Title VI Policy Statement of Policy – Notice to the Public
River Valley Metro Mass Transit District hereby gives public notice that it is the policy of the District to assure full compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. River Valley Metro is obligated to investigate any complaints of discrimination.
River Valley Metro Mass Transit District operates its programs and services without regard to race, color or national origin in accordance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Any person who believes she or he has been aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice under Title VI may file a complaint with River Valley Metro.
For more information on River Valley Metro’s civil rights program and the procedures to file a complaint, go to RiverValleyMetro.com; Non-Discrimination (Title VI), email info@rivervalleymetro.com, subject: Title VI, visit our office at 1137 E 5000N Road, Bourbonnais IL 60914, or call 815-935-1403.
A complainant may file a complaint directly with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA). To file a complaint, goto the FTA’s website at www.transit.dot.gov and enter “file a complaint” in the search bar, or call the toll-free civil rights hotline at (888) 446-4511.
Complaints must be filed within 180 days of the alleged discrimination.
If information is needed in another language, contact 815-935-1403. (Si necesita información en otro idioma, llame al 815-935-1403.)
Filing Complaints of Discrimination
Complainants may submit written complaints to the Managing Director of the District, the FTA Director, Office of Civil Rights, the FTA Area Civil Rights Officers and/or the Departmental Director of Civil Rights.
In cases where the complainant is unable or incapable of providing a written statement, but wishes the District to investigate alleged discrimination, a verbal complaint of discrimination may be made to the District’s Managing Director. The complainant will be interviewed by the Managing Director. If necessary, the District will assist the person in converting verbal complaints to written format. All complaints must, however, be signed by the complainant or his/her representative. The District’s representative will assist those with limited English proficiency (LEP) in filing a complaint.
All Complaints must be signed and filed within 180 days of the alleged discrimination.
Complaint Format
All complaints must be in writing and signed by the complainant or his/her representative before action can be taken. Complaints shall state, as fully as possible, the facts and circumstances surrounding the alleged discrimination. The District will provide the complainant or his/her representative with a written acknowledgement that the District has received the complaint within ten working days.
Determination of Investigative Merit
A complaint shall be regarded as meriting investigation unless:
- It clearly appears on its face to be frivolous or trivial.
- Within the time allotted for making the determination of jurisdiction and investigative merit, the party complained against voluntarily concedes noncompliance and agrees to take appropriate remedial action.
- Within the time allotted for making the determination of jurisdiction and investigative merit, the complainant withdraws the complaint; or
- Other good cause for not investigating the complaint exists e.g. respondent is presently under investigation by another Federal agency.
Request for Additional Information from Complainant and/or Respondent
In the event that the complainant or respondent has not submitted sufficient information to make a determination of jurisdiction or investigative merit, the District may request additional information from either party. This request shall be made within 15 working days of the receipt of the complaint and will require that the party submit the information within 60 working days from the date of the original request. Failure of the complainant to submit additional information within the designated time frame may be considered good cause for a determination of no investigative merit. Failure of the respondent to submit additional information within the designated time frame may be considered good cause for a determination of noncompliance.
Investigative Report
A written report will be prepared by the responsible investigator at the conclusion of the investigation. The investigative report will include the following:
- Summary of the complaint, including a statement of the issues raised by the complainant and the respondent’s reply to each of the allegations.
- Citations of relevant Federal, State and Local Laws, rules, regulations and guidelines, etc.
- Description of the investigation, including a list of the persons contacted by the investigator and a summary of the interviews conducted; and
- A statement of the investigator’s findings and recommendations.
The Title VI complaint form are available here:
English Version
Versión en español