Title
Approval of 2021 Title VI Program Update as Required by Federal Transit Administration
Description
Request City Council approval of the 2021 update to the Title VI Program by the City of Phoenix Public Transit Department, as required by the Federal Transit Administration. The Program's update will be effective Dec. 1, 2021 through Nov. 30, 2024.
Report
Summary
As required by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964: “No person in the United States shall, on the grounds of race, color, and national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”
Every three years, each recipient of federal funding must submit an updated Title VI Program that documents compliance with federal guidance. As the designated recipient of Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funding for the Phoenix-Metro region, the Public Transit Department (PTD) is required to submit these triennial updates for the Program on behalf of the region. FTA guidance requires that the Program's updates be approved by the City Council.
The current Title VI Program, which was approved by Council in November 2018, will expire on Nov. 30, 2021. The updated Program will be in effect from Dec. 1, 2021 through Nov. 30, 2024.
PTD has collaborated with Valley Metro and other regional partners on this 2021 update to the Title VI Program, which PTD will submit to FTA on the region's behalf. The updated Program's elements include:
- A signed Title VI assurance and governing body approval of the overall Title VI Program;
- A copy of the agency’s public notice with a list of where the notice is posted;
- Instructions for how to file a complaint with a copy of the complaint form;
- A list of any Title VI investigations, lawsuits or complaints and how they were addressed and resolved by PTD;
- A Public Participation Plan and list of outreach activities conducted since the last submission;
- A Language Assistance Plan for providing language assistance, as needed;
- A table depicting the racial composition of transportation-related committees, board and advisory councils;
- Title VI analyses conducted for applicable facilities;
- System-wide standards and policies;
- Demographic and service profile maps and charts;
- A fare and service equity policy;
- Origin and destination data to include customer travel patterns and demographic makeup;
- A service monitoring program; and
- Description of how primary recipient of FTA funding monitors subrecipients.
A draft of the plan is available online at: https://www.phoenix.gov/publictransitsite/Documents/TITLE_VI_PROGRAM_UPDATE.pdf
A printed version can be requested by: phone at 602-262-7242; email at pubtrans@phoenix.gov; or mail at 302 N. 1st Ave., Suite 900, Phoenix, Ariz. 85003.
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager Mario Paniagua and the Public Transit Department.