Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Grievance Procedure

This Grievance Procedure is established to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA").  It may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by the Sauk County Government.  The Sauk County Government’s Personnel Policy governs employment-related complaints of disability discrimination. The Sauk County Government has adopted an internal grievance procedure providing for prompt and equitable resolution of complaints alleging any action prohibited by Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Title II states, in part, that “no otherwise qualified disabled individual shall, solely by reason of such disability, be excluded from the participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination” in programs or activities sponsored by a public entity. 

1. A complaint must be filed in writing and shall contain the name and address of the person filing it together with a brief description of the violation(s) alleged. The complaint should contain information about the alleged discrimination such as name, address, phone number of complainant and location, date, and description of the problem.  Alternative means of filing complaints, such as personal interviews or a tape recording of the complaint, will be made available for persons with disabilities upon request.
2. A complaint should be filed as soon as possible but in no case later than 60 calendar days of when the complainant becomes aware of the alleged violation.
3. An investigation, when deemed appropriate, shall follow the filing of a complaint. The investigation shall be conducted by the ADA Coordinator or their designee. These rules contemplate informal but thorough investigations, affording all interested persons and their representatives, if any, an opportunity to submit evidence relevant to a complaint.
4. A written determination as to the validity of the complaint and a description of the resolution, if any, shall be issued by the ADA Coordinator and a copy shall be forwarded to the complainant no later than 15 business days after its filing. In the event a complex issue arises that requires additional review, the response time may be extended beyond 15 days.
5. The ADA Coordinator shall maintain the files and records of the Sauk County Government relating to the complaints filed for at least three years.
6. The complainant may request reconsideration of their case in instances where he or she is dissatisfied with the resolution. The request for reconsideration should be made within 30 calendar days of the issuance of the ADA Coordinator’s written resolution, to the County Administrator.
7. 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.
8. These rules shall be construed to protect the substantive rights of interested persons to meet appropriate due process standards and to assure that the Sauk County Government complies with the ADA and implementing regulations.

Notice Under the Americans with Disabilities Act

In accordance with the requirements of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 ("ADA"), the Sauk County Government will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities.

Employment: The Sauk County Government does not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment practices and complies with all regulations promulgated by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission under title I of the ADA.

Effective Communication: The Sauk County Government will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in Sauk County Government’s programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to people who have speech, hearing, or vision impairments.

Modifications to Policies and Procedures: The Sauk County Government will make all reasonable modifications to policies and programs to ensure that people with disabilities have an equal opportunity to enjoy all of its programs, services, and activities.  For example, individuals with service animals are welcomed in Sauk County Government’s offices, even where pets are generally prohibited.

Anyone who requires an auxiliary aid or service for effective communication or a modification of policies or procedures to participate in a program, service, or activity of Sauk County Government should contact the Sauk County ADA Coordinator, as soon as possible but no later than 48 hours before the scheduled event.

The ADA does not require the Sauk County Government to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services, or impose an undue financial or administrative burden.

Complaints that a program, service, or activity of the Sauk County Government is not accessible to persons with disabilities should be directed to Sauk County Government ADA Coordinator. The Sauk County Government will not place a surcharge on a particular individual with a disability or any group of individuals with disabilities to cover the cost of providing auxiliary aids/services or reasonable modifications of policy, such as retrieving items from locations that are open to the public but are not accessible to persons who use wheelchairs.

The Sauk County Government does not discriminate on the basis of disability in the admission or access to, or treatment or employment in, its programs or activities.

Complaints should be addressed to:

Sauk County ADA Coordinator
510 Broadway
Room C123
Baraboo, WI 53913

(608) 355-4415
Toll Free: (800) 555‐1212
TTY           (800) 555‐1111
Other languages: (608) 355‐5881

Email: ADAContact@co.sauk.wi.us