anticipated compliance steps Bret 5/5 6/1-6/30 Comprehensive Self-evaluation Committee Identif~ Changes needed in Programs and Act~vities Including structural modifications Adopt a grievance procedure for complaints Prepare Transition Plan Committee Assess costs and options for changes Implement least expensive changes first Report Preliminary Committee findings to Committee Individual Departments for Incorporation into 1994 and 1995 Budget, and 1994-1998 capital Improvement Program. 5/10-5/30 7/1-7/30 * All non-structural changes to provide program accessibility must begin immediately. structural changes identified in the transition plan are to be completed or ~lanned for by January 26, 1995. continue Comm~ttee meetings on a periodic basis. * * "ADA1"