MAY 28 1993




The Honorable Butler Derrick
Member, U.S. House of Representatives
Post Office Box 4126
Anderson, South Carolina 29622

Dear Congressman Derrick:

     This letter is in response to your inquiry on behalf of your
constituent,        (b)(6)            , who suffers from heart
disease.   (b)(6)      has suggested that the Americans with
Disabilities Act ("ADA") may impose an obligation on food service
establishments to modify their practices so as to provide certain
nutritional information regarding the foods and condiments they
offer and to provide reasonable food substitutes for the benefit
of persons with special dietary needs.

     The ADA authorizes this Department to provide technical
assistance to individuals and entities that have rights or
responsibilities under the ADA. Therefore, this letter provides
informal guidance to assist you in responding to    (b)(6)
However, this technical assistance does not constitute a legal
interpretation, and it is not binding on the Department of
Justice.

     Under title III of the ADA, a public accommodation,
including a food establishment, is obligated to make reasonable
modifications in its policies, practices, or procedures when the
modifications are necessary to ensure that individuals with
disabilities have access to the same goods and services that are
offered to persons without disabilities, unless the modifications
would fundamentally alter the nature of those goods and services.
Accordingly, a food service establishment may need to reasonably
modify its policies, practices, or procedures to ensure that
persons with disabilities who have special dietary needs are
provided with nutritional information regarding the food that is
customarily served, unless the modifications would fundamentally
alter the nature of its goods and services. For a fuller
discussion of this issue, please refer to section 36.302 of the

cc: Records, Chrono, Wodatch, Breen, Delaney, McDowney, FOIA
    udd\Delaney\Congress\Derrick







01-02320



                              - 2 -

enclosed title III regulation, pages 22-24 of the enclosed Title
III Technical Assistance Manual, and page 4 of the January 1993
Supplement to the Manual.

     However, title III of the ADA does not require a food
service establishment to alter its inventory to provide special
food products for those persons who may have special dietary
needs, unless, in the normal course of its operation, it makes
special orders an request for unstocked goods, and if the
accessible or special goods can be obtained from a supplier with
whom the public accommodation customarily does business. For a
fuller discussion of this issue, please refer to section 36.307
of the enclosed title III regulation and pages 23-24 of the
Technical Assistance Manual.

      (b)(6)      also may wish to contact the Food and Drug
Administration ("FDA") of the Department of Health and Human
Services concerning the FDA's authority to require nutrition
labeling on foods. See, e.g., 21 U.S.C. SS 343(q) and 343(r).

     I hope this information is helpful in responding to your
constituent.

                             Sincerely,






                          James P. Turner
                 Acting Assistant Attorney General
                       Civil Rights Division

Enclosures













01-02321