The Honorable Charles E. Grassley United States Senate 135 Hart Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510-1501 Dear Senator Grassley: This letter is in response to your inquiry about coverage (and exemptions) of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) authorizes the Department of Justice to provide technical assistance to individuals and entities having rights or obligations under the Act. This letter provides informal guidance to assist your constituents in understanding the ADA's requirements. It does not, however, constitute a legal interpretation and it is not binding on the Department. Title III of the ADA covers places of public accommodation, including restaurants and other establishments serving food or drink, as well as homeless shelters and other social service establishments. The only places of public accommodation specifically exempted from the coverage of title III of the ADA are private clubs and religious entities. These exemptions are set forth in section 36.104 of the enclosed title III regulations, at page 35594, and the accompanying analysis, at pages 35551 to 35555. Therefore, in the example raised by your letter, the charity soup kitchen would not be exempted from the requirements of title III of the ADA, unless the soup kitchen can be considered either a private club or religious entity. In addition to these two specific exemptions, the ADA allows smaller public accommodations additional time to comply with the requirements of the ADA. Lawsuits may not be brought for cc: Records, Chrono, Wodatch, Bowen, Nakata, McDowney, Library, FOIA Udd:Nakata:Grassley.1 01-01412 - 2 - violations of the ADA that occurred before July 26, 1992, where the public accommodation has 25 or fewer employees and $1,000,000 or less in gross annual receipts. Lawsuits may not be brought for violations of the ADA that occur before January 26, 1993, where the public accommodation has 10 or fewer employees and $500,000 or less in gross annual receipts. Even if a public accommodation is subject to the requirements of the ADA, the Act does provide limitations on renovations necessary to make a facility accessible. For instance, while a public accommodation must provide auxiliary aids or services, such as interpreters for people with hearing impairments in order to ensure that persons with disabilities have equal access to services, the public accommodation does not have to provide such aids or services if it would impose an undue burden. Furthermore, a public accommodation has to remove barriers to a facility only if such removal is readily achievable, that is, if it is easily accomplishable and can be carried out without too much difficulty or expense. In addition to the requirement for barrier removal, the ADA requires that, if a public accommodation makes certain other alterations to existing places of public accommodations, the entity must ensure that, to the maximum extent feasible, the altered portions of the facility are readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. However, areas that are used only as work areas, which generally include kitchens, are subject only to the requirements affecting approach and entrance to, and exit from, the work area. While the accessibility requirements do not apply to the interior of the space, certain alterations within the kitchen may trigger additional requirements. The requirements relating generally to alterations are set forth in subpart D of the enclosed title III regulations, at pages 35599 to 35602, and the accompanying analysis, at pages 35574 to 35589. I have also enclosed the Department's Title III Technical Assistance Manual, which may provide further assistance in understanding the scope of these limited exemptions and limitations to title III of the ADA. Relevant information may be found in sections 1.5000 to 1.6000, 4.3000, 4.4000, 6.0000, 7.3100, and 8.8000. Title I of the ADA prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of disability but completely exempts employers with fewer than 15 employees. Even those with between 15 and 24 employees are not covered until July 26, 1994. Employers of 25 or more were covered by title I as of July 26, 1992. You may wish to contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, at 1-800-669-EEOC, about title I and its exemptions. 01-01413 - 3 - I hope this information will be useful to you and your constituents. Sincerely, John R. Dunne Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division Enclosures (2) 01-01414