45 C.F.R. § 85.62 Coordination and Compliance Responsibilities

• Library: Code of Federal Regulations
• Edition: 2023
• Currency: Current through December 31, 2023
• Citation: 45 C.F.R. § 85.62
• Year: 2023

(a) Each component agency shall be primarily responsible for compliance with this part in connection with the programs and activities it conducts.

(b) The OCR Director/Special Assistant shall have the overall responsibility to coordinate implementation of this part. The OCR Director/Special Assistant shall have authority to conduct investigations, to conduct compliance reviews, and to initiate such other actions as may be necessary to facilitate and ensure effective implementation of and compliance with, this part.

(c) If as a result of an investigation or in connection with any other compliance or implementation activity, the OCR Director/Special Assistant determines that a component agency appears to be in noncompliance with its responsibilities under this part, OCR will undertake appropriate action with the component agency to assure compliance. In the event that OCR and the component agency are unable to agree on a resolution of any particular matter, the matter shall be submitted to the Secretary for resolution.

Editor Note: At the request of the Department of Health and Human Services, the "Section-by-Section Analysis" portion of the preamble of the document published at 53 FR 25595, July 8, 1988, as corrected at 53 FR 26559, July 13, 1988, follows:

Section-by-Section Analysis of Regulation and Response to Comments

Where no discussion of comments follows the analysis of a section, no comments have been received thereon.

Section 45undefined85.1 Purpose.

Section 45undefined85.1 states the purpose of the rule, which is to effectuate section 119 of the Rehabilitation, Comprehensive Services, and Developmental Disabilities Amendments of 1978, which amended section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to prohibit discrimination on the basis of handicap in programs or activities conducted by Executive agencies or the United States Postal Service.

Section 45undefined85.2 Application.

The proposed regulation covers all programs and activities conducted by the Department of Health and Human Services ("HHS" or the "agency").

This includes the following components:

The Office of the Secretary

Office of the Under Secretary

Office of the Deputy Under Secretary

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Legislation

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Management and Budget

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Peronnel Administration

Office of the General Counsel

Office of Inspector General

Office for Civil Rights

Office of Consumer Affairs

Office of Human Development Services

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Human Development Services

Administration on Aging

Administration for Children, Youth and Families

Administration for Native Americans

Administration on Developmental Disabilities

Public Health Service

Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry

Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration

Centers for Disease Control

Food and Drug Administration

Health Resources and Services Administration

Indian Health Service

National Institutes of Health

Health Care Financing Administration

Social Security Administration

Family Support Administration.

Under this section, a federally conducted program or activity is, in simple terms, anything a Federal agency does. Aside from employment, there are two major categories of federally conducted programs or activities covered by this regulation: those involving general public contact as part of ongoing agency operations, and those directly administered by the agency for program beneficiaries and participants. Activities in the first category include communication with the public (telephone contacts, office walk-ins, or interviews) and the public's use of the agency's facilities Activities in the second category include programs that provide Federal services or benefits. This regulation does not, however, apply to programs or activities conducted outside the United States that do not involve individuals with handicaps in the United States.

The major programs subject to this regulation are listed below. Each of the components listed above occupies facilities which the public may have occasion to visit, engages in written and oral communication with the public, and hires Federal employees. In addition, some components operate programs which involve extensive public use, as summarized below:

Office of the Secretary-No major operating programs or activities conducted directly by the Federal government.

Office of Human Development Services-No major operating programs or activities conducted directly by the Federal government.1

1 Financial assistance programs conducted through grants to States and other recipients are covered by the section 504 rule for federally assisted programs at 45 CFR Part 84.

Public Health Service-Directly operated programs include the Indian Health Service, and intramural research conducted by the National Institutes of Health.1

Health Care Financing Administration-Directly operates the Medicare program.1

Social Security Administration-Directly operates the Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance, and Supplemental Security Income for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled programs.

Family Support Administration-No major operating programs or activities conducted directly by the Federal government.1

One commenter urged the inclusion of a program operated by one component of the Office of the Secretary, and for a list of all programs and activities to be appended to the regulation. In light of the fact that all programs and activities are covered, that a comprehensive list of all programs would be very lengthy, and that such a list would have to be amended frequently as new programs are enacted and existing programs expire, the above list appears to be sufficient.

Section 45undefined85.3 Definitions.

Agency. For purposes of this part agency means the Department of Health and Human Services or any component part of the Department of Health and Human Services that conducts a program or activity covered by this part. Component agency means any such component part.

Assistant Attorney General. Assistant Attorney General refers to the Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division, United States Department of Justice.

Auxiliary aids. Auxiliary aids means services or devices that enable persons with impaired sensory, manual, or speaking skills to have an equal opportunity to participate in, and enjoy the benefits of, the agency's programs or activities. The definition provides examples of commonly used auxiliary aids. Although auxiliary aids are required explicitly only by §85.51(a)(1), they may also be necessary to meet other requirements of this regulation.

Two commenters suggested expanding the definition of auxiliary aids and one of them further suggested re-naming auxiliary aids to read aids for reasonable accommodation and specifically include the services of attendants.

The items set out in §85.3 are clearly described as examples, and are not intended to constitute an exhaustive list. By giving examples rather than by including a list, other aids can be used, and, in appropriate cases, required, without amending the regulation. In certain instances, the services of attendants may indeed be appropriate; in those instances, they will fall under the definition in §85.3. Therefore, there is no need to change the text of the regulations.

Complete complaint. Complete complaint is defined to include all of the information necessary to enable the agency to investigate the complaint. The definition is necessary, because the 180 day period for the agency's investigation ( see §85.61(g)) begins when the agency receives a complete complaint.

Two commenters stated their belief that the definition of complete complaint is too restrictive, and urged language which would give the complainant specific information as to what additional information is needed and a further 30 days to submit such information, failing which the complaint would be dismissed without prejudice, and the complainant would be so informed.

Procedures similar to this suggestion are currently in place, and complainants will be given reasonable opportunities to complete the information submitted. There appears to be no need to spell these procedures out in the regulation.

Facility. The definition of facility is similar to that in the section 504 coordination regulation for federally assisted programs ( 28 CFR 28undefined41.3(f) ), except that the term rolling stock or other conveyances has been added and the phrase or interest in such property has been deleted because the term facility, as used in...