An overview of the ADA and how it interplays with AB 2449

The federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was enacted in 1990. As relevant here, the ADA contains:

• Title II that applies to the operations of the federal government
• Title III that applies to certain private companies that offer accommodations and services to the public
• Title IV that applies to telephone and internet companies that provide services to assist those with hearing or speech disabilities to communicate over the phone

Although AB 2449 indicates that the process for California local agencies to adopt must comply with federal law under the ADA, the ADA itself does not contain a requirement on how to respond to and resolve requests made for reasonable accommodations. However, there are industry-set guidelines (applicable to the federal government’s conduct and operations) that provide specific ways in which to make technology accessible for persons with disabilities. Those guidelines are known as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0. Moreover, the U.S. Department of Justice has a Technical Assistant Manual for Title II of the ADA, which also serves as a measure for acceptable reasonable accommodations for state and federal government operations.

Because AB 2449 created new rules for virtual attendance at local legislative meetings within California, the Legislature's use of the phrase “consistent with federal law” in AB 2449 sought to impose similar guidelines and requirements mandated for the federal government to apply to such virtual meetings in California.

Recommendations for subdivision (g) compliance

Given the express mandate under AB 2449 that each California local legislative body “shall have and implement a procedure for receiving and swiftly resolving requests for reasonable accommodation,” it is incumbent that each local legislative body vote and pass a procedure to do so come January 1, 2023, when the law comes into effect.

Here are our recommendations for adopting procedures mandated under AB 2449:

• Receiving requests: The adopted procedure should (1) designate a point person within the California local legislative body’s agency for receiving requests for reasonable accommodations, and (2) describe the procedure for a member of the public to request an accommodation, which should include the method of submission of a request, when the request must be received, how long it will be before the designated point person within the public agency responds to the request, and how long the public agency will have to comply with the request after it is made.
• Resolving requests: To aid in the expeditious resolution of requests for reasonable accommodations, California local legislative bodies should consider the types of requests they may receive (visual impairment, hearing impairment, and/or physical impairments) and create a roster of resources and vendors who can help the public agency through the process of revising existing practices to allow for the reasonable accommodations, consistent with the ADA and federal law.

Reed Smith has two resident advisors on ADA compliance issues who can assist in navigating and resolving requests for reasonable accommodations:

• Angie Matney has extensive experience in digital accessibility issues. She provides counsel and advice related to the ADA and other laws, regulations, and guidelines as applicable to websites, mobile applications, and the Internet of Things.
• Jim Rockney advises and defends clients throughout the United States on accessibility issues relating to Title III of the ADA and state law-based accessibility requirements.

The Reed Smith team is here to assist you in implementing AB 2449’s mandate for procedures for receiving and swiftly resolving requests for reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. Please feel free to contact us at any time, as indicated below.

Client Alert 2022-392