Compliance and Enforcement under the

AODA

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Background

With the enactment of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA), Ontario became the first jurisdiction to mandate accessibility reporting in both the public and private sectors

The AODA provides for the development, implementation and the enforcement of accessibility standards to achieve the goal of an Ontario that is accessible for persons with disabilities by 2025

The AODA applies to any organization in Ontario with one of more employees that provides goods or services

The standards are being phased in over years to allow organizations the opportunity to meet the requirements and have them implemented in a timely manner

A Compliance Assurance Framework that includes a series of processes to make organizations comply with the Act and its standards has been implemented to effectively oversee compliance and enforcement of the AODA

Compliance and Enforcement Framework

Compliance Assistance

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Compliance Improvement

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Audits

Dedicated Help Desk

Public Education

Return to Compliance

Plans AccessON website

and Resources

Inspections &

Enforcement

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Director’s Orders

Inspections

Notice of Orders

Prosecution

With financial penalties

Appeals

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Compliance Assistance

An emphasis on providing education and outreach that

prepares organizations to understand and meet their

requirements under the AODA.

The Accessibility Directorate of Ontario provides 1:1

assistance through its dedicated Help Desk

Education and awareness efforts also include:

• Attending key events, conferences, etc

• Establishing partnerships with key associations

and umbrella groups

• Providing free tools, resources and timelines via

the Directorate’s online “e-wizard” available at

www.ontario.ca/AccessON

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Compliance

Assistance

Public Education

Dedicated Help Desk

AccessON website and

Resources

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Self-Certification Reporting

The ADO oversees compliance with the AODA and its standards primarily through

the review of self-certified accessibility reports that organizations must submit to

government

All public sector, private and non-profit organizations are required to file a report,

unless specifically exempt by regulation (i.e., organizations with less than 20

employees)

In order to reduce the burden for organizations having to report, the government regulated the following reporting frequency:

• Private/non-profit sector organizations report every 3 years (2014, 2017, etc.)

• Public Sector organizations report every 2 years (2015, 2017, etc.)

• Government of Ontario/Legislative Assembly offices report every year

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Filing your Accessibility Compliance Report

Public Sector organizations can access their accessibility compliance report by

registering through a ONe-key account

Private sector and those not-for-profit organizations with business numbers, can

access their accessibility compliance report by registering through a ONe-Source

account

Once registered, organizations can complete their compliance report on line by: Answering some questions that determine which requirements apply to your organization

Answering 4-15 yes/no questions indicating whether your organization is complying with its current

requirements

Confirming that the person submitting the compliance report has the authority to bind the organization

NOTE: While a report can be filled out by anyone in the organization, only a person

with the authority to legally bind the organization is permitted to finally sign and

submit it. For the purposes of reporting, this person is referred to as the “Certifier”

Filing your Accessibility Compliance Report

• For the current reporting year, the Directorate has developed detailed instructions

that walk private and non-profit sector users through the steps to file Accessibility

Reports. The instructions are available on the accessibility reporting page at

www.ontario.ca/AccessON

– In order to complete the filing process, you will need your organization’s:

• Full contact information

• 9-digit Business Number

• Highest employee count during the last 12 months (at any one time)

• If organizations would rather a printable PDF version of the instructions, there are two

versions available (one for private / non-profit sector and one for public sector). To

receive a copy, please send your request to accessibility@ontario.ca

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Sample 2014 Report Questions (20-49 Employees)

• Does your organization comply with the requirements of the customer service

standard that came into effect on January 1, 2012?

• Does your organization have policies, practices and procedures about providing

goods or services to people with disabilities?

• Have you established and documented a process to receive and respond to feedback

from the public about how you provide goods or services to people with disabilities,

as well as actions that you will take if you receive a complaint?

• Do you ensure that every person listed below receives training about providing goods

or services to people with disabilities:

– every person who deals with the public or third parties on behalf of your

organization, and

– every person who participates in developing your policies, practices and

procedures about providing goods or services.

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Sample 2014 Report Questions (50+ Employees)

In addition to the questions listed on the previous slide:

• Do you make your accessibility policies available to the public?

• When asked, do you provide tailored emergency response information for your employees who have disabilities?

• Have you established, implemented, maintained and posted a multi-year accessibility plan?

If you have emergency information that you make available to the public:

• When asked, do you provide emergency procedures, plans or public safety information to the public in an

accessible format?

If you are an educational or training institution:

• Do you provide accessibility awareness training to educators?

• Do you keep a record of the training you have provided?

• When asked, do you provide educational/training resources/materials, student records or course and program

information in an accessible format?

If you are a library board:

• Do you tell the public about the availability of accessible materials?

• When asked, do you provide access to these materials?

If your organization has self-serve kiosks:

• Do you consider accessibility features when designing and/or buying self-service kiosks?

If you have or are planning to have a website:

• Do your new internet websites and the content in them conform to the World Wide Web Consortium Web content

Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level A?

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Indicating Non-Compliance on Your Report

If an organization answers “no” to any question on their report, they are highlighting

an area of the AODA and its standards that they are not yet complying with

The organization will not face any immediate enforcement action; a representative

from the ADO will contact them to assist them with meeting their requirements and

establish a “compliance plan”

This plan is a negotiated due date for when the organization plans to reach full AODA

compliance and re-submit a report indicating so

Organizations that prove uncooperative in this process or unwilling to comply with

their requirements will be escalated to a Compliance Officer who will focus on

compliance improvement

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Compliance Improvement

Audits are conducted to ensure that organizations are fulfilling their obligations under the AODA

Organizations are selected for audit based on risk and the answers provided in their accessibility report

Audits are conducted among organizations that:

• Fail to submit their accessibility report

• Submit a report indicating non-compliance (i.e., answered “no” to one or more report questions)

• File a report indicating full compliance

• Are exempt from reporting (i.e., small private sector organizations)

• May be referred to us by another regulatory ministry.

The government is beginning to explore partnerships with organizations who already audit to extend our reach across all sectors (e.g. other regulatory ministries)

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Compliance Improvement

Audits

Return to Compliance

Plans

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Compliance Improvement

• During an audit, if an organization is found non-compliant with one or more

requirements, we negotiate an individualized Return to Compliance Plan

that outlines the steps that must be taken in order for the organization to

meet its obligations and avoid further enforcement measures

• The Compliance Plan provides a deadline for implementing any corrective

measures

• Failure to comply may lead to more stringent enforcement actions, such as

Inspections or Directors Orders

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Inspection and Enforcement

Organizations that remain non-compliant, despite being

offered compliance supports, can be referred to an

AODA Inspector who will determine if enforcement

measures are required

Enforcement measures available to the ADO include:

• Conducting Inspections on an organization

• Issuing Director’s Orders to comply and/or pay an

administrative monetary penalty

The government may, in certain circumstances, elect to

prosecute through the courts for specified offences

under the Act which may result in, upon conviction, fines

of up to $50,000 per day for individuals or $100,000 per

day for corporations

Inspections &

Enforcement

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Director’s Orders

Inspections

Notice of Orders

Prosecution

With financial penalties

Appeals

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Inspection and Enforcement

A Notice of Proposed Order must be issued to a non-compliant organization before it can be

issued a Director’s Order to comply or pay a penalty

The Notice of Proposed Order explains why the organization is not in compliance with the law,

and what they must do to comply and to avoid a penalty

If an organization does not respond to this Notice, they will be issued a Director’s Order that

states that the organization or individual:

Must comply by submitting a report or provide other information as requested

May by required to pay an administrative financial penalty

Penalty amounts range from $200 to $15,000 depending on the severity of the impact that the contravention will have

on people with disabilities and the compliance history of the organization

An organization has the right to request a review of a Director’s Order within 30 days

Organizations may also appeal a Director’s Order to the License Appeal Tribunal within 15 days of

receiving a Director’s Order

Court Enforcement and Prosecution

If an organization does not respond to a Director’s Order in any way, they may be faced with fines and prosecution under the law

Court Enforcement

• A Director’s Order may by filed with a local registrar of the Superior Court of Justice and enforced by the Court

Prosecution

•Fines can be levied by a provincial court up to $50,000 per day for an individual and $100,00 per day for a corporation

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