In Orange County and the surrounding cities, businesses must abide by both California and Federal Disability Accessibility laws (ADA). As a business, having an ADA certificate means that you take into account the Disabilities Act that prohibits discrimination and know how to create an equal opportunity for people who have disabilities. It is easy to become noncompliant with the law only for business owners to realize later on that ignoring accessibility laws leads to costly lawsuits at a later date. Schools, colleges, and leased essential services buildings in state areas are also required to obtain certification of construction from the Division of the State Architect (DSA). It always costs money to pay fines and hire outside consultants to help make the commercial property compliant later… so why not start out being compliant from day one!
Our Licensed CASp Experts are educated on the most up-to-date techniques related to the Americans with Disabilities Act per the City and state of Orange County California, and can help you avoid costly ADA lawsuits by offering a wide range of ADA Compliance Consultations and Construction Services Including:
Conducting Disability Accessibility Audits of Existing Facilities as well as New Projects
Designing ADA-Friendly & Accessible Buildings
Providing technical assistance for accessibility issues
Offering consultation on the best methods for designing and managing buildings
Training staff members on how to comply with the ADA
Conducting training sessions for clients and their employees
Developing guidelines and policies related to disability-related issues
Our Certified Access Specialist (CASp) help businesses in Orange County and other areas stay compliant with Americans with Disabilities Act laws and regulations. Our certified access specialist can help you avoid ADA compliance violation lawsuits in Orange County with ADA certification and provide DSA services that meet the disabilities act and fulfill ADA compliance requirements. Call +1-818-805-1915 or e-mail (email protected) to contact our team for your project at any location across Orange County.
The Department Of Justice has issued a rule for local government services to adopt enforceable accessibility standards under the ADA that meet the requirements specified by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board. In June 1994 Orange County board members passed a resolution to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities and ensure they are eligible for services. The ADA II coordinator for counties has been appointed. The CEO/ Office of Risk Management has corporate control over county departments' compliance. The ADA Title II Office is responsible exclusively for county programs and services supervision in different areas.
DSA has been authorized by the California statute to propose and develop building code guidelines and regulations connected with access to persons with disabilities in public accommodations, public buildings, public housing, and commercial buildings. The CEO/ Office of Risk Management is responsible to make sure government departments in Orange County meet the disabilities act ADA requirements.
Even if your building is not yet fully accessible, a CASp Inspectors and Contractors can provide you with immediate protection if you need it. Our CASp in Orange County can identify “readily achievable” types of issues that can be corrected to meet the disabilities act ADA. In addition, we can show you how to establish the intent needed to address those accessibility issues to avoid litigation in court and show you how you can get tax deductions and credits that will help pay for your CASp inspection and construction expenses.
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Any property who is publicly accessible should consider hiring a Certified Access Specialist (CASp) to review the property for lack of ADA Compliance. If your property is found to be discriminatory towards those living with disabilities, then the property might be subject to a lawsuit for lack of Handicap Accommodations.
The ADA covers private elementary and secondary schools as places of public accommodation; i.e., the schools must be physically accessible to those with disabilities.
The Americans with Disabilities Act is a Federal civil rights law that prohibits the exclusion of people with disabilities from everyday activities, such as enjoying a meal at a restaurant.
If you operate a Doctor office, Dental office, or similar – you’ll need to make sure you facility accommodates the disabled.
Whether you own the entire stip mall or only one shop in the facility, we’ll work with you to make sure you’re ADA Compliant.
If you own a parking lot, you’ll want to make sure you have handicap spaces, which are ADA friendly, as well as no barriers to wheelchair access and more.
Whether you’re a restaurant with an online menu, or run an online ecommerce website, you’ll need to make sure you are ADA compliant.
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All publicly accessible businesses must be disability friendly / accessible.
The authorities have been developing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Transition Plan for the Public Rights-of-Way in Orange County and other areas. This ADA Transition Plan will ensure that public infrastructure in the county is accessible to all. The plan will implement changes and maintain curb ramps, crosswalks, sidewalks, driveway crossings, street crossings, and pedestrian-activated traffic signal systems in compliance with the ADA design requirements. We can offer DSA services at your location in California to get you involved and implement inputs suggested by the ADA Transition Plan so that you are fully qualified to request ADA certification and follow design norms specified by the DSA for your property.
The costs of non-compliance are very high. The average amount of settlement in each instance was the sum of $1 million dollars in the year 2010 alone. In addition to that, there were over 1,000 cases brought against small companies last year in the year alone. And those numbers don't include the thousands of other small lawsuits settled out of the court.
Fines can range from $2,500-$25,000 per day for violations. The fines can be hefty if violations are committed during construction projects.
Yes, there are several advantages of an accessibility check. Under a CASp inspection, you are considered a “qualified defendant.” As a "qualified defendant," statutory damages can be reduced to a minimum of $1000 if you correct violations within 60 days, and a 120-day grace period may apply if your violations are brought into compliance during that time.
Without a CASp inspection, statutory damages of $4,000 under the Unruh Act (Civil Code §52(a)) may be applicable for each instance of a violation. Also, you may have to pay for the plaintiff's attorney fees in addition to these statutory charges.
Construction-related accessibility standards relate to how old your facility is and the date when you did renovation(s).
California businesses that own facilities open to the public built or renovated before January 26, 1992, have to remove barriers to persons with disabilities, provided it is possible to do this. A CASp will tell you when this is possible.
California businesses that own facilities open to the public built or renovated before January 26, 1992, and March 14, 2012, must be in compliance with the 1991 ADA Standards (1991 ADAS).
California businesses that own facilities open to the public and commercial facilities built or renovated on or after March 15, 2012, must be built in compliance with the 2010 ADA Standards (2010 ADAS).
All Los Angeles California businesses that own facilities that are open to the public or commercial facilities are required to be in ADA compliance in the State of California.
To learn more about these requirements, call us now!
The following aspects should be considered when determining whether your organization is in ADA compliance.
Physical Access- Does your establishment allow customers with mobility impairments easy access to restrooms, entries, exits, elevators, ramps, parking spaces, etc.? Many businesses have yet to provide handrails on stairways. Are there signs that indicate which areas can be accessed by wheelchairs?
Communications Access - Can those with hearing loss understand announcements made through speakers? What size font is used in posters, menus, and advertisements?
Program Access - Is it possible for users of screen readers to browse through the website without having to worry about errors? What type of text is available to users? Is the content presented in color?
The accessibility standards must be met. ensures that your facility is safe and comfortable for all those who use it. For instance, if there's no ramp for wheelchairs that leads up to the front door, people using a wheelchair may need to park further away from other drivers. This can pose safety issues because he might get stuck behind cars waiting to be allowed into the parking lot. Also, if there isn't enough space between counters and tables which customers are seated at, customers might feel uncomfortable in a position that is too close to their neighbors.
Additionally, those with disabilities can use public transportation more easily by knowing exactly where the nearest station is. Furthermore, many businesses fail due to a accessibility issues. The ADA mandates that all places of public accommodations provide services to anyone regardless of disability. If these facilities don't meet the accessibility requirements, then they're violating the law.
If you'd like to know more about the benefits of complying with the accessibility requirements, please contact us today!
If you own or operate an enterprise, you're required to be compliant with the ADA. In leased places of public accommodations and commercial properties, both the landlord and the tenant are responsible for ensuring ADA compliance.
Also, under California law, the commercial property owner or landlord is required to state on every rental agreement or lease form executed on or after January 1, 2017, whether or not their premises have been inspected by a CASp.
Our CASp can assist in specifying within the terms of the lease who is responsible for which areas of the facility.
You don't want to be penalized by the U.S. Department of Justice because you didn't meet the standards set by Title III of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Follow these tips to avoid such a situation:
1. Make sure that your building is compliant with ADA access norms as described above.
2. Verify that your communication tools are compatible with the needs of people who suffer from various types of visual impairments. If, for example, you make use of Braille signage, make sure that the information that is provided by these devices can be easily understood.
3. Consider providing assistive listening devices so that patrons who are deaf can converse with the staff.
4. Give clear instructions on how to contact your customer support representatives. These instructions must cover phone numbers, email addresses, fax numbers, and so on.
5. Be aware of the many ways that people with vision difficulties use technology. Improve access by providing computer terminals and other technologies that can be used by people with such visual impairments.
To be considered "compliant," a facility must allow equal access to individuals with disabilities in public accommodations. In addition, a public accommodation must also be designed and constructed in accordance with applicable standards and building codes. As we mentioned before, DSA services help businesses become ADA certified and achieve ADA standards that ensure disabled people have full access to public facilities.
Here are a few examples of what might not be ADA-compliant:
Restaurants that require their guests to access the restaurant through a back entrance.
A lift that can go up one floor at a time.
A hotel room without bathrooms that can be fully accessed by wheelchair users.
The DSA’s ADA Program will be responsible for the development and revision of accessibility standards for architectural design. The program evaluates new construction projects, inspections, and audits in order to ensure conformance to these standards and to see whether they are accessible. It provides design assistance for the development of special requirements that allow greater access to handicapped people and monitors the construction plan review process to verify that they are in compliance with the ADA.
Every day, we come into contact with doors that don’t have an automatic opener, streets that don’t have a curb cut wide enough to get through in a wheelchair, even elevator buttons that can’t be pressed by little fingers. Now, there are standards set in place by the ADA which you must make your site comply with before launch or at least show you are involved in and began meeting these accessibility norms on your website. Some people are simply no longer familiar with visual and interactive user interface (UI) alike, making navigation on your site challenging, not to mention stressful. Web accessibility standards that comply with the ADA law not only help disabled individuals navigate through Google but also give all your users the capability to browse through the content that you’ve worked hard on for so long!
The DSA services specialist is responsible for ensuring that buildings are designed and constructed in accordance with the ADA and other accessibility laws. The DSA services specialist works with the architect, owner, contractor, or builder to ensure that accessible elements are integrated into new construction and renovation projects. This includes ensuring that structural changes like changes to hallways, doors, and other structural issues, don’t increase the cost of construction and ensure that accessibility features are maintained through the life of the building.
A DSA services specialist is also responsible for ensuring that all new construction projects adhere to the requirements of state, local, and federal laws in order to meet ADA standards. Consulting with these access specialists help architects, building owners, and contractors identify and evaluate barriers present within the building. These specialists offer their expertise to the owner, small business, architect, or builder to eliminate these barriers. The access specialist can help you understand all available accessibility options.
We can assist you with any ADA-DSA Consultations and Construction requirements needed in the state of California. Please contact us if have any concerns about the accessibility requirements for an area or if you’d like to know more about our services to assist in meeting this requirement.
For more information about our services and qualifications, call us today at (818) 805-1915
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