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Department
of Human Services Families
First Online Policy Manual Rights and Responsibilities |
Revised: |
31.23 |
TITLE VI
PROHIBITION ON DISCRIMINATORY CONDUCT IN FEDERALLY FUNDED PROGRAMS AND
ACTIVITIES
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DHS may not discriminate against people on
the basis of race, color, national origin, disability, or age in how we
administer our programs or activities. DHS may not indirectly discriminate on these bases through contractors
or by means of any other arrangement.
The Department is responsible for ensuring that our contractors
administer their programs in a nondiscriminatory manner. Public
entities and private contractors that contract with the state to administer
welfare programs are subject to the nondiscrimination statutes because they
act as agents of DHS in carrying out the program or activity, not because
they are recipients of federal assistance. DHS may not exclude or deny
welfare benefits to persons based on their race, color, national origin,
disability, or age, or on the basis of sex in educational programs. Examples: ·
DHS caseworkers may not reject an applicant
for benefits because he/she is or appears to be an African-American,
Hispanic, Asian, American Indian, Alaskan native, or a member of another
racial or ethnic group. If an
applicant declares that he/she is a U.S. citizen, no further verification is
required unless there is reason to question the statement. ·
Caseworkers may not reject an application
based on the assumption that a person with a foreign-sounding last name is
not a citizen and therefore is not eligible. ·
Neither DHS caseworkers nor the employees
of a Families First contractor may deny benefits to persons who are not
fluent in English because they assume persons who are, or appear to be, from
other countries and are not English proficient are not eligible for such benefits. DHS may not impose different
standards or procedures to determine who may receive benefits on the basis of race, color, national origin,
disability, or age, or on the basis of sex in educational programs. Examples: ·
A Families
First caseworker may not accept a self-declaration of qualified immigration
status requiring verification from applicants who appear to be of African
origin, yet require all immigrants from Spanish speaking nations to submit
INS documentation because of an assumption that these applicants are
illegal aliens. ·
Families First
personnel may not report suspected illegal aliens to the INS on the basis of
race, color, or national origin.
Independent evidence supporting illegal alien status is necessary. ·
An employee
of a contractor hired by the state may not delay a review of referrals from
older individuals until after she evaluates referrals from younger persons. DHS may not provide different
benefits to persons on the basis of their race, color, national origin,
disability, age, or on the basis of sex in educational programs. Examples: ·
Do not reject applicants for job training
programs because they are or appear to be Hispanic. ·
Do not assume that a single mother with
four children will be unable to complete a rigorous training course because
of her family responsibilities. ·
A DHS office located in an area consisting
of Hispanic immigrants with limited English proficiency must provide written
materials or other communication services in both English and Spanish that
describe all of the benefits and services offered to applicants and
participants. |
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