ADA Education and Reform Act

Posted on March 19, 2018

ADA Education and Reform Act

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

Synopsis:

Update: Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and 42 other Democratic senators said on March 29, 2018 that they will filibuster H.R. 620, preventing it from passing the Senate.

H.R. 620 would prevent people with disabilities from immediately filing a lawsuit against owners of restaurants, doctors’ offices, retail stores and other public accommodations that have architectural accessibility barriers, as Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) currently allows. H.R. 620 would require that a person with a disability who encounters an accessibility barrier notify the business owner in writing, at which point the business owner would have 60 days to write back outlining the owner’s plan to remedy the situation and a further 60 days to show “substantial progress” toward removing the barrier. Supporters of the bill argue that, by creating a “notice and cure” period, it would reduce the number of frivolous ADA lawsuits filed by predatory law firms against business owners. Opponents contend that the bill would remove the incentive for business owners to proactively comply with ADA accessibility requirements, putting the onus of preventing discrimination on people with disabilities themselves.

U.S. Rep. Ted Poe
H.R. 620 lead sponsor

Supporters:

Reps. Ted Poe (R-Tex.), Scott Peters (D-Calif.), Ken Calvert (R-Calif.), Ami Bera (D-Calif.), Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), Lamar Smith (R-Texas) et al.; Commercial Real Estate Development Association (NAIOP), Hotel, Restaurant & Retailers Association, Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) International, International Council of Shopping Centers, International Franchise Association, National Federation of Independent Business, U.S. Chamber of Commerce et al.

Opponents:

Reps. Lisa Blunt-Rochester (D-Del.), Jerrod Nadler (D-N.Y.), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), John Lewis (D-Ga.), Peter Roskam (R-Ill.) et al.; Sens. Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.); Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities, AFL-CIO, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Association of University Centers on Disabilities, Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Community Legal Aid Society, Inc., National Association for the Advancement Of Colored People (NAACP), National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities, National Bar Association, National Disability Rights Network, The Arc et al.