A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the designation of disability service facilitators at city agencies

Int. No. 881-A

By Council Members Rosenthal, Torres, Cohen, Eugene, Koo, Lancman, Koslowitz, Cabrera, Chin, Van Bramer, Crowley, Levin, Reynoso, Palma, Deutsch, Dromm, Menchaca, Vallone, Kallos and Ulrich

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the designation of disability service facilitators at city agencies

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Title 23 of the administrative code of the city of New York is amended by adding a new chapter 10 to read as follows:

Chapter 10

NONDISCRIMINATORY ACCESS TO SERVICES

§ 23-1001 Definitions. For the purposes of this chapter:

ADA. “ADA” means the Americans with Disabilities Act, title 42 of the United States code section 12101 et seq.

ADA coordinator. “ADA coordinator” means the employee designated by an agency pursuant to section 35.107 of title 28 of the code of federal regulations.

§ 23-1002 Disability service facilitator. a. The head of each agency, in consultation with the mayor’s office for people with disabilities, shall designate an employee as such agency’s disability service facilitator, to coordinate its efforts to comply with and carry out its responsibilities under the ADA and other federal, state, and local laws and regulations concerning accessibility for persons with disabilities. Such facilitator shall be knowledgeable about the ADA, and other federal, state, and local laws and regulations concerning persons with disabilities. The functions of such facilitator, at the discretion of each agency, may be performed by the employee or employees designated by such agency to be that agency’s ADA coordinator. Agencies with fifty or fewer employees may, in consultation with the mayor’s office for people with disabilities, designate an employee of the city to serve as the disability service facilitator for more than one of such agencies.

b. The functions of the disability service facilitator shall include, but not be limited to:

1.  Serve as the primary contact within that respective agency for persons with disabilities requesting auxiliary services;

2.   Coordinate auxiliary services for persons with disabilities;

3.   Respond to inquiries from members of the public concerning accessibility;

4. Develop agency policies and procedures to ensure full programmatic and communication accessibility for persons with disabilities;

5.  Conduct periodic training for agency staff on disability access issues, as may be required by the head of such agency;

6.  Provide accessible notices to members of the public advising them of their rights under the ADA, the New York state human rights law, the New York city human rights law, and regulations promulgated by such agency related to persons with disabilities, as well as the agency’s ADA grievance procedure;  

7.  Assist in the investigation of any complaint communicated to such respective agency alleging its noncompliance with the ADA and/or other applicable federal, state, and local laws relating to people with disabilities, or alleging any actions that would be prohibited by such laws;

8.   Document and maintain records of complaints made pursuant to the ADA and other applicable federal, state, and local laws relating to people with disabilities, and forward such complaints to the mayor’s office for people with disabilities;

9.   Analyze and make recommendations to the head of each such agency and to the mayor’s office for people with disabilities to resolve physical and programmatic access issues; and

10.  Perform any other functions as may be assigned by the head of each agency.

c.  At the request of the mayor’s office for people with disabilities, the head of each agency shall make such agency’s disability service facilitator available to confer with, and receive periodic training from, the mayor’s office for people with disabilities.

d. Each agency shall post the name, office address, electronic mail address, and telephone number of the employee or employees designated as the disability service facilitator on their website. The mayor’s office for people with disabilities shall post on its website the names of persons designated to act as the disability service facilitator within each agency.

§ 2. This local law takes effect 90 days after it becomes law.

LS 3255

ENB

2/16/16 12:38 PM