Title VI

It is the policy of Mountain Mobility and Buncombe County to ensure compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; 49 CFR, Part 21; related statutes and regulations that ensure no person in the United States shall, on the grounds of race, color, sex, age, national origin, or disability, be excluded from participation in, or be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving federal or state financial assistance from the NC Department of Transportation or the US Department of Transportation.

Any person that believes he or she has been discriminated against should contact:

Mountain Mobility typically accommodates requests for modifications within its normal business practices and procedures through its efforts to provide good customer service and quality transportation services to every passenger.

Guidelines and procedures are provided for passengers or their representatives to request modifications to policies, procedures, and practices that cannot be made in the normal course of business by the driver and/or administrative or operational staff without supervisory assistance or which requires further review to determine if the request can be accommodated.

It is the policy of Buncombe County to: provide minorities equal opportunity to participate in all aspects of County contracting and purchasing programs, including but not limited to, participation in procurement contracts for equipment, professional and other services contracts, and construction contracts; prohibit discrimination against any person or business in pursuit of these opportunities on the basis of race, color sex, religion, disability or national origin; and conduct its contracting and purchasing programs so as to prevent any discrimination and resolve all claims of such discrimination.

Buncombe County will actively seek to identify qualified minority businesses and offer them an opportunity to participate as providers of goods and services to the County. This policy is not intended in any manner to require contracts be awarded to anyone other than the lowest responsible bidder; or supersede the requirement of any federal, state or local laws and rules, regulations and policies adopted thereto.

Buncombe County requires certification for minority, disadvantaged or women-owned businesses. Any business that desires to participate as a MBE will be required to complete and submit for certification, documents required by any of the agencies listed.

Only those firms holding current certification through at least one of the following agencies will be considered eligible for inclusion in meeting the MBE participation percentage goals:

• North Carolina Department of Administration – Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) certification
• North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Minority/Disadvantaged/Women-owned Business certification
• Other governmental agencies on a case-by-case basis.
• Small Business Administration 8(a) certification

Each state’s Department of Transportation administers a Unified Certification Program (UCP). The purpose of a UCP is to provide "one-stop shopping" for applicants to apply for DBE certification, such that an applicant is required to apply only once for a DBE certification that and it will be honored by all agencies that are recipients of USDOT funding in the state, including Buncombe County.

When a DBE is certified through the UCP, it is included in the UCP Directory. Bidders needing to perform outreach to DBEs for their bid can use the UCP Directory to locate potential DBE subcontractors and suppliers. Firms must apply for certification as a DBE to NCDOT by completing the UCP application located on the NCDOT website.

Examples of some DBE Certifications are below. A complete list of NCDOT UCP certified DBEs is available on the NCDOT website.

• North Carolina Department of Administration – Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) certification
• North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Minority/Disadvantaged/Women-owned Business certification
• Other governmental agencies on a case-by-case basis.
• Small Business Administration 8(a) certification

On September 27, 2005 the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution authorizing the electronic posting of advertisements for piggybacking and surplus auctions on the County website in lieu of publishing legal notices in local newspapers. This resolution is backed up by North Carolina General Statute 143-129(g) as amended.

A complete list of current electronic advertisements is available on the Buncombe County Purchasing website.

Suppliers interested in selling to Buncombe County should visit the Procurement Department Supplier Registration & Bidding Opportunities website. The Purchasing Division encourages MBE and DBE participation in the bid process.