[Adopted by Ord. No. 1308 as Ch. 2.88 of the 1998 Code]
There is hereby created a Residents with Disabilities
Advisory Committee, hereinafter referred to also as the "Committee,"
to meet the needs of the people of Montville Township with disabilities
and establish policies and procedures to comply with the Township's
responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act and any
legislation or administrative directive designed to address the needs
of persons with disabilities.
[Amended 10-9-2001 by Ord. No. 2001-51; 2-9-2010 by Ord. No.
2010-06]
A.
The Committee shall consist of up to seven members
and up to two alternate members to be appointed by the Township Committee
and the designated Township Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance
Officer. Members shall be representatives of the community and shall
include individuals, who are preferably Township residents, having
experience in living with a disability or caring for a person who
has a disability, and a majority of the Committee should be comprised
of persons with disabilities where feasible.
B.
All members shall serve without compensation.
Members first appointed to the Committee shall
be appointed in the following manner: one-third of the members for
three-year terms, one-third of the members for two-year terms, and
one-third of the members for one-year terms. Thereafter, each member
shall be appointed for a three-year term. Terms of members shall expire
on December 31 in the third year of each term.
A.
The Committee shall have the following powers and
responsibilities:
(1)
To develop and provide recommendations to the Township
Committee on the initiation or modification of existing programs,
services or facilities to address the needs and further the participation
of persons with disabilities.
(2)
To serve as the first administrative avenue of appeal,
beyond the decision of the Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance
Officer, to resolve a complaint or dispute over the Township's compliance
with any federal, state or local initiative designed to protect the
rights and interests of persons with disabilities.
(3)
To support the Compliance Officer, who will act as
the administrative arm of the Montville Township Committee to encourage
the removal of barriers, physical or programmatic, encountered by
persons with disabilities within Montville Township.
B.
It is understood that in fulfilling the aforesaid
responsibilities, the Committee will act merely in an advisory capacity
and shall not have the power to bind the municipality in any manner.
The Committee shall prepare an annual report
on or before the first day of June and submit the same to the Township
Committee.
A.
The Committee shall designate one of its members to
serve as Chairperson and presiding officer of the Committee, except
that the Township Committee will appoint the first Chairperson after
the creation of the Committee. The Committee will also designate one
of its members as a Vice Chairperson who will act as presiding officer
in the absence of the Chairperson. The Committee may appoint a secretary,
if necessary, at a salary to be fixed and determined by the Township
Committee. The Township Administrator may appoint additional employees
to work with the Committee upon proper authorization by the Township
Committee.
B.
The Committee is authorized to adopt bylaws governing
its procedural operation.
The Township may annually appropriate a sum
sufficient for expenses of the Committee.
It is the intent of this article to establish
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 (hereinafter ADA). Title II states, in part,
that "no otherwise qualified disabled individual shall, solely by
reason of such a disability, be excluded from the participation in,
be denied the benefit of, or be subjected to discrimination" in programs
or activities sponsored by the Township of Montville.
Any person aggrieved by an alleged action done
in violation of the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities
Act shall be entitled to pursue the following procedures:
A.
A complaint regarding access, alleged discrimination
or a violation of the ADA shall be submitted, in writing, to the Americans
with Disabilities Act Compliance Officer.
B.
The complaint should be filed within 180 days from
the date of the alleged discrimination or violation. The time for
filing the complaint may be extended for a period of 30 days for good
cause.
C.
The Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance Officer
shall conduct an investigation and render a written decision within
15 working days from the filing of a complaint. A copy of the decision
shall be forwarded to the complainant.
D.
In the event that the complaint cannot be resolved
by the Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance Officer to the satisfaction
of the complainant, the complaint shall be forwarded to the Residents
with Disabilities Advisory Committee.
E.
After notifying the complainant by certified mail,
the Residents with Disabilities Advisory Committee shall conduct a
public hearing at which time the complainant may voice his objections
to the decision of the Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance
Officer. The proceedings shall be recorded and the tape of the proceedings
maintained for a period of one year.
F.
In the event the complainant is not satisfied with
the decision of the Residents with Disabilities Advisory Committee,
he/she may appeal the decision to the Township Committee of the Township
of Montville.
G.
The Township Committee of the Township of Montville
shall render its decision within 30 days after the date of the hearing,
which decision shall be final as to the administrative remedies available
at the Township level. Nothing contained in this section shall limit
or restrict an individual's right to pursue other remedies. 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.
The Americans with Disabilities Act Compliance
Officer shall maintain the files and records of all complaints filed
and the hearings held.
