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![]() New ADA rules
By Mark Dorsett
The next generation of federal signage regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) has arrived.
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The new rules are contained in the form of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which is available for public comment for 120 days. For sign companies that will be affected by the new guidelines, that means it may not be too late to attempt to alter some provisions. These new guidelines cover new construction and alterations and generally do not address existing facilities outside planned alterations. This marks the first comprehensive update of the ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) since their original publication in July 1991. The proposal, revises both the substance and format of the existing guidelines and includes new figures and advisory material. Some highlights of the changes in store for the sign industry include:
The changes are based on recommendations from an advisory committee the Access Board had established to review ADAAG. The ADAAG Review Advisory Committee consisted of 22 members representing the design and construction industry, the building code community, and people with disabilities. According to a Access Board new release, the "recommendations seek to improve access requirements while reconciling differences between ADAAG and national consensus standards, including model codes and industry standards." In an overview of the proposal posted with the new rules, the Access Board said, "The key goal of this rulemaking is to substantively update the requirements to reflect technological developments so that they continue to meet the needs of persons with disabilities. Also, this update is designed to make the guidelines more consistent with model building codes and industry standards in order to facilitate compliance." The deadline for public comment on the new rules is March 15, 2000. Two public hearings on the proposals are scheduled: one in Los Angeles on January 31, 2000, and another in the Washington, D.C. area on March 13, 2000. After the comment period closes, the Access Board will revise the rules "as necessary according to the comments received" and republish the guidelines in final form. Other Federal agencies responsible for the standards used to enforce the ADA and ABA (the departments of Justice and Transportation) must then modify their standards so that they will be consistent with the updated guidelines, according to the Access Board. The proposed guidelines are on the Access Board's web site at www.access-board.gov or can be ordered by calling 1-800-USA-ABLE (voice), 1-800-993-2822 (TTY). To get to the sections related to signs, view or download Chapter 7: Communications Elements and Features. The Access Board, which issued the new rules, is an independent Federal agency responsible for accessibility guidelines for the built environment under the ADA and the ABA. The Board develops and maintains guidelines formally known as The ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG).
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