Frequently Asked Questions
ADAAG '04: Answers to Common Questions About the New ADA-ABA Guidelines
On July 23, 2004, the Access Board issued updated accessibility guidelines for new or altered facilities covered by Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA). These guidelines address a wide range of facilities in the private and public sectors.
Q. How were the guidelines developed?
A. The Board organized an advisory committee to review the original guidelines and to recommend changes in order to get input from a cross section of stakeholders at the outset of the process. The ADAAG Review Advisory Committee, which included representation from the design and construction industry, the building code community, and people with disabilities, among others, submitted a report to the Board that detailed recommended revisions to the substance, organization, and format of the guidelines. The finalized guidelines are based largely on these recommendations. The Board published the guidelines in proposed form in November, 1999 and made them available for public comment for six months. The Board received over 2,500 public comments on its proposal and finalized the guidelines based on this input.
Q. Should the new guidelines be followed at this time?
A. No. The Board's guidelines are not mandatory on the public, but instead serve as the baseline for enforceable standards (which are) maintained by other Federal agencies. In this respect, they are similar to a model building code in that they are not required to be followed except as adopted by an enforcing authority. Under the ADA, the Department of Justice (and in the case of transit facilities, the Department of Transportation) are responsible for enforceable standards based on the Board's guidelines. These agencies will update their ADA standards based on the new guidelines. In doing so, they will indicate when the new standards are to be followed. Several other agencies (the General Services Administration, Department of Defense, Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the US Postal Service) hold a similar responsibility for standards under the ABA.
Q. "Guidelines"..."Standards"...what's the difference?
A. Guidelines versus standards...it's an important distinction under the ADA and ABA. Guidelines are issued by the Board, standards by designated agencies such as the Department of Justice. Standards are what the public must follow to comply with the laws; the guidelines are what these agencies must follow in setting or updating their standards. When the Board issues guidelines, it does not change compliance for the public until the standards are similarly changed and an effective date set.
Q. What standards should be followed at this time under the ADA? Under the ABA?
A. The existing standards are to be followed until the effective date of the updated standards. ADA standards issued by the departments of Justice (DOJ) and Transportation (DOT) in 1991 based on the Board's original ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) remain the standards to follow at this time. (DOJ's regulations permit state and local governments the option of using an earlier standard known as the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS) as an alternative.) Under the ABA, UFAS remains the applicable standard until its replacement by new standards based on the Board's updated guidelines (some Federal agencies have a policy of applying ADAAG in addition to UFAS).
The ADA standards are contained in regulations issued by DOJ and DOT. The current edition still in effect at this time is based on the ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) as published by the Board in 1991. For further information on the ADA standards, contact DOJ or, in the case of transit facilities, DOT:
- DOJ: (800) 514-0301 (v), (800) 514-0383 (TTY), www.ada.gov
- DOT: (888) 446-4511, www.fta.dot.gov
(Source: Access Currents, Volume 10, No. 4, July/August 2004.)
