Disability Access Issuesfor Religious
Organizationsin the One-Stop System
Questions and answersabout your legal responsibilities
when you receive Federal financial assistance
2
Presented by
Denise Sudell, Esq.Senior Policy AdvisorCivil Rights CenterU.S. Department of Labor
3
What is different for religious organizations that receive Federal financial assistance?
• Religious organizations are exempt from the accessibility requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Religious organizations are not exempt from disability nondiscrimination laws that apply to recipients of Federal financial assistance
4
What laws apply?
• Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) – applies to all recipients
• Section 188 of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (WIA) – applies to programs and activities that are:• Operated by One-Stop partners -- see WIA
Section 121(b)• Part of the One-Stop system
5
What regulations apply?
• Subpart C of DOL’s regulations implementing Section 504 (29 CFR part 32) lists general accessibility requirements
• Regulations implementing WIA Section 188 incorporate this subpart by reference
6
What is “accessibility”?
• It’s not just ramps and elevators!• Providing accessibility means taking
generalized action in advance (so you’ll be ready for people with disabilities)
• “Generalized” in this context = not tied to a particular person with a disability
7
How is “accessibility” different from “reasonable accommodation”?• Accommodations are actions that
must be taken when a particular person with a disability seeks:• to apply for / participate in a program
or activity• to apply for / perform the essential
functions of a job
8
Two types of accessibility
• Architectural (sometimes known as “physical”)
• Program or programmatic• We’ll discuss each of these types
in turn
9
Lack of access is no excuse• 29 CFR 32.26 says you can’t:
• Exclude a person with a disability, or• Give different benefits to a person
with a disability, or• Otherwise discriminate against a
person with a disability . . .
. . . because a program or activity is inaccessible
10
What accessibility standards must you meet?• It depends!
• How old is the facility? (When was it built?)• Has the facility been, or will it be, altered or
renovated for you to use? • If so, when was it/will it be altered or
renovated? (What date?)• When did you first receive Federal financial
assistance?
11
What’s a “facility”?
• Not just a building!• Definition in 504 regs also includes
“all or any portion” of “structures, equipment, roads, walks, parking lots or other real or personal property” used in providing your program or activity
12
Some things that you might not think of as “facilities” (but that are):
• Vehicles used for transportation• Constructs such as office cubicles
and computer kiosks
13
The “hierarchy of obligations”• New construction• Alteration or renovation
• Done by you, on your behalf, or for your use?
• Before or after you received Federal financial assistance?
• “Existing facilities”
14
New construction
Facility must fully meet legal standards for
architectural accessibility[required by 29 CFR 32.28(a)]
15
Alteration or renovation
• Was it done:• by you?• on your behalf?• for your use?
• If no, use existing facilities rules
16
Alteration or renovation (con’t)• If yes, when was it/will it be done?
• Before you received Federal financial assistance: use existing facilities rules
• After you received Federal financial assistance: altered/renovated part must comply with architectural accessibility standards
• 29 CFR 32.28(b)
17
Existing facilities• Not new construction• Either:
• Not altered or renovated by you, on your behalf, or for your use; or
• Altered or renovated before you first received Federal financial assistance
• Must meet program accessibility requirements
18
Federal standards for architectural accessibility
• Two different sets of Federal standards exist• Uniform Federal Accessibility
Standards (UFAS) – 41 CFR 101-19.6• Americans with Disabilities Act
Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG)
19
Which standardsshould you use?
• DOL’s Section 504 regs say UFAS• But . . . regs also allow “alternative
standards” to be used if they will allow “equivalent or greater access”
• So . . . you may use either UFAS or ADAAG
20
New standards to come?
• The Access Board is updating both UFAS and ADAAG to make them more consistent
• Once approved, standards will be published in final form (until then, old standards apply)
• For more info, see www.access-board.gov/ada-aba/status.htm
21
What is program accessibility?
• What it does mean:• Your program or activity must be
accessible when viewed in its entirety• Every aspect of your program or
activity must be accessible• Examples: intake, assessment,
training courses
22
Program accessibility (con’t)• What it does not mean:
• Making each of your existing facilities accessible
• Making every part of your facility accessible
• Making structural changes where other ways of providing access are possible
23
Program accessibility: Exception for small recipients• If your organization . . .
• Has 15 or fewer employees at all times during the grant year, and
• Serves 15 or fewer beneficiaries during the grant year, and
• Consults with one or more qualified people with disabilities, and
• Determines that it cannot provide program accessibility without making significant alterations to its existing facilities . . .
24
Program accessibility: Small recipients (cont’d)
• Then . . .• you may refer participants with
disabilities to other service providers that have accessible facilities
• 29 CFR 32.27(b)(3)
25
Examples of possible changes to provide program accessibility• Redesigning equipment• Moving classes or other services to
accessible locations• Assigning aides to participants/
beneficiaries
26
Program accessibility: two key points
• You must provide programs and activities in most integrated setting possible for people with disabilities
• You may be required to alter or renovate your facilities if there is no other possible way of providing program accessibility
27
How soon must you comply?• Programmatic accessibility: within 60
days of the date on which you receive Federal financial assistance
• Architectural accessibility / structural changes: • Transition plan: developed within six (6) months
of the date on which you receive assistance • Completion: as expeditiously as possible, but
maximum of three (3) years from date of receipt of assistance
28
Some questions your organization might ask . . .
• “A local business donates office space where we offer some of our programs. Are we exempt from accessibility requirements because we do not own the space?”
29
CRC’s answer . . .
• No, you are not exempt from accessibility requirements for the space.
• Some possible options:• ask the business to provide you with
accessible space• renovate / alter the space yourself• move the programs to another space
that is accessible
30
More questions your organization might ask:• “Where can we get advice about
making our facilities accessible?”• Some examples:
• The U.S. Access Board: http://www.access-board.gov/indexes/technicalindex.htm
• Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs): http://www.adata.org/
• Organizations in your local community that serve people with disabilities
31
More questions your organization might ask:• “Where can we get information about
how to communicate with people with various types of disabilities?”
• Some examples:• The Job Accommodation Network (JAN):
http://www.jan.wvu.edu/• DOL’s Office of Disability Employment
Policy (ODEP): http://www.dol.gov/odep/ • Organizations in your local community that
serve people with various types of disabilities
Any more questions?
33
How to contact me• Postal Mail:
• Denise Sudell, Civil Rights Center, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room N-4123, Washington, DC 20210
• Telephone:• 202-693-6554 (voice)• 800-877-8339 (toll-free Federal Information
Relay Service – TTY/TDD)
• E-Mail: [email protected]