From HuffPost:
The GOP Wants To Gut The Americans With Disabilities Act
And from NBC News:
The GOP's H.R. 620 will gut the Americans With Disabilities Act, pushing disability rights back to 1989
From the NBC News article:
The GOP Wants To Gut The Americans With Disabilities Act
And from NBC News:
The GOP's H.R. 620 will gut the Americans With Disabilities Act, pushing disability rights back to 1989
From the NBC News article:
Currently under the ADA, if a business is found to be in violation of the ADA — say, its entrance is not wheelchair-accessible — the disabled person barred access can file a lawsuit to get the business to comply. H.R. 620 would instead require a disabled person to file “written, technical notice” (usually requiring a lawyer), wait 60 days for a response, then wait 120 more days to see if “substantial progress” is made on remedying the violation, before the issue can even be brought to court.
H.R. 620 pushes the clock on disability rights back to 1989, making violating the ADA virtually consequence-free. If passed by the Senate [it has already been passed by the House], businesses will soon be able to wait until they get complaints to even consider accessibility, just as they did before the law existed. Andy why not? There is no reason to think ahead. Why would a business voluntarily put in a ramp or elevator when it can just hang around and see if it receives a complaint, then wait another six months before even beginning to make progress toward building it? Meanwhile, disabled people would have to wait months or even years for access to places and services.
At best, such a change could prevent disabled people from traveling, shopping, eating out, going to the movies and socializing with friends and family. At worst, it is life-threatening. What if not malls, but schools, doctors’ offices, and hospitals are the businesses in noncompliance? 180 days is an entire school year lost. One cannot wait six months to go to the doctor, or the ER, or birth a child; one cannot give written technical notice to a fire and ask it to wait until someone gets around to installing an accessible emergency exit or flashing alarm.