Iowa Administrative Code › Agency 161 - Civil Rights Commission › Chapter 3 - Complaint Process › Rule 161-3.12 - Administrative Review and Closure

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 3, July 24, 2024
(1)
Preliminary screening.
a.
Questionnaire.
As soon as practicable after receipt of a
			 complaint, the commission may draft and mail to the parties written
			 questionnaires. Respondent and complainant may respond via regular, certified
			 or local mail, electronic mail, or online via the commission's case management
			 system. Complainant and respondent will receive different sets of questions as
			 the complainant and respondent typically have different items of information
			 and different interpretations of the facts. The questionnaire will be as
			 specific as practicable to the particular complaint.
b.
Responses to the
			 questionnaire.
(1) Respondent and
			 complainant are required to respond in writing to their respective
			 questionnaires. The answers ordinarily should be responsive to the questions
			 asked, though elaboration is encouraged. If a question does not apply, the
			 responder can so indicate. In lieu of answers responsive to the particular
			 questions, the commission will accept written position statements, provided the
			 statements respond to the allegations. The position statements should cover the
			 same general subject areas covered by the questionnaire. Accompanying
			 supportive evidence is required, including application materials, job
			 descriptions, organizational charts, selection procedures, policies,
			 procedures, employee handbooks, job descriptions, signed statements from
			 witnesses, performance evaluations, discipline records. E-mails, photographs,
			 internal investigation records, and other documents that are relevant. The
			 documents should encompass how the complainant was treated and how persons
			 similarly situated to the complainant were treated.
(2) Responses are due 30 days from the
			 mailing of the questionnaire. Extensions will be granted on an informal basis.
			 Requests for extensions may be oral and may be granted or denied orally. No
			 notice of the request for an extension or of the disposition of that request
			 need be given to the nonrequesting party. A requesting party may assume the
			 extension is approved unless otherwise notified. Requests for extensions may be
			 granted for 30 days or less. Extensions greater than 30 days may be subject to
			 review by the executive director or designee. The legislature encourages
			 preliminary screening to be completed within 120 days of the filing of the
			 complaint; therefore, requests for extensions are strongly discouraged. A
			 request for an extension by a party shall constitute a waiver by that party of
			 any objection to the commission taking longer than the 120-day period to screen
			 the complaint.
c.
Failure to respond.
(1)
			 Complainant. A complaint may be administratively closed when a complainant
			 fails to respond to the questionnaire.
(2) Respondent. A complaint may be screened
			 in and assigned to investigation when a respondent fails to respond to the
			 questionnaire. Also, information may be sought pursuant to the commission's
			 subpoena procedures.
d.
Suggested procedure in answering questionnaire.
Answers should
			 be as clear and as precise as possible. Answers too long to be placed on the
			 questionnaire itself should be numbered by part and question number and placed
			 on a separate sheet. The parties are encouraged to submit as much supporting
			 documentation as possible including affidavits of witnesses and documentation
			 of treatment of individuals comparable to the complainant. Where not readily
			 apparent, the significance of the submitted supporting documentation should be
			 explained. This may be done through an answer that refers the commission to a
			 particular item of the submitted supporting documentation.
e.
Preliminary screening
			 process.
As soon as practicable after the receipt of all materials
			 responsive to the questionnaires, the executive director or designee shall
			 review the submitted answers and materials. The executive director or designee
			 shall then determine whether the case will be "screened in" as warranting
			 further processing or "screened out" as not warranting further
			 investigation.
f.
Standard
			 for screening.
A case will be screened in when further processing is
			 warranted. Further processing is warranted when the collected information
			 indicates a reasonable possibility of a probable cause determination or the
			 legal issues in the complaint need development.
g.
Effect of screen out.
A
			 complaint determined not to warrant further processing shall be
			 administratively closed.
h.
Effect of failure to follow screening procedure.
Preliminary
			 screening is a tool to remove from the commission's active complaints those
			 cases which the collected preliminary information indicates do not warrant
			 further processing. Irregularities in the preliminary screening of a complaint,
			 failure to complete preliminary screening within 120 days of the filing of the
			 complaint, or failure to follow the preliminary screening procedure altogether
			 shall not, by itself, in any way prejudice the rights of either
			 party.