Access Board Resolves 43 Architectural Barriers Act Cases Through Corrective Action in FY 2018

The Access Board was created in part to enforce the first federal law to address accessibility, the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA). This law requires access to buildings or facilities that were designed, built, or altered with federal dollars or leased by federal agencies. The Board also maintains the guidelines upon which the ABA Standards are based.

With passage of other laws, including the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Board’s mission has expanded significantly. It is now responsible for developing and keeping up to date accessibility requirements for the wide array of facilities covered by the ADA, as well as for transportation vehicles and systems. It also issues standards for information and communication technology and for medical diagnostic equipment.

Despite these other duties, the Board continues the important work of enforcing the ABA. We do this through the investigation of complaints from the public. Filing a complaint with the Board is easy to do and can be done through an online form. Complaints should include the name and address of the facility and a brief description of the access barriers or issues. Complaints can be filed anonymously.

The first step of an investigation is to determine whether the facility at issue is covered by the ABA. If so, the next step is to determine whether the facility meets the applicable accessibility standard. If the facility is not subject to the ABA or if it meets the appropriate accessibility standard, the Board will advise the complainant of its findings. Some facilities are not covered by the ABA but by other laws such as the ADA, which is enforced by other agencies and the courts.

If the facility does not meet the applicable standard, the Board will work with the responsible entities to develop a plan to bring the facility into compliance. Complaints are typically resolved amicably with the responsible agencies or departments. Cases remain open until all necessary corrective action is completed. In FY 2018, the Board resolved 43 cases through corrective action.

ABA Cases Resolved Through Corrective Action
(October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018)

U.S. Postal Facilities

• U.S. Post Office (Charleston, West Virginia): The Postal Service installed a required van accessible customer parking space.
• U.S. Post Office (Urbana, Illinois): The Postal Service repaired a broken platform lift at the accessible customer entrance.
• U.S. Post Office (Elberton, Georgia): The Postal Service installed a required van accessible customer parking space.
• U.S. Post Office (Charlottesville, Virginia): The Postal Service repaired automatic doors at the customer entrance.
• U.S. Post Office (Woodstock, Virginia): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Boulder, Colorado): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Canton, North Carolina): The Postal Service made alterations to the curb ramp as well as the ramp to the customer entrance to bring those elements into compliance.
• U.S. Post Office (Maryland Heights, Missouri): The Postal Service installed a required van accessible customer parking space and made alterations to the curb ramp to bring it into compliance.
• U.S. Post Office (Christiansburg, Virginia): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Washington, DC): The Postal Service took corrective action to repair the automatic customer entrance door.
• U.S. Post Office (Heilwood, Pennsylvania): The Postal Service took corrective action to repair the customer entrance stairs and handrail.
• U.S. Postal Service Processing and Distribution Center and Vehicle Maintenance Facility (Brooklyn, New York): In this facility used by Postal employees, the Postal Service took corrective action to install several new accessible parking spaces in two different parking lots and to repair damaged pavement along the accessible routes connecting the parking lots to the buildings.
• U.S. Post Office (Naperville, Illinois): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (El Paso, Texas): The Postal Service took corrective action to remove an obstacle that was impeding access to a curb ramp from the parking lot to the sidewalk.
• U.S. Post Office (Lexington, Virginia): The Postal Service took corrective action to: install a required van accessible parking space; repair the customer entrance doors; and adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors and interior vestibule doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Equality, Illinois): The Postal Service took corrective action to ensure that the accessible customer parking spaces were well-marked, level, sufficiently wide, and did not impede the required accessible route.
• U.S. Post Office (Forest Grove, Oregon): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Minneapolis, Minnesota): The Postal Service installed a required van accessible customer parking space.
• U.S. Post Office (Sidney, Ohio): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Verdi, Nevada): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• Robert T. Stafford U.S. Post Office and Courthouse (Rutland, Vermont): The Postal Service, working in conjunction with the General Services Administration and local contractors, performed the following corrective actions: installed appropriate signage indicating the location of the accessible building entrance; replaced various door closers to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors; enlarged the accessible entrance vestibule; demolished and rebuilt one set of exterior stairs as well as the accessible entrance ramp; made necessary enhancements to the existing accessible parking spaces; and converted two inaccessible restrooms into compliant, accessible, single-user toilet rooms.
• U.S. Post Office (Pembroke, Massachusetts): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Brookville, Ohio): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Delmar, New York): The Postal Service took corrective action to repair the customer elevator and add required directional signage.
• U.S. Post Office (St. Johns, Arizona): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) both the closing speed of the doors and the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Manlius, New York): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (San Francisco, California): The Postal Service took corrective action to adjust, repair, or replace the door closers on the customer entrance doors to lessen (and bring into compliance) the force needed to manually open the doors.
• U.S. Post Office (Everett, Washington): The Postal Service took corrective action to repair the sink in the toilet room at the facility.
• U.S. Post Office (Connersville, Indiana): The Postal Service took corrective action to bring the ramp to the accessible customer entrance into compliance.
• U.S. Post Office (New York, New York): The Postal Service took corrective action with respect to the inaccessible second floor of this facility by reopening a previously closed customer service area on the accessible first floor of the building.

Military and Veterans Affairs Facilities

• Gulf Coast Veterans Healthcare System (Biloxi, Mississippi): The Department of Veterans Affairs installed additional required accessible parking spaces and altered other accessible parking spaces to bring them into compliance with the applicable Federal accessibility standards.
• Keesler Air Force Base (Biloxi, Mississippi): The Department of the Air Force took voluntary corrective action to install automatic door openers at the customer entrance of the Exchange Express (Building 1510) at the Base.
• U.S. Naval Support Activity (Naples, Italy): The Department of the Navy took voluntary corrective action to install accessible parking spaces in different parking lots at the facility.
• VA Medical Center West Palm Beach (Riviera Beach, Florida): The Department of Veterans Affairs took corrective action to repair the threshold of the main entrance door to this leased office space.

Parks and Historic Sites

• Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum (West Branch, Iowa): The National Archives and Records Administration took voluntary corrective action to install automatic door openers on one of the customer entrance doors as well as the men’s and women’s toilet room doors.
• Campgrounds at or near Clearwater Lake (Piedmont, Missouri): The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers installed a required van accessible parking space at campsite A6 in Piedmont Park and took corrective action to provide access to the electrical pedestals at campsites 36 and 37 in Webb Creek Park.

Internal Revenue Service

• Internal Revenue Service (Frederick, Maryland): The General Service Administration and the Internal Revenue Service took corrective action to bring the accessible parking spaces into compliance and made repairs to the ramp leading from the parking spaces to the accessible customer entrance.
• Internal Revenue Service (Tulsa, Oklahoma): The General Services Administration and Internal Revenue Service took corrective action to bring the ramp connecting the lower-level parking lot to the accessible customer entrance into compliance.

Other Facilities

• Federal Correctional Institution (Tallahassee, Florida): The Bureau of Prisons of the Department of Justice replaced a non-functioning platform lift used by visitors and employees.
• Drug Enforcement Administration (Tucson, Arizona): The Drug Enforcement Administration installed required accessible parking spaces in different parking lots at the facility.
• Federal Communications Commission (Columbia, Maryland): At its Office of Engineering and Technology Laboratory, the Federal Communications Commission took corrective action to make one of its entrances accessible.
• General Services Administration (Kansas City, Missouri): The General Services Administration took corrective action by installing accessible men’s and women’s single-user toilet rooms as alternatives to inaccessible toilet rooms on each floor of its leased space in the building.
• Federal Aviation Administration (Washington, DC): The Federal Aviation Administration completed corrective action to remediate barriers in certain toilet rooms and staff kitchens, and with respect to certain doors whose placement rendered certain routes inaccessible, opted to remove the doors entirely, resulting in greater accessibility.