Highlights of the directive are:

• Applicants must submit a request for a reasonable accommodation, orally or in writing, for any part of the application or hiring process, to the Office of Human Resources Management (HRM) staff member identified in the job opportunity announcement or the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) when OPM is the agency that is administering assessments to applicants;
  
• An employee may submit a request for a reasonable accommodation, orally or in writing, to his or her supervisor, another management official in the chain of command, or to an Office of Diversity and Civil Rights (DCR) staff member. Requests may also be submitted by someone acting on the employee’s behalf, such as a family member, friend, health care provider or other representative;
  
• Bargaining unit employees are entitled to be assisted in the reasonable accommodation process by a personal representative of their choosing;
  
• All uniform wear and personal appearance standard waiver requests by employees covered by the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) will be processed in accordance with the NTEU Contract Article 44, Section1;
  
• Funding of accommodations, such as interpreters, readers, personal assistants, and job coaches, is the responsibility of the office where the individual making the request is employed; and
  
• All requests for technology shall be coordinated with the Section 508 Compliance Officer assigned to the Office of Information Technology.

Specifically, CBP managers and supervisors are instructed on the following steps for handling reasonable accommodations:

1. Recognize when an employee is requesting a reasonable accommodation. The reasonable accommodation process begins as soon as the request for accommodation is made either orally or in writing. The request does not have to use any special words, such as "reasonable accommodation," "disability," or "Rehabilitation Act." An individual with a disability may request a reasonable accommodation whenever he/she chooses, even if he/she has not previously disclosed the existence of a disability.

2. Upon receipt of a request for accommodation, contact your local DCR staff member. She or he will facilitate the interactive discussion between the employee and management official and/or Decision-maker to determine whether the employee is a qualified individual with a disability, and if so, to determine the reasonable accommodation that would be most effective under the circumstances.