FACT SHEET

Settlement Agreement between the United States of America and the Village of Midlothian, Illinois

On July 28, 2009, the Department of Justice entered into a settlement agreement with the Village of Midlothian, Illinois, under title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12131-12134, and the Department's implementing regulation, 28 C.F.R. Part 35, as well as section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, 29 U.S.C. § 794, and the Department's implementing regulation, 28 C.F.R. Part 42, Subpart G.

The Department of Justice initiated a compliance review of Midlothian in March, 2008, in response to a complaint alleging that the Village did not have a grievance policy and procedure in place for citizens to express and resolve accessibility concerns.

An on-site survey of the Village buildings and services was conducted on July 14-17, 2008. Facilities covered by the agreement include: Village Hall, the Police Department, Fire Station No. 1, Fire Station No. 2, Raday Lodge, and the Historical Society. The Department also reviewed the Village's emergency management procedures, employment policies, sidewalks, and its 9-1-1 emergency services.

The Village attorney and its government officials worked cooperatively with the Department throughout the investigation in order to reach a settlement agreement.

The text of the settlement agreement specifies the modifications the Village of Midlothian will be making to its programs, services, activities, and facilities. Among other things, the Village 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;
• Post, publish, and distribute a notice to inform members of the public of the provisions of title II and their applicability to the Village's programs, services, and activities;
• Ensure that the Village's official website is accessible to people with disabilities;
• Take steps to ensure that all appropriate employees are trained and practiced in using the Illinois Relay Service to make and receive calls.
• Continue to maintain the Village's data base that tracks sidewalk tripping hazzards and other barriers to accessibility so that the Village can prioritize necessary accessibility modifications;
• Provide equal access to the Village's emergency management program and services for persons with disabilities, including preparation, notification, response, and clean up;
• Develop a method for providing information for interested persons with disabilities concerning the existence and location of the Village's accessible services, activities, and programs;
• Install signs at any inaccessible entrance to a facility directing users to an accessible entrance or to information about other accessible facilities.

The agreement also recognizes that the Village of Midlothian has independently completed a number of steps to increase access to its programs, services, activities, and facilities for individuals with disabilities, such as:

• Designating the Superintendent of Public Works to serve as the Village's ADA Coordinator since July 26, 1992, and coordinate the Village's efforts to comply with and carry out the Village's ADA responsibilities;
• Completing a Transition Plan on July 22, 1992, which listed, in detail, all structural changes to be made in order to comply with the ADA - the Village Board then adopted this plan;
• Developing a sidewalk data base to track tripping hazards and other barriers to accessibility, spending over $300,000 repairing sidewalks since 2005; and
• Requiring all personnel, per the Village's Self Evaluation plan, to be aware of the telephone relay system provided by Illinois Relay Center to enable effective communication with persons who are deaf, are hard of hearing, or have speech impairments and communicate using a TTY.

Midlothian, a Village with just over 14,000 residents, is located about 20 miles south of Chicago. According to data from the Census Bureau, more than 16% of the people who reside in Midlothian have a disability. Midlothian has been recognized for its outstanding communitywide volunteer efforts and honored with the Governor's Hometown Award.

The settlement agreement will remain in effect for 3 years from July 28, 2009.

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