SEPT 15 1992 The Honorable Newt Gingrich U.S. House of Representatives 2438 Rayburn House Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515-1006 Dear Congressman Gingrich: This letter is in response to your inquiry on behalf of your constituent, Mr. (b)(6)about requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities (ADA Guidelines). (b)(6) specific concern is the application of maximum reach height limitations for storage shelves and hanging rods to display units in retail sales areas. The ADA authorizes the Department of Justice to provide technical assistance to individuals and entities that are subject to the Act. Therefore, this letter provides informal guidance to assist you in responding to your constituent. However, this technical assistance does not constitute a legal interpretation by the Department and it is not binding on the Department. The ADA Guidelines contain both scoping and technical provisions that set out accessibility requirements for different types of facilities and elements. The scoping provisions that apply to (b)(6) concerns are contained in section 4.1.3(12)(b) of the ADA Guidelines and require only that shelves or display units that allow self-service by customers be located on an accessible route. That section further states explicitly that "requirements for reach range do not apply." Thus the technical requirements for reach height limitations set out in ADA Guidelines sections 4.2.5 and 4.2.6, referred to by (b)(6) do not apply to shelves or display units. These provisions were developed specifically to address many of the concerns expressed in (b)(6) letter. I am enclosing a copy of the regulations with this section marked (p. 35615). cc: Records; Chrono; Wodatch; Lusher; McDowney; FOIA; MAF. :udd:mercado:congressional.letters:lusher.gingrich (G)(6) 01-01524 - 2 - I hope that this information is helpful to you in responding to your constituent. Sincerely, James P. Turner Acting Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division Enclosure 01-01525 (b)(6) Fred Aiken Field Director P.O. Box 71028 Suite 140 Marietta, Georgia 30007-1028 Dear Fred: This letter is in response to our conversation about the A.D.A. law passed by Congress. I apologize for the delay, but it is a comprehensive law and I am having to learn it as I do work relating to the regulations. Its intent is good, but its effect is disastrous for small property owners and business in certain key areas. The largest problem is 4.2 which deal with the height and minimum reach for shelving or rods for hanging. The maximum height is either 48 inches for forward reach (4.2.5) or 54 inches for side reach (4.2.6). Additionally, the lowest shelf allowed is either 15 inches for forward reach (4.2.5) or 9 inches for side reach (4.2.6). Currently we have rods and shelving as high as 77 inches and as low as 4 inches and carry the amount of stock that we do. This is necessary in order to double hang the merchandise. Men's, lady's and most children's clothes are too long to be able to double hang within 48 to 54 inches. As a matter of fact, many woman's dresses and jeans cannot be hung within that range unless it lays partly on the floor. To hang the same merchandise per the guidelines would require about a third to a half more space than we currently have. It would also increase the cost of the merchandise due to the following factors: 1) additional rental cost of the extra space 2) additional heating and air cost for the additional space 3) additional cost for electricity 4) additional loss to shoplifting due to more area being available and observed by the same amount of employees. This will seriously effect the cost of doing business for us and other small business when it is increasingly harder to compete against the big stores. The option for the small store is to expand and increase costs or carry less merchandise. To carry less merchandise can translate in loss of sales and an increase cost to the smaller amount of merchandise for sale. Also that can effect back up the line to the manufacturer who loses sales due to less inventory being carried by its customers and then less jobs. On this particular item, I request that the regulation be changed to allow for a maximum rod height of 76 inches so that the merchandise can be double racked and properly displayed. One item that the regulations do not take into consideration, is that stores like ours have clerks there to help. If, something is out of reach for a customer, disabled or not, we get the merchandise for the 01-01526 customer. We are in the process of moving to our new and smaller location and should be in the location by July 5, 1992. We are a business with under 10 employees and have gross receipts of less than $500,000.00. Pursuant to Sections 36-401 and 36-402, two conflicting dates are given for compliance. It appears that if the store already has non complying fixtures prior to one date (January 26, 1993) in one area it is safe and may continue in noncompliance. Is there a way of getting a letter from the appropriate authority that will grant permission or confirm that it is legally sufficient to have rods and shelves a maximum height of 77 inches? The space we are moving into is the old First National Bank Building. We have almost completed renovation of the first floor at this point. Was there any bill or regulation that was passed that delayed the effective date of the regulation? This may also make a difference if we are in the store prior to any delayed effective date. If you have any questions, you may contact me at xxxx(b)(6) (work) or xxxxx(b)(6) Again, I apologize for the delay of this letter. I will send you other suggestions as I wade through the process. Sincerely, Xxxxxx Vice President, 01-01527