[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 13, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2001]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 13CFR117.11]

[Page 153]
 
                TITLE 13--BUSINESS CREDIT AND ASSISTANCE
 
                CHAPTER I--SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
 
PART 117--NONDISCRIMINATION IN FEDERALLY ASSISTED PROGRAMS OF SBA--EFFECTUATION OF THE AGE DISCRIMINATION ACT OF 1975, AS AMENDED--Table of Contents
 
Sec. 117.11  Complaint procedures.

    (a) Any person who believes that he/she or any specific class of 
individuals is being or has been subjected to discrimination by SBA, a 
recipient, or an applicant for assistance, prohibited by this part may, 
by himself/herself or by a representative, file with SBA a written 
complaint. The complainant has the right to have a representative at all 
stages of the complaint procedure.
    (b) A complaint must be filed not later than 180 days from the date 
of the alleged discrimination, unless the time filing is extended by 
SBA. The Adminstrator, the Director, Office of Equal Employment 
Opportunity and Compliance, and the Chief, Office of Civil Rights 
Compliance, are the only officials who may waive the 180-day time limit 
for filing complaints under this part. SBA will consider the date a 
complaint is filed to be the date upon which the complaint is sufficient 
to be processed.
    (c) Each complaint will be reviewed to ensure that it falls within 
the coverage of the Act and contains all information necessary for 
further processing.
    (d) SBA will attempt to facilitate the filing of complaints wherever 
possible, including taking the following actions:
    (1) Accepting as a sufficient complaint, any written statement which 
identifies the parties involved and the date the complainant first had 
knowledge of the alleged violation, describes generally the action or 
practice complained of, and is signed by the complainant.
    (2) Freely permitting a complainant to add information to the 
complaint to meet the requirements of a sufficient complaint.
    (3) Notifying the complainant and the recipient of their rights and 
obligations under the complaint procedure, including the right to have a 
representative at all stages of the complaint procedure.
    (4) Notifying the complainant and the recipient (or their 
representatives) of their right to contact the Chief, Office of Civil 
Rights Compliance, for information and assistance regarding the 
complaint resolution process.
    (e) SBA will return to the complainant any complaint filed under the 
jurisdiction of this regulation, but found to be outside the 
jurisdiction of this regulation, and will state the reason(s) why it is 
outside the jurisdiction of this regulation.