The FTA Office of Civil Rights is responsible for ensuring public transit providers comply with all nondiscrimination requirements. The office oversees the implementation of laws and regulations that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, disability, and age in the provision of services to the public. The office provides technical assistance and training and conducts complaint investigations, compliance reviews, and recipient program plan reviews to ensure public transit providers fulfill civil rights requirements. Major programs the office implements include Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program, and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Program.
FTA monitors compliance with applicable civil rights program regulations and requirements through (1) the conduct of Triennial Reviews and State Management Reviews, (2) the conduct of full-scope specialty compliance reviews to confirm implementation of civil rights program compliance, (3) the required administrative periodic review (usually every 3-4 years) of documented grantee Title VI, EEO, and DBE programs, and review of grantee DBE goal methodologies.
Since 2005, DMP has been instrumental in assisting FTA advance its Civil Rights oversight program. We have performed numerous Title VI, EEO, and DBE FTA full scope specialized compliance reviews in that time, including reviews of Los Angeles MTA, New York City Transit, Bay Area Rapid Transit, New Jersey Transit, New York City DOT, Houston METRO, Miami Dade Transit and the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System. We have also reviewed smaller public transit agencies such as Georgia RTA, Nashville MTA, Brazos Transit District, and Kitsap Transit and state DOT’s such as Colorado DOT and Virginia DOT.
Beginning in 2023, DMP expanded its support of FTA’s civil rights oversight program when it was tasked with reviewing recipients’ triennial Title VI programs, triennial DBE goal methodologies, quadrennial EEO programs, and DBE programs, as well as Transit Vehicle Manufacturer DBE goal methodologies and DBE programs. Finally, DMP assists FTA with the investigation of civil rights complaints.