Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) represents freedom from discrimination to disabled persons. To many business owners, it represents yet another bureaucratic tangle. Briefly stated, ADA regulations require the removal of barriers in existing facilities, the provision of auxiliary aids for people with vision, speech, and hearing impairments, and accessible new constructions and alterations.
There are two parts to this law. One deals with public accommodation and specifies what business owners must do to meet special needs of disabled people. The other deals with employment provisions and how employers must deal with disabled employees and job applicants.
Public Accommodation Regardless of size, a business which is considered a "public accommodation" must eliminate obstacles that restrict accessibility or availability - but only "if it is not too expensive, disruptive, or difficult, and IF reasonable efforts have been made to comply." Small business owners will have to rely on common sense until the courts define "reasonable effort."
Practical and reasonable changes might include providing a wider path of travel for disabled persons, grab bars in bathrooms, modified telephones, 36" doorways, levers on doors instead of knobs, entrance ramps, support rails, removing turnstiles. Be sure to explore options. For instance, if no other practical way of complying with this requirement is found, a sign might be posted on the front door offering sidewalk services to disabled people.
When making (or planning to make) alterations to existing facilities, compliance with this Act must be included in the plans. New construction must meet all accessibility rules.
The cost of complying with this Act is estimated by lawmakers to be nominal - 31% of the changes will cost nothing at all, 19% are expected to cost less than $50, and 31% will cost more than $500. Tax credits of up to 50% of costs incurred between $250 and $10,250 are available to businesses that comply. To be eligible, businesses must have 30 or fewer employees and less than $1 million in gross receipts.
A small business "public accommodation" includes almost every retail, rental, service, entertainment, or transportation business. (Examples include beauty and barber shops, restaurants and bars, motels, bakeries, accounting and law offices, travel and insurance agencies, gas stations, repair services, recreational facilities, day care establishments and private schools, etc.)
All business regardless of size that are considered public accommodations must comply with the public accommodations provisions. |
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