ADA Notice and Grievance Procedures

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

Employment: 

City of Rochester 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 I of the ADA.

Effective Communication: 

City of Rochester will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in City of Rochester’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: 

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

Requests

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 City of Rochester, should contact the ADA Coordinator, Kimberly Conley in the Office of Human Resources as soon as possible but no later than 72 hours before the scheduled event.

The ADA does not require the City of Rochester 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 City of Rochester is not accessible to persons with disabilities should be directed to the ADA Coordinator, Kimberly Conley in the office of Human Resources.

The City of Rochester 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.

City of Rochester’s Grievance Procedure under The Americans with Disabilities Act

This Grievance Procedure is established to meet the requirements of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("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 of Rochester The City of Rochester’s Personnel Policy governs employment-related complaints of disability discrimination. 

Process

The complaint should be in writing and contain information about the alleged discrimination such as name, address, phone number of complainant and location, date, and description of the problem.  Alternative means of filing complaints, such as personal interviews 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 60 calendar days after the alleged violation to:                                               

Kimberly Conley, ADA Coordinator 
Department of Human Resources
31 Wakefield Street Rochester, NH 03867

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the complaint Kimberly Conley, ADA Coordinator or his/her] designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions.  

Within 15 calendar days of the meeting, Kimberly Conley, ADA Coordinator or his/her designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, such as large print, Braille, or audio tape.  The response will explain the position of the City of Rochester and offer options for substantive resolution of the complaint.

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

Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, the City Manager or [his/her designee will meet with the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions.  

Within 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 ADA Coordinator, Kimberly Conley or appeals to the City Manager, and responses from these two offices will be retained by the City of Rochester for at least three years.