Notice under the Americans with Disabilities Act

It is a priority of Salt Lake City Police Department that we are accessible and inclusive to everyone with access needs or disabilities.

In accordance with the requirements of title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), Salt Lake City Police Department will not discriminate against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability in its services, programs, or activities.

Employment: Salt Lake City Police Department 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: Salt Lake City Police Department will generally, upon request, provide appropriate aids and services leading to effective communication for qualified persons with disabilities so they can participate equally in Salt Lake City Police Department programs, services, and activities, including qualified sign language interpreters, documents in Braille, and other ways of making information and communications accessible to all individuals with access needs and disabilities.

Modifications to Policies and Procedures: Salt Lake City Police Department 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 Salt Lake City Police Department offices, even where pets are generally prohibited.

People with disabilities can request reasonable accommodation with 48 hours advance notice. Accommodations may include alternate formats, interpreters, and other auxiliary aids. Please contact Brent Weisberg, brent.weisberg@slcgov.com, 801-799-3340, or TDD 711 regarding language services. Please contact Lieutenant Worsencroft, gordon.worsencroft@slcgov.com, or 801-799-4603 for any other disablity request.

The ADA does not require Salt Lake City Police Department to take any action that would fundamentally alter the nature of its programs or services, or impose an undue financial or administrative burden.

Salt Lake City Police Department 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.

1 What is the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act)?

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into effect by Congress on July 26, 1990. The ADA is intended to  “provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against persons with disabilities.”

The ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability and provides the first comprehensive civil rights to people with disabilities in the areas of employment; public accommodations; state and local government programs, services and activities; and communications.  This includes not just architectural accessibility, but also program accessibility.

The goal of the ADA is to assure equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, equivalent service, and economic self-sufficiency. The ADA prohibits all state and local governments from discriminating on the basis of disability.

2 What is a disability?

A person described as having a disability is a person with a physical, emotional or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities OR a person with a record of such impairment OR a person who is perceived as having such an impairment. “Major life activities” include:  thinking, processing information, listening, seeing, hearing, breathing, walking, taking care of personal needs, working, interaction with others, concentrating, sitting, standing, and reading.

3 What is Salt Lake City Police Department’s Responsibility to the ADA?

The ADA is divided into five sections, or titles. Title II applies to city government, and the programs and services provided:  No qualified individual with a disability shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefits of the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by such entity.  To achieve this, Salt Lake City is required to assess its accessibility as a city government, have a plan for removing barriers to people with disabilities, have a policy regarding the ADA, desigate an ADA Coordinator, and communicate effectively with people with disabilities and about the accessibility of services.