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CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTING
23
CFR 200, 635; 49 CFR 21; NDA
The primary responsibilities are to safeguard public safety,
provide for public convenience and perpetuate public trust through construction
engineering and contract administration.
Focus is placed on the delivery and construction of capacity
enhancing, operational improvement and general maintenance projects
that provide and promote the transportation needs for the people of
the State of California.
Potential Title VI Issues
Whether:
1. The monitoring/inspection of work by the State results
in disparate treatment of protected groups.
2. Required mitigation(s) has been effectively implemented.
For example, safety through construction zones.
3. Uniformity exists in the approval of plans changes and
supplemental agreements.
4. Uniformity exists in the assessment of sanctions, liquidated
damages, withholding payments, suspension/termination of contracts.
5. The contractor or applicant have any unresolved Title
VI violations when awarding a contract or grant.
Recommended Good Practices and Mitigation Measures
1. Location of dump sites and batch plants.
2. Prompt payment of contractors and subcontractors.
3. Impact of contract change orders.
4. Monitoring and resolution of noise, traffic congestion
and disruption to neighborhoods.
Possible Compliance Review Questions
Administration
General
1. What office or section within the Division of Construction
has the lead responsibility for Title VI matters?
2. What process is followed when a new directive is issued?
3. Is the division’s Program Area Administrator (PAA) involved
in policy development?
4. When awarding a contract, grant, loan or permit, what
mechanism is used to ensure that the contractor or applicant does not
have any unresolved Title VI violations?
5. What is the role of the PAA and/or key personnel in the
construction phase and who is responsible for analysis of the following?
· • Public Involvement and citizen advisory committees
· • Scheduling time and location of public meetings and
hearings
· • Project administration and monitoring contract plans
and specifications
· • Monitoring and enforcement of mitigation measures included
in environmental
· and planning documents and agreements
· • Final acceptance of the final project
· • Compliance with FHWA-1273
· • Withholding of payment
· • Termination of contract when necessary
6. Who is responsible for identifying Title VI issues in
construction documents?
Staff Composition
1. Provide a staffing composition listing by position, race
and gender for senior level and above classifications. Include an organizational
chart.
2. Policy and Advisory Committees - Provide a listing of
committees and their respective members by position, race and gender.
3. Provide a listing of persons who are designated to provide
alternative language assistance and identify what languages they translate.
Complaint Procedure
1. Provide a copy of the procedure the division uses to
handle a Title VI complaint.
How are your customers made aware of this process?
2. How many Title VI related complaints have you received
in the past two years?
What was the outcome of those complaints?
3. How are Title VI complaint procedures disseminated to
program personnel?
Training
1. Have staff received formal or informal training on Title
VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, related statutes or policy including
Executive Orders on Environmental Justice and Limited English Proficiency?
Please describe.
2. Are staff scheduled for Title VI and related statutes
training this year? If yes, please provide the schedule and who will
attend.
Data Collection & Monitoring
1. Does the division self monitor its activities to ensure
nondiscrimination? If yes, please describe the process(es). If not,
why not?
2. What process does the division use to self monitor data
collection and contract/grant language requirements?
3. What data (race, color, national origin, language considerations,
sex, disability and age) do you maintain that reflects the extent to
which members of minority and low-income populations, contractors, subcontractors
and suppliers participate in construction activities or services?
4. What records and/or reports are maintained that specifically
reflect compliance with Title VI?
5. Who is responsible for developing, maintaining and reporting
this data?
6. How is this data used?
Construction
Strategies and Goals
1. Provide a copy of the division’s Strategic Plan and Performance
Measure Objectives for the current fiscal year.
2. What strategies and efforts has the division developed
for ensuring, demonstrating and substantiating compliance with Title
VI?
3. Does the division use demographic data that includes
identification of the locations of socioeconomic groups, including low-income
and minority populations as covered by the Executive Order on Environmental
Justice and Title VI provisions? What process is used to identify and
define the eligible population?
4. Does the division’s process seek to identify the needs
of low-income and minority populations? Describe how.
5. What methods are used to identify imbalances?
6. How does the division follow-up to ensure mitigation
measures identified for projects significantly impacting minorities
are carried through?
Service Equity
1. Describe, in summary, the programs administered by your
division.
2. Does the division have an analytical process in place
for assessing the benefits and burdens of transportation system projects
on different minority and socioeconomic groups? Please describe.
3. Does the division have a data collection process in place
that will support the analysis of benefits and burdens? Describe this
process and provide an example.
4. How is the analysis of benefits and burdens used?
Public Involvement
1. Provide a copy of your public involvement process policy.
What is the public comment period before the process or revision is
adopted?
2. Is information about construction issues and processes
provided timely to citizens, public agencies, transportation agency
employees, private sector transportation providers and others affected
by transportation plans, programs and projects?
Describe how.
3. Does the public have access to technical construction
documents? Describe how.
4. Is advance public notice given for public review and
comment on key decisions, including approval and amendments? Describe
how.
5. Are the needs of low-income and minority households taken
into account?
Describe how.
6. Does the public outreach effort use media such as print,
television, radio, etc., and is it targeted to low-income or minority
populations?
7. What is the division’s process for advertising a Public
Notice that your program is an equal opportunity program and/or that
Federal law prohibits discrimination?
8. Are Tribal Governments and related public agencies on
public or tribal land involved in the construction process? Describe
how Tribal Governments are involved in the construction process and
what considerations are given to Indian reservation roads.
9. Give an example of what changes have occurred as a result
of input by public involvement, specifically low-income and minority
populations?
10. Is the public involvement process reviewed periodically
to determine the effectiveness of full and open access to all? Describe
how.
11. Describe the types of assurances utilized to ensure
that no one is excluded from participation in or denied benefit of or
otherwise subjected to discrimination on the basis of race, color, sex,
national origin, disability or age from your program’s activities and
services.
12. Describe actions taken to comply with the Americans
with Disabilities Act.
13. What is the role of the PAA in assisting program area
personnel with public involvement activities?
14. Has the PAA or key program personnel attended public
meetings and/or hearings held for projects with potential Title VI impacts?
If yes, give an example and list the meeting/hearing, whom attended
and the outcome(s).
15. What role did the PAA and/or key program personnel play
to facilitate participation of historically under represented groups
and accessibility to the location of the meetings or hearings?
16. Does the PAA review procedures that address public involvement,
particularly minority citizen participation? Please explain and provide
examples.
17. Please describe the procedures followed when working
with external customers who are limited English proficient.
Hearings
1. What statistics are kept on public hearing participation
by race and gender?
Visual identification?
2. Are minority group concerns addressed in a timely manner?
Describe how.
3. Are public meeting announcements made available in languages
other than English, according to the affected minority population? Describe
how and provide an example.
4. Are accessible locations (geographically and structurally),
appropriate times and translation services planned for and provided
during public hearings?
Contracts
1. Who in the division monitors the contractor’s adherence
with the Title VI requirements?
2. How does the division promote the participation of Disadvantaged
Business Enterprises (DBE) contracts?
3. Are DBE goals set and do you meet these goals?
4. Provide the number, dollar values and types of contracts
and funding sources used during the last two fiscal years. Identify
if there were any DBEs on the contracts.
Goals for Upcoming Federal Fiscal Year 2002
Please provide a status report on the following goals:
1. Continue to provide Resident Engineer training - including
Title VI training.
2. Develop a Title VI Complaint Resolution Process and distribute
statewide.
3. Develop direction and policy guidance and disseminate
to Resident Engineers for handling significant contract change orders
that require Title VI analysis.
Self Monitoring
1. What office or section within the construction function
has the lead responsibility for Title VI matters?
2. What is the role of the PAA or District Title VI Liaison
in the construction phase?
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