ADA Compliance for Customer Entry to Stores and Services Act or the ACCESS Act
This bill establishes certain procedural requirements in relation to complaints under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) regarding access to public accommodations (i.e., businesses and nonprofits that are open to the public, such as stores, restaurants, and hotels). It also requires educational outreach and studies by federal agencies to promote ADA compliance.
Specifically, the bill establishes a notice and cure period before a claimant may file a civil action against a public accommodation for failing to remove a barrier to access. Claimants must first provide the owner or operator of the public accommodation with a written notice specific enough to identify the barrier and the circumstances under which access was denied. An owner or operator then has 60 days to respond with a description of forthcoming changes and another 60 days after providing the description to make the changes, or show substantial progress in making the changes, before the claimant may proceed with a civil action.
The bill also requires (1) the Department of Justice (DOJ) to develop a program to educate state and local governments and property owners on strategies to promote ADA compliance, (2) the Judicial Conference of the United States to develop a model program to promote alternative dispute resolution to resolve claims, and (3) the DOJ to study whether certain web content accessibility standards and telephone services provide reasonable accommodations under the ADA.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 241 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 241
To amend the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to promote
compliance through education, to clarify the requirements for demand
letters, to provide for a notice and cure period before the
commencement of a private civil action, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 10, 2023
Mr. Calvert (for himself, Mr. Waltz, and Mr. Grothman) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to promote
compliance through education, to clarify the requirements for demand
letters, to provide for a notice and cure period before the
commencement of a private civil action, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``ADA Compliance for Customer Entry to
Stores and Services Act'' or the ``ACCESS Act''.
SEC. 2. COMPLIANCE THROUGH EDUCATION.
(a) In General.--Based on existing funding, the Disability Rights
Section of the Department of Justice shall, in consultation with
property owners and representatives of the disability rights community,
develop a program to educate State and local governments and property
owners on effective and efficient strategies for promoting access to
public accommodations for persons with a disability (as defined in
section 3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12102)).
Such program may include training for professionals such as Certified
Access Specialists to provide a guidance of remediation for potential
violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
(b) Materials Provided in Other Languages.--The Disability Rights
Section of the Department of Justice shall take appropriate actions, to
the extent practicable, to make technical assistance publications
relating to compliance with this Act and the amendments made by this
Act available in all the languages commonly used by owners and
operators of United States businesses.
SEC. 3. NOTICE AND CURE PERIOD.
Paragraph (1) of section 308(a) of the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12188(a)(1)) is amended to read as follows:
``(1) Availability of remedies and procedures.--
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the
remedies and procedures set forth in section 204(a) of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a-3(a)) are
the remedies and procedures this title provides to any
person who is being subjected to discrimination on the
basis of disability in violation of this title or who
has reasonable grounds for believing that such person
is about to be subjected to discrimination in violation
of section 303. Nothing in this section shall require a
person with a disability to engage in a futile gesture
if such person has actual notice that a person or
organization covered by this title does not intend to
comply with its provisions.
``(B) Barriers to access to existing public
accommodations.--A civil action under section 302 or
303 based on the failure to remove an architectural
barrier to access into an existing public accommodation
may not be commenced by a person aggrieved by such
failure unless--
``(i) that person has provided to the owner
or operator of the accommodation a written
notice specific enough to allow such owner or
operator to identify the barrier; and
``(ii)(I) during the period beginning on
the date the notice is received and ending 60
days after that date, the owner or operator
fails to provide to that person a written
description outlining improvements that will be
made to remove the barrier; or
``(II) if the owner or operator provides
the written description under subclause (I),
the owner or operator fails to remove the
barrier or, in the case of a barrier, the
removal of which requires additional time as a
result of circumstances beyond the control of
the owner or operator, fails to make
substantial progress in removing the barrier
during the period beginning on the date the
description is provided and ending 60 days
after that date.
``(C) Specification of details of alleged
violation.--The written notice required under
subparagraph (B) must also specify in detail the
circumstances under which an individual was actually
denied access to a public accommodation, including the
address of property, whether a request for assistance
in removing an architectural barrier to access was
made, and whether the barrier to access was a permanent
or temporary barrier.''.
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
This Act and the amendments made by this Act take effect 30 days
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 5. MEDIATION FOR ADA ACTIONS RELATED TO ARCHITECTURAL BARRIERS.
The Judicial Conference of the United States shall, under rule 16
of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or any other applicable law, in
consultation with property owners and representatives of the disability
rights community, develop a model program to promote the use of
alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, including a stay of
discovery during mediation, to resolve claims of architectural barriers
to access for public accommodations. To the extent practical, the
Federal Judicial Center should provide a public comment period on any
such proposal. The goal of the model program shall be to promote access
quickly and efficiently without the need for costly litigation. The
model program should include an expedited method for determining the
relevant facts related to such barriers to access and steps taken
before the commencement of litigation to resolve any issues related to
access.
SEC. 6. STUDY REGARDING WCAG 2.0 STANDARDS.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the
Attorney General shall complete a study to determine whether WCAG 2.0
standards, accessibility widgets, or providing a telephone number
through which members of the public can obtain the same information and
services as they would on a website would all provide reasonable
accommodations for individuals with disabilities who are protected by
the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
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