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Providing Services to Limited English Proficiency (LEP) Individuals In accordance with DOS guidance pertaining to Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,42 U.S.C. § 2000d, recipients of federal financial assistance must take reasonable steps to provide meaningful access to their programs and activities for persons with limited English proficiency (LEP). See U.S. Department of Justice, Guidance to Federal Financial Assistance Recipients Regarding Title VI Prohibition Against National Origin Discrimination Affecting Limited English Proficient Persons, 67 Fed. Reg. 41,455 (2002). For more information on the civil rights responsibilities that recipients have in providing language services to LEP individuals, please see the website hfps://www.lep.gov. Ensuring Equal Treatment of Faith -Based Organizations and Safeguarding Constitutional Protections Related to Religion The DOJ regulation, Partnerships with Faith -Based and Other Neighborhood Organizations, 28 C.F.R. pt. 38, updated in April 2016, prohibits all recipient organizations, whether they are law enforcement agencies, governmental agencies, educational institutions, houses of worship, or faith -based organizations, from using financial assistance from the DOI to food explicitly religious activities. Explicitly religious activities include worship, religious instruction, or proselytization. While funded organizations may engage in non -funded explicitly religious activities (e.g., prayer), they must hold them separately from the activities funded by the DOJ, and recipients cannot compel beneficiaries to participate in them. The regulation also makes clear that organizations participating in programs funded by the DOI are not permitted to discr inmate in the provision of services on the basis of a beneficiary's religion, religious belief, a refusal to hold a religious belief, or a refusal to attend or participate in a religious practice. Funded faith -based organizations mast also provide written notice to beneficiaries, advising them that if they should object to the religious character of the funded faith based organization, the funded faith -based organization will take reasonable steps to refer the beneficiary to an alternative service provider. For more information on the regulation, please see the OCR's website at https://ojp.gov/about/ocr/partnemhips.hun, SAAs and faith -based organizations should also note that the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act (Safe Streets Act) of 1968, es amended, 34 U.S.C. § 10228(c); the Victims of Crime Act of 1984, as amended, 34 U.S.C. § 20110(e); the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974, as amended, 34 U.S.C. § I I182(b); and VAWA, as amended, 34 U.S.C. § 12291(bx13), contain prohibitions against discrimination on the basis of religion in employment. Despite these nondiscrimination provisions, the DOJ has concluded that it may constme the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) on a ease -by - case basis to permit some faith -based organisations to receive DOJ funds while taking into account religion when hiring staff, even if the statute that authorizes die funding program generally forbids recipients from considering religion in employment decisions. Please consult with the OCR if you have any questions about the regulation or the application of RFRA to the statutes that prohibit discrimination in employment. Using Arrest and Conviction Records in Making Employment Decisions The OCR issued an advisory document for recipients on the proper use of arrest and conviction records in making hiring decisions. See Advisory for Recipients of Financial Assistance from the U.S. Department of Justice on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's Enforcement Guidance: Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in EmploymenrDecisions Under 77de V11 of the Civil Rights Act of1964(June 2013), available at https://ojp.gov/about/ocr/pdfs/lJsco(Conviction_Advisory.pdf Recipients should be mindful that the misuse of armst or conviction records to screen either applicants for employment or employees for retention or promotion may have a disparate impact based on race or national origin, resulting in unlawful employment discrimination. In tight of the Advisory, recipients should consult local counsel in reviewing their employment practices. If warranted, recipients should also incorporate an analysis of the use of arrest and conviction records in their Equal Employment Opportunity Plana (EEOPs) (see below). Complying with the Safe Streets Act An organization that is a recipient of financial assistance subject to the nondiscrimination provisions of the Safe Streets Act, most meet two obligations: (1) complying with the federal regulation pertaining to the development of an EEOP (see 28 C.F.R. pt. 42, subpt. E) and (2) submitting to the OCR findings of discrimination (see 28 C.F.R. §§ 42.204(c), .205(e)(5)). 20A-44