FACT SHEET

Settlement Agreement between the United States of America

and the City of Madison, Indiana

On July 26, 2011, the Department of Justice entered into a settlement agreement with the City of Madison, Indiana, under title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).

The Department of Justice initiated an investigation in response to a complaint that several city facilities are inaccessible to persons with physical disabilities and that the City failed to provide an assistive listening device for a person with a hearing disability during public meetings held in City Council chambers.  The investigation of this complaint expanded to a compliance review under Project Civic Access, a Department initiative to ensure greater access for persons with disabilities to state and local government programs, services, activities, and facilities.  City staff worked cooperatively with the Department throughout the compliance review process in order to reach an agreement.

Facilities and programs surveyed by the Department and covered by the agreement include: Madison City Hall, Madison Police Station, Main Street Station, Riverfront Dog Park, Madison B3 Skate Park, Brown Gymnasium, Senior Center, Kiwanis Park, Crystal Beach, Hargan-Matthews Park, Firemen's Park, Jaycee Park, Broadway Fountain, City Campgrounds, Gaines Park, Pearl Park, Lytle Park, John Paul Park, Warren R. Rucker Sports Complex, Lorenz Park, Michigan Road /Dr. William Stucker Tennis Courts, Playground For All Children, Oakhill Park, Johnson Lake Park, Sunrise Golf Course, and Emery O. Muncie School Gymnasium.

The Department also reviewed the City's policies and procedures regarding voting, employment, emergency management and disaster prevention, and sidewalk maintenance to evaluate whether persons with disabilities have an equal opportunity to utilize these programs.

Under the agreement announced today, the City of Madison will take several important steps to improve access for individuals with disabilities.  The text of the settlement agreement specifies the modifications the City of Madison will be making to its programs, services, and facilities and the timeframes for making each change.  Among other things, the City has agreed to:

• Make physical modifications to its facilities so that parking, routes into the buildings, entrances, public telephones, restrooms, service counters, and drinking fountains are accessible to people with disabilities.  The agreement specifies which modifications will be made at each facility.
• Post, publish, and distribute a notice to inform members of the public of the provisions of title II and their applicability to the City's programs, services, and activities.
• Implement and report to the Department of Justice the City's written procedures for providing information for interested persons with disabilities concerning the existence and location of the City's accessible programs, services, and activities.
• Adopt a grievance procedure to handle grievances submitted under the ADA.
• Identify and implement effective communication policies to ensure individuals with disabilities have access to City programs and services, including City law enforcement agencies.
• Develop policies and procedures and perform necessary planning to ensure that individuals with disabilities are afforded equal, integrated access to emergency management programs, including emergency preparedness, notification, evacuation, sheltering, response, clean up, and recovery.
• Implement a plan to ensure the accessibility of sidewalks, transportation stops, and pedestrian crossings by installing accessible curb ramps throughout the City.
• Establish and implement a policy to ensure that City web pages are accessible to individuals with disabilities.

This is the 193rd agreement under the PCA initiative.  Located in southeast Indiana, the city of Madison was incorporated on April 1, 1809, and is the county seat for Jefferson County, Indiana.  According to census data, the city population is approximately 12,000, and more than 21 percent of Madison residents have a disability.

The agreement will remain in effect for three years from July 26, 2011, or until all actions required by the agreement have been completed, whichever is later.  The agreement requires most actions to be completed within six months.  For the required accessibility modifications to sidewalks, pedestrian crossings, transportation stops and curb ramps, the city will work with the disability community to prioritize and complete these modifications within three years.  The Department will actively monitor compliance with the agreement until it has confirmed that all required actions have been completed.

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