03/2005 |
AIA Calls for Clear Rules in Accessibility Guidelines | |||||||||||
The AIA will urge the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to ensure that the newly proposed Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) are adopted and enforced in a way that is “consistent, clear, and certain.” The comments come in response to the department’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for the new ADAAG, published by the U.S. Access Board in July 2004. Comments are due by May 31. This effort represents the first major revision to the ADAAG since they were implemented following the 1990 enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The DOJ has not issued a specific timeline for formal adoption and enforcement of the new ADAAG. The AIA’s comments address a number of key issues that DOJ raised in its advance notice, including:
Creating a transparent process The AIA then convened a task force of AIA Codes and Standards Committee members and representatives from participating knowledge communities, which met in Dallas in January 2005 to review comments from individual AIA members and draft the AIA’s comments. The task force, led by Codes and Standards Committee Chair Holly Gerberding, AIA, prepared a draft for further consideration by the AIA. The draft comments were circulated at the State Government Network meeting during the February Grassroots conference in Washington. The Advocacy Committee of the Board of Directors considered the draft comments at its meeting March 8 for additional input prior to the Board’s review. Following completion of that review, the AIA’s comments will be submitted to the Justice Department. After DOJ receives all comments, it will develop a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, in which it will propose how the new ADAAG will be implemented and enforced. There will be another comment period following that notice. After that period closes, the Justice Department will issue its Final Rule and the timetable for its enforcement. Copyright 2005 The American Institute of Architects. All rights reserved. Home Page |
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