Reviewed 12/2011
Americans with Disabilities Act
Contents
Introduction
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed July 26, 1990 as Public Law 101-336 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et seq ) and became effective on January 26, 1992. The ADA is landmark federal legislation that opens up services and employment opportunities to the 43 million Americans with disabilities. The law was written to strike a balance between the reasonable accommodation of citizens' needs and the capacity of private and public entities to respond. It is not an affirmative action law but is intended to eliminate illegal discrimination and level the playing field for disabled individuals.
The law is comprised of five titles that prohibit discrimination against disabled persons within the United States. Titles I and II are the primary sections that affect local governments.
Title I prohibits employers, including cities and towns, from discriminating against qualified job applicants and workers who are or who become disabled. The law covers all aspects of employment including the application process and hiring, training, compensation, advancement, and any other employment term, condition, or privilege.
Title II prohibits state and local governments from discriminating against disabled persons in their programs and activities. Title II also sets forth the applicable structural accessibility requirements for public entities.
Title III prohibits private enterprises who provide public accommodations and services (e.g., hotels, restaurants, and transit systems) from denying goods, services and programs to people based on their disabilities. Title III also sets forth the applicable structural accessibility requirements for private entities.
Title IV makes available telecommunications devices and services for the hearing and speech impaired. These regulations spell out certain mandatory minimum standards telephone companies must maintain to be in compliance with the ADA.
Title V includes some miscellaneous provisions that relate to the construction and application of the ADA, including alternative dispute resolution.
This webpage is intended to provide local officials with documents and information to help clarify understanding and implementation of the law. There is one source of information, the ADA Document Portal, that provides comprehensive access to statutes, regulations, opinions, and guides regarding the ADA; if you are unable to find an answer to your questions from the resources set out below, the ADA Document Portal might prove helpful. Of course, local officials are encouraged to contact the Municipal Research and Services Center for assistance.
Legal References
Statutes
- Americans with Disabilities Act
- ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (S. 3406)
- Laws of 2007, ch. 317 (
) - 2007 legislation that redefines the term "disability" under Washington law
Regulations
- Revised ADA regulations, effective 03/15/2011
- 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design
- Regulations implementing Equal Employment provisions of the ADA
Documents
General/Introductory
- Overview of the Americans with Disabilities Act, by the ADA National Network
- ADA Regulations and Technical Assistance Materials, Free ADA Materials from the Department of Justice
- ADA Requirements For Small Towns - Information relating to required compliance with the ADA by towns, small cities, school districts, water districts, special purpose districts, and other small local governments and instrumentalities.
- The Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA): Statutory Language and Recent Issues () - The Congressional Research Service of the Library of Congress has prepared a short explanation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and of the ten Supreme Court decisions issued or under consideration under that Act as of 06/2001.
- Cities and Counties: First Steps Toward Solving Common ADA Problems, prepared by the U.S. Department of Justice - A short article, with useful photos
- Definition of Disibility is Expanded under Washington Law, by the Washington State Human Rights Commission
- The ADA Amendments Act of 2008, prepared by the Southwest ADA Center - Paper discussing amendments to the ADA that went into effect 01/01/2009
- ADA Best Practices Tool Kit for State and Local Governments - The Tool Kit is designed to teach state and local government officials how to identify and fix problems that prevent people with disabilities from gaining equal access to state and local government programs, services, and activities. It will also teach state and local officials how to conduct accessibility surveys of their buildings and facilities to identify and remove architectural barriers to access.
- The ADA and City Governments: Common Problems - This document contains a sampling of common problems shared by city governments of all sizes that have been identified through the Department of Justice's ongoing enforcement efforts. The document provides examples of common deficiencies and explains how these problems affect persons with disabilities.
- Questions and Answers on the Final Rule Implementing the ADA Amendments Act of 2008
- Fact Sheet on the EEOC’s Final Regulations Implementing the ADAAA
Employment (ADA Title I)
- ADA Title I Technical Assistance Manual on the Employment Provisions - Title I of the Americans With Disabilities Act, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, 01/1992
- The ADA: Your Responsibilities as an Employer - A brief discussion of personnel issues, such as reasonable accommodations and medical examinations, updated to reflect several the 1999 decisions of the Supreme Court's in Sutton v. United Airlines, Inc. 527 U.S.471, 119 S.Ct. 2139 (1999), and Murphy v. United Parcel Service, Inc., 527 U.S.516, 119 S.Ct. 2133 (1999)
- Americans with Disabilities Act, Questions and Answers, from the U.S. Department of Justice website
- Enforcement Guidance: Disability-Related Questions and Medical Examinations of Employees Under the ADA (), paper issued by the EEOC, 07/27/2000
- Enforcement Guidance: Reasonable Accommodation and Undue Hardship Under the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) - How to provide reasonable accomodation to employees and potential employees from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
- Fact Sheet on Obtaining and Using Employee Medical Information to Develop Emergency Evacuation Procedures - A fact sheet developed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, set out in question and answer format, to use in the development of procedures for the evacuation of employees from the workplace in times of emergency, including those who may have disabilities.
- Job Applicants and the Americans with Disabilities Act, paper prepared by the U.S. EEOC
- Questions and Answers: The ADA and Hiring Police Officers - A 5-page publication providing information on ADA requirements for interviewing and hiring police officers
- Small Employers and Reasonable Accomodation - A fact sheet by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- Work at home/Telework as a reasonable accommodation - A question and answer format discussing the possibility of an employer accommodating a disability by allowing a person with disabilities to work at home.
- Questions and Answers, Americans with Disabilities Act, Department of Justice, Equal Employment Opportunities Commission
- ADAAA Highlights - A helpful article outlining the 2008 amendments to the ADA and their implication for Washington employers. Published in the October 2008 AWC Personnel News and written by Kristin Anger, Summit Law Group.
State and Local Governments (ADA Title II)
- ADA Title II Highlights - A summary of the ADA Title II provisions applicable to public entities
- ADA Title II Technical Assistance Manual, U.S. Department of Justice technical assistance manual - Title II applies specifically to state and local government programs and services.
- ADA Title II Technical Assistance Manual, 1994 Supplement - This U.S. Department of Justice manual is a 1994 update for the above-mentioned Title II manual.
- Commonly Asked Questions regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act and Law Enforcement - A 13-page publication providing information for law enforcement agencies in a simple question and answer format.
- Questions and Answers: The ADA and Hiring Police Officers - A 5-page publication providing information on ADA requirements for interviewing and hiring police officers.
- Guidelines For Play Areas - Final guidelines providing a comprehensive set of criteria for access to play areas, covering the number of play components required to be accessible, accessible surfacing in play areas, ramp access and transfer system access to elevated structures, and access to soft contained play structures. The guidelines address play areas provided at schools, parks, child care facilities (except those based in the operator's home, which are exempt), and other facilities subject to the ADA.
- An ADA Guide for Local Governments: Making Community Emergency Preparedness and Response Programs Accessible to People with Disabilities, U.S. Department of Justice, 2006
- Accessibility of State and Local Government Websites to People with Disabilities - Discussion and examples of how to design webpages in order to make them more accessible to persons with disabilities
- Questions and Answers about Deafness and Hearing Impairments in the Workplace and the Americans with Disabilities Act
- Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in State and Local Government Services - U.S. Department of Justice final rule implementing Subtitle A of Title II of the ADA, Pub. L. 101-336, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by public entities.
- Barden v. City of Sacramento - Sidewalks must be accessible under the ADA. A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled in the case Barden v. City of Sacramento in 2001 that sidewalks installed and maintained by local governments must be accessible to persons with disabilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). (The Ninth Circuit serves the state of Washington.) Under the decision, the city of Sacramento, California was advised that not only must it provide curb ramps at intersections on newly-constructed or remodeled roadways and walkways, it must have a program which will assure the accessibility of all its sidewalks between curb ramps. The ruling means that governments will be obligated to remove barriers from their sidewalks, such as benches, wires, cracks, breaks, and sign posts, if their presence poses a barrier to the accessibility of the sidewalk to, for example, persons using wheelchairs or those with sight impairments. The decision is based upon the court's holding that the operation of sidewalks is a municipal "service, program, or activity" under the ADA and that maintaining a public sidewalk is a "normal function of a governmental entity." The city appealed the decision to the United States Supreme Court which in June 2003 rejected the appeal without comment.
- Service Animals, Department of Justice, 7/12/2011 - New rules regarding use of service animals
- Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 - Addresses barriers to accessing the Web experienced by people with visual, auditory, physical, cognitive and neurological disabilities, and by older individuals
- Americans with Disabilities Act Information for Law Enforcement - Links to information prepared by the Department of Justice
- Federal Transit Administration - Links and information concerning the ADA and transit operations
Public Accomodations and Services (ADA Title III)
- ADA Title III Technical Assistance Manual, U.S. Department of Justice technical assistance manual - Title III applies to public accommodations and commercial facilities.
- ADA Title III Technical Assistance Manual, 1994 Supplement - This U.S. Department of Justice manual is a 1994 update for the above-mentioned Title III manual.
- Matrix (), prepared by the International Code Council comparing ADA accessibility guidelines with the 2006 International Building Code
Washington Sample Documents
- Clark County Policy for Compliance Regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (), 07/2008
- Clarkston Policy and Notice Regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act (), 03/2010
- Lynnwood Notice under the Americans with Disabilites Act (), 03/2001
- Port Angeles Americans with Disabilities Act Policy and Notice (), 08/2008
- Tumwater Compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (), 12/2000
- Wenatchee Policy for Compliance Regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (), 05/2010
- Yakima
- Americans with Disabilities Act Grievance Procedure (), 11/2007
- Transit ADA Policy (), 11/2010
- Americans with Disabilities Act Grievance Procedure (
Additional References
- Selected MRSC Library Holdings
- Americans With Disabilities Act Home Page, the U.S. Department of Justice ADA Home page
- ADA Information Center
- The Access Board - A federal agency devoted to accessible design; newsletter, resources, rules
- ADA Information Services, prepared by the Department of Justice
- ADA Document Portal, U. S. Department of Education - Resource/link to over 7,000 ADA documents
- ADA Technical Assistance Program - Resource for information on the Americans with Disabilities Act, accessible information technology, and more
- Disability Resources Monthly - An excellent comprehensive newsletter prepared by Disability Resources, a nonprofit organization that provides information about resources for independent living. The newsletter provides great links to assistance available within the state of Washington.
- Job Accommodation Network - The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is a free service of the Office of Disability Employment Policy of the U.S. Department of Labor.
- Jobs Accommodations Network, ADA Hotlinks and Document Center
- ADA Technical Assistance Program - A comprehensive resource for information on the Americans with Disabilities Act and accessible information technology
- Disability Rights online News - A bi-monthly update about the Civil Rights Division's activities in the area of disability rights