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Departmental ADA Coordinators’ Academy
Session I – March 15, 2016
ADA Basics & Your Role as the Department’s
ADA Coordinator
Presented by the San Francisco Mayor’s Office on Disability
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Welcome & Introductions
MOD Training Team
Introduce yourselves
– Name
– Department
– Number of years being an ADA coordinator
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About MOD
Mayor Willie Brown established the office in 1998 and
designated MOD as the City’s overall ADA Coordinator.
Our mission is to ensure that every program, service,
benefit, activity and facility operated or funded by the City
and County of San Francisco is fully accessible to, and
useable by, people with disabilities.
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What We Do
MOD’s Primary Programs
Architectural Access
Programmatic Access
Disaster Planning for People with Disabilities
Mayor’s Disability
Council (MDC)
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Session Training Objectives
An overview of the Americans
with Disabilities Act (ADA) and
basic concepts of Title II.
Duties of a Departmental ADA
Coordinator.
ADA Coordinator Panel Discussion
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The ADA is a Civil Rights Law with
Basic Provisions:
ADA
Prohibits denial of service
Prohibits segregation
Prohibits retaliation
or coercion
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Definition of Disability
A record of such an
impairment.
Being perceived as having a disability
though no impairment exists.
Physical or Mental
impairment that (substantially)*
limits one or more major life
activities.
*Substantial does not apply in CA law
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Where Does ADA Apply?
ADA
Title
I
Employment
Title
II
Programs & Services
of State and Local
Government
Title
III Places of Public
Accommodation
Title
IV Telecommunications
Title
V Miscellaneous
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Title II – Equal Access to State &
Local Government Programs
Application
Equal Opportunity
Administrative Requirements
• All local and state government programs, services and activities
• Public transportation & paratransit services
• Licensing bodies
• Architectural Access
• Reasonable Modifications
• Effective Communication
• Designated ADA Coordinator
• Notice of Rights
• Self-Evaluation
• Transition Plan for facilities
• ADA Grievance Procedure.
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Additional (Affirmative) ADA Obligations
Under Title II
Unlike other civil rights statutes, the ADA goes one
step further to create equal access by leveling the
playing field. This means:
1. We must change the way we do things and therefore
we must provide a Reasonable Modification.
2. We must also provide auxiliary aids & services to
ensure people with disabilities get the same access
to information, i.e. Effective Communication.
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Reasonable Modifications such as…
Assisting people with disabilities (cognitive,
mobility, visual) to fill out intake form.
Granting extra time for public comment to a
person with a speech impairment.
A person with a severe anxiety disorder can
apply for food stamp benefits by having a
prearranged appointment in a private
location or an in-home visit.
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And Communication Access
The ADA requires that City agencies and their contractors must ensure that communication with people with disabilities is equally effective as communication with people without disabilities.
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Limits to the City’s Title II Obligations
Limitation Definition Analysis
Fundamental
Alteration
A change that alters the
essential nature of the
program.
It is the public entity’s burden
to establish that the
requested modification would
fundamentally alter its
service system.
Undue Financial
Burden
“Undue burden” means
accomplished with
significant expense.
To determine undue financial
burden, we must consider all
resources of the parent
entity
Undue
Administrative
Burden
“Undue burden” means
accomplished with
significant difficulty.
The determination must be
based on all resources
available for use in the
program.
14 See you in 10 minutes!
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Why Does My Department
Need an ADA Coordinator ?
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Because, People with Disabilities Are Part of the
Public We Serve! The American Community Survey (2014) estimates the rate of
disability in the U.S. population was 12.6%.
36% of people over the age of 65 had a disability.
The Survey of Income and Program Participation (2010)
estimates that 18.7% of the U.S. population has at least one
disability condition; for 12.6% the disability condition was
severe.
1 in 5 San Francisco Residents are 60+ (160,000 people).
7% of San Franciscans are younger adults with disabilities (41,000 people).
Cognitive difficulties are most common (memory, concentration or
decision-making).
46% have serious difficulties walking or climbing stairs.
6,656 residents are people who have hearing difficulty (Department of Aging
and Adult Services Needs Assessment Consumer Advocacy Report 2015).
30% of SFUSD students are Individualized Educational Plan
Recipients (16,800 people).
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And Because it’s the Law!
Title II Regulations cover “public entities” such as City
Departments.
Administrative requirements under Title II require that
a public entity with 50 or more employees must have
an ADA coordinator.
All departmental activities, services, and programs
must be fully accessible to, and useable by, people
with disabilities.
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In other words…
You are the link to disability access
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Disability
Access Posters
Questions? Need more help?
Contact John Dogooder at 555-1212 or [email protected]
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As the ADA Coordinator you are
Expected to:
1. Ensure overall ADA Compliance for the department.
2. Be the department’s ADA resource person.
3. Be proactive in ensuring compliance by providing education & training to staff & developing policies and materials.
4. Provide notice of ADA requirements to the public (e.g. signs in public buildings, on websites, and printed materials for events, meetings, programs, or services).
5. Follow the City and County of San Francisco’s Grievance Procedure.
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Following the ADA Grievance
Procedure Means:
Conducting an informal but thorough investigation.
Documenting the complaint and facts of the case.
Analyzing findings based on ADA regulations.
Problem solving with department staff and
outlining a course of action.
Being the central communication point with
department, MOD and the complainant.
Providing the final response to the complainant.
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Remember, Contractors
Must Comply
with the ADA, Too!
City departments must ensure that contractors provide programs, services or activities in an accessible manner both architecturally and programmatically.
ADA compliance and responsibilities should be talked about from the Request For Proposal (RFP) process all the way through contract negotiations.
Departments should include ADA compliance as part of the contract monitoring process.
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Summing Up
1. Be visible and proactive about disability access in your department.
2. Lead by example in creating a disability friendly culture.
3. Train your department staff accordingly.
4. Follow through with complaints and requests for accommodations to ensure that your department addresses the needs of people with disabilities.
5. Consult with others and use MOD staff, the website, and other ADA Coordinators as your resources.
24 ADA COORDINATORS PANEL
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Additional Resources
Mayor’s Office on Disability’s Website
ADA Coordinator’s Toolkit (http://www.sfgov2.org/index.aspx?page=4436)
Pacific ADA Center
555 12th Street, Suite 1030
Oakland, CA 94607-4046
Voice & TTY: 510.285.5600
(http://www.adapacific.org/)
Department of Justice ADA Technical Assistance
Program
Voice: 800-514-0301
TTY:800-514-0383
(http://www.ada.gov/taprog.htm)
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Thank You!
For more questions & information contact:
Joanna Fraguli, Deputy Director for Programmatic Access
Tel: 415.554.6750 or [email protected]
Heather Kittel, ADA Grievance & Intake Coordinator
Tel: 415.554.6060 or [email protected]
Donna Adkins, Programmatic Access Specialist
Tel. 415.554.6703 or [email protected]
San Francisco Mayor's Office on Disability www.sfgov.org/mod
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Coming Up …
Session 2A
“Effective” Communication: The
Basics
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
2:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
1155 Market Street., 4th Fl. Conference Room
