Grievance Procedure
This Grievance Procedure is established to meet the requirements of federal, state, and local laws and regulations which prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin or ancestry, source of income or physical handicap in the administration of programs or activities. It may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination on the basis of these protected categories in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by the City of Albuquerque. The City of Albuquerque's Personnel Policy governs employment-related complaints of discrimination for city employees. For all other complaints, there is an informal and formal process.
Informal Complaint Process
The Office of Civil Rights makes every attempt to help resolve citizen concerns by making sure complaints are directed to the correct city department. The informal inquiry/complaint should be made to the Office of Civil Rights. The Office of Civil Rights will then connect you with the correct city department.
Inquiries and complaints can be made via email, phone call, or any other mechanism available to the complainant upon request.
At a minimum, please provide contact information, date of incident, and a description of the problem.
Formal Complaint Process
If you feel the complaint has not been resolved through the informal process, a formal complaint may be filed. The formal complaint should be in writing or any other accessible medium and contain: contact information, a brief summary of the issue and how the informal complaint has not adequately resolved your concern.
The formal complaint should be submitted by the grievant and/or his/her representative as soon as possible but no later than 45 calendar days after the alleged violation or 10 days after the informal resolution has been closed.
Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the complaint, the Office of Civil Rights or the responsible city department will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and the possible resolutions. Within 30 calendar days of the meeting, the responsible city department or their designee will respond in writing, and where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, such as large print, Braille, or audiotape.
If the response by the responsible city department or their designee does not satisfactorily resolve the issue, the complainant and/or his/her representative may appeal the decision within 15 calendar days after receipt of the response to the City of Albuquerque’s Chief Administrative Officer or designee. Within 15 calendar days after receipt of the appeal, the City of Albuquerque’s Chief Administrative Officer or designee will contact the complainant to discuss the complaint and possible resolutions. Within 15 calendar days after the meeting, the City of Albuquerque Chief Administrative Officer or designee will respond in writing, and, where appropriate, in a format accessible to the complainant, with a final resolution of the complaint.
All written complaints received by the Office of Civil Rights or their designee, appeals to the Chief Administrative Officer or designee, and responses from these offices will be retained by the City of Albuquerque for at least one year.