U.S. Access Board Resolves 38 Architectural Barriers Act Cases Through Corrective Action in FY 2021
The U.S. Access Board investigated 38 cases under the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA) of 1968 that were resolved through corrective action in FY 2021. The ABA requires access to buildings or facilities that were designed, built, or altered with federal dollars or leased by federal agencies. The Board enforces the ABA through investigating complaints from the public.
The majority of cases concerned access to U.S. post offices, which is typical of the Board’s yearly caseload. Most of the complaints involved entrance doors, particularly the opening force of manual doors, and customer parking. The U.S. Postal Service completed action to correct accessibility issues at 32 facilities. Other cases involved military facilities (2), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical centers (2), and facilities leased by the General Services Administration (GSA) for other agencies (2).
Filing a complaint with the Board can be easily accomplished by completing 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 for the Board to conduct a preliminary analysis to determine if the facility at issue is covered by the ABA. If so, the next step is to determine if 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 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), which is enforced by other agencies and the courts.
If the facility does not meet the applicable accessibility 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.
ABA Cases Resolved Through Corrective Action
(October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021)
U.S. Postal Facilities – 32 Resolved Cases
- U.S. Post Office (Williams, Arizona): USPS removed an obstruction impacting maneuvering clearance at the accessible customer entrance door.
- U.S. Post Office (Walnut Creek, California): USPS replaced the hinges on the customer entrance doors to make them easier to open manually.
- U.S. Post Office (Kernville, California): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (San Francisco, California): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Cañon City, Colorado): USPS installed two new accessible parking spaces—with associated signage and access aisles—as well as a new curb ramp.
- U.S. Post Office (Sterling, Colorado): USPS repaired the automatic doors at the customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Greenwood Village, Colorado): USPS completed a variety of corrective actions related to accessible parking spaces, the accessible route into the facility, and the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Wilmington, Delaware): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (LeGrand, Iowa): USPS installed a ramp leading to the accessible customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Northbrook, Illinois): USPS installed four accessible parking spaces in the employee parking lot.
- U.S. Post Office (Cicero, Indiana): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Colwich, Kansas): USPS adjusted the closing speed of the customer entrance doors.
- USPS Distribution Center (Kansas City, Kansas): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the employee entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (California, Maryland): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Lutherville-Timonium, Maryland): USPS completed a variety of corrective actions related to accessible parking spaces, the manual opening force of the customer and employee entrance doors, the accessible service counter, the men’s and women’s toilet rooms, the entrance ramp, and maneuvering clearance at the customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Centreville, Maryland): USPS repaired the automatic doors at the customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Takoma Park, Maryland): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Olney, Maryland): USPS installed an accessible route from the public sidewalk to the facility entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Royal Oak, Michigan): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Marshall, Minnesota): USPS installed an accessible entrance ramp.
- U.S. Post Office (Rio Rancho, New Mexico): USPS replaced the door closers on the customer entrance doors to reduce the force needed to open them manually.
- U.S. Post Office (Boulder City, Nevada): USPS replaced the door closers on the customer entrance doors and doors leading to the retail section to reduce the force needed to open them manually.
- U.S. Post Office (Addyston, Ohio): USPS installed an accessible entrance ramp and adjusted the door closers of the entrance doors to make them easier to open manually.
- U.S. Post Office (Smithville, Tennessee): USPS adjusted the closing speeds of the manual entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Lewisville, Texas): USPS completed corrective action to install a new accessible parking space and to bring other accessible parking spaces into compliance with the standards.
- U.S. Post Office (McLean, Virginia): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Evergreen, Virginia): USPS installed a new van accessible parking space, a new entrance ramp, and a new entrance staircase, and made accessibility improvements to the customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Killington, Vermont): USPS completed a variety of corrective actions related to accessible parking spaces, the manual opening force of the customer and employee entrance doors, the accessible service counter, the men’s and women’s toilet rooms, the entrance ramp, and maneuvering clearance at the customer entrance.
- U.S. Post Office (Rutland, Vermont): USPS installed signage at the van accessible parking space serving the facility
- U.S. Post Office (Quilcene, Washington): USPS installed a van accessible parking space and adjusted the door closers on the customer entrance doors to reduce the force needed to open them manually.
- U.S. Post Office (Milwaukee, Wisconsin): USPS adjusted the manual opening force of the customer entrance doors.
- U.S. Post Office (Ripley, West Virginia): USPS installed a van accessible parking space with associated signage and access aisle.
Military and Veterans Affairs Facilities – 4 Resolved Cases
- Hawthorne Army Depot (Hawthorne, Nevada): The Department of the Army completed corrective action to bring accessible parking spaces into compliance.
- Saber and Quill (Fort Knox, Kentucky): At this U.S. Army Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) facility, the Department of the Army installed automatic entrance doors and made modifications to the toilet rooms to make them accessible.
- Hayden VA Medical Center (Phoenix, Arizona): The VA brought various toilet rooms into compliance with applicable accessibility specifications.
- Hines VA Medical Center (Hines, Illinois): The VA completed the installation of new accessible parking spaces as part of overall parking upgrades.
Other Facilities – 2 Resolved Cases
- U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights (Cleveland, Ohio): GSA worked with the lessor to correct dozens of ABA violations throughout the building, related to issues with doors, signage, parking, accessible routes, and maneuvering clearances. The work included the installation of several new automatic door openers.
- Federal Election Commission (Washington, D.C.): GSA worked with the lessor to adjust manual opening forces for certain doors and to install automatic door openers on others.