Franklin County Compliance Program
Purpose
The Franklin County Metropolitan Planning Organization’s (FCMPO) Title VI Complaint Procedures is written to specify the process employed by FCMPO to investigate complaints, while ensuring due process for Complainants and Respondents. The process does not preclude FCMPO from attempting to informally resolve complaints.
This procedure applies to all external complaints relating to any program or activity administered by FCMPO and/or its subrecipients, consultants and contractors, filed under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, including Disadvantage Business Enterprise and Equal Employment Opportunity components, as well as other related laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, disability, gender, age, low income, nationality or Limited English Proficiency. Additional Statutes include, but not limited to, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Civil Rights Restoration Act of 1987, and the Americans with Disability Act of 1990.
These procedures are part of an administrative process that does not provide for remedies that include punitive damages or compensatory remuneration for the Complainant. Intimidation or retaliation of any kind is prohibited by law.
Process
An individual, or his or her representative, who believes that he or she has been subject to discrimination or retaliation prohibited by Title VI and other nondiscrimination provisions, has the right to file a complaint. Complaints need to be filed within 180 calendar days of alleged occurrence, when the alleged discrimination became known to the Complainant, or when there has been a continuing course of conduct, the date on which the conduct was discontinued or latest instance of the conduct.
Complaints may be mailed to:
Title VI Compliance Officer
Franklin County Metropolitan Planning Organization
272 North Second Street
Chambersburg, PA 17201
U.S. Department of Transportation
Departmental Office of Civil Rights
1200 New Jersey Ave, S.E.
Washington, DC 20590
Federal Highway Administration
Pennsylvania Division Office
30 North Third Street, Suite 700
Harrisburg, PA 17101
U.S. Department of Justice
Civil Rights Division
Office of the Assistant Attorney General
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20530
Title VI Coordinator
Pennsylvania Department of Transportation
Bureau of Equal Opportunity
P.O. Box 3251
Harrisburg, PA 17105-3251
Federal Transit Administration
Office of Civil Rights
Attn: Complaint Team
East Building, 5th Floor – TCR
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
Federal Highway Administration
U.S. Department of Transportation
Office of Civil Rights
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
8th Floor E81-105
Washington, DC 20590
Complaints shall be in writing and signed by the Complainant(s). If complaints are received by telephone or in person, the Title VI Compliance Manager or other authorized representative shall formally interview the person to provide the basis for the written complaint. If necessary, the authorized person will assist the Complainant in writing the complaint. Complainants may use the attached complaint form, a form obtained from any of the above designated complaint recipients, or provide the complaint in writing; however, the written complaint must include the following information:
- Name, address and telephone number of Complainant.
- Basis of the complaint (e.g. race, color, national origin, sex, age, disability or retaliation).
- A detailed description of the circumstances of the incident that lead the Complainant to believe discrimination occurred.
- Names, addresses and phone numbers of people who may have knowledge of the alleged incident or are perceived as parties in the complained-of-incident.
- Date or dates on which the alleged discrimination occurred
- Other agencies where the complaint was filed
- As an investigation moves forward, additional information may be required.
If the FCMPO receives a complaint, the FCMPO will acknowledge receipt of the complaint by notifying the Complainant and immediately transmitting the complaint to the proper state and federal agency (e.g. Federal Highway Administration, Federal Transit Administration, and PennDOT) for investigation and disposition pursuant to that agency’s Title VI complaint procedures.
The FCMPO Title VI Compliance Manager will maintain a log of all complaints received by the MPO.