An update coming to accessibility rules for federal buildings

Nearly 35 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the resulting features seem unremarkable: Ramps, lifts, and talking crosswalk signals. However, the ADA is dynamic, and now some new rules are coming from the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board. And they apply to federal building accessibility. General Services Administration Deputy Administrator Katy Kale and Charles Hardy, the chief architect of the Public Buildings Service, joined the Federal Drive with Tom Temin to discuss.

Interview transcript: 

Tom Temin: And Katie if you would, just begin by giving us the architecture of what’s going on. There are a couple of laws that apply to accessibility. There are a couple of federal agencies that are not GSA that create these rules. What is the background of the new rules coming on?

Katie Kale: That’s a great question. So as mentioned, my name is Katie Kale. I am the deputy administrator of GSA and I also serve as the chair of the U.S. Access Board. And for those who aren’t familiar, the U.S. Access Board is the federal agency that promotes equality for people with disabilities and they’re really responsible for leadership and inclusive design and development of accessibility guidelines and standards. So when we’re talking today, we’re going to be talking about two different things. One is the ADA, which is the Americans with Disabilities Act, which has been around since 1990 and the ABA, which is the Architectural Barriers Act. And that has been around for even longer. That’s been around since 1968 and that one is really the one that GSA follows. It applies to facilities that are funded by the federal government. So we’re going to be talking about post offices and courthouses and really making sure that the standards that GSA adheres to as the landlord for the federal government That’s what we’re following.

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Tom Temin: So it sounds like the ADA kind of expanded on the ABA to transportation and busses that go down low and they stop and that kind of thing. The earlier law is buildings and facilities and getting in and out of them. Basically.

Katie Kale: Yes, and I’d say even greater. The ABA is state and local and federal government, and ADA goes a little bit further in its private organizations and making sure people with disabilities and all people have access to buildings and other places. and Chuck

Tom Temin: And Chuck, what are the new rules coming out? What do they require of buildings and facilities?

Charles Hardy: It’s looking to require things like shortening travel distances from on the street parking to building entrances, making it easier to access government buildings while increasing efficiency for everybody who’s using street parking by increasing sidewalk sizes and widths, which make it easier for people to pass on the sidewalk. So you’re reducing accidental collisions and you’re better accommodating some of the mobility aids, such as walker rollators and both manual electric wheelchairs on the sidewalks. You’re also getting better audio and tactile warning systems, including audio signals warnings to increase pedestrian safety when crossing the streets. Those are just a few of the items within it and some of the benefits of those.

Tom Temin: So it could be that some facilities might already be in compliance if, say, they have a really big sidewalk and the handicapped parking spaces are right next to the door, for example.

Charles Hardy: Absolutely, we try to achieve accessibility compliance through thoughtful design. So if we lead with universal design and accessibility principles rather than overlaying mitigations as afterthoughts. That’s bringing accessibility mainstream efficiently, and ABA and PROWAG, which is a new rule, are showing us that way and helping to find that a more uniform manner.

Tom Temin: And with respect to federal buildings, are they mostly ABA compliant at this point already?

Katie Kale: So I will tell you this, all federal facilities are fully access compliant. And as a matter of fact, some of the things that Chuck was talking about, GSA typically goes beyond the federal standards. We were really looking at functional accessibility. So not just checking a box, making sure that these additional accessibility features are in new federal construction. But also, anytime where we’re updating one of our historic buildings, we’re making sure that we’re being compliant as well. I will tell you this type of accessibility design is the right thing to do, but it’s also the smart thing to do because it really ultimately benefits everyone by providing a sustainable work environment. And so it might be part of a regulation, but it is a benefit to everyone, not just people who may identify as having a disability.

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Tom Temin: We’re speaking with Katie Kale. She’s deputy administrator of the General Services Administration. And with Chuck Hardy. He’s the chief architect of the Public Buildings Service. And as you mentioned, Chuck there is parking access, sidewalk width, which may be the case already for a lot of federal buildings, but audio and tactile warning systems. That kind of thing sounds like there might be some investment required here. How are you going about finding out how close buildings are in the first place to the new rules?

Charles Hardy: Well, as Katie mentioned, our buildings are built in compliance with ABA as we go forward, and this is just furthering that compliance, saying new construction will be fully accessible and fully compliant. Usually, our historic buildings, 50 years or older, have issues with compliance since ABA was not in place when those buildings were completed and these typically include accessible route to buildings like we’re talking about to building entries, nonaccessible bathrooms, doorways and some of the door hardware. Of all our historic buildings, most are accessible with about 10% still having issues. However, when there’s an alteration in historic building, GSA is striving to make those alterations accessible as possible, while not damaging that historic fabric. So we try to work within the constraints of what we have. And bottom line is, whenever there’s a request to support a particular accessibility, GSA’s reasonable accommodation policy helps ensure that we’re providing an equitable and welcoming building for all. And so as we move to adopt these new rules and these new procedures, as we touch our projects from the past, we will bring them into the future. And as we touch any new project, we’re going to build that plan out of the gate.

Tom Temin: And just a detailed question, I want to return to that audio and tactile warning thing, that sounds like it’s for crosswalks. Is there any application of signaling or warning or tactile feedback for building access? Say you’re standing in front of a building and you need a ramp to get in, those are there. Railings. That kind of thing? Or from the first to the second floor, there might be a lift so you don’t have to get on the elevator. You see these things all over now. What do you feel you might need to add that’s not already there?

Katie Kale: Well, what I was going to say is, I think this is a combination of what GSA is doing as the federal government’s landlord, what local communities and state governments are doing as well. And quite frankly, pedestrians with disabilities throughout the United States are continuing to face major challenges whether they’re using sidewalks or crosswalks or other inaccessible manners of getting from point A to point B. PROWAG, which Chuck mentioned earlier, is a way to help address this inequity and GSA is very proud to be the first agency to adopt PROWAG into its regulatory framework. So working with other, like I said, state and local and private entities to make sure that they’re up to speed with PROWAG regulations will be able to get people from point A to point B. One of the things that when I talk about my position on the U.S. Access Board and GSA, I love to give the example of corner cutouts or curb cutouts because these were originally put in to make sure that people using wheelchairs and such are able to get from a sidewalk and get across the street. But when you think about the uses today, people with bikes, strollers, delivery carts, suitcases, all of that, are also able to get around easier. And so as we’re continuing as a public to update and become compliant, it is going to be helpful and beneficial for everyone.

Tom Temin: And another detail question, what about national park facilities? Some of those are outdoors and would this apply to like trails where it would seem that maybe it’s just not possible for every single person that wants to go down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon to actually be able to do that.

Katie Kale: So that is definitely something that is important. We at GSA don’t have a whole lot of facilities within the public parks, but I do know that the Department of Interior is focused on this and I think that how everyone can have access to public spaces, wherever those public spaces may be, is a priority.

Tom Temin: And Chuck how do these get implemented? As the chief architect, then you must be responsible for the design standards and in some cases, appearance. If, as you say, it’s historic, you can make it accessible without spoiling the appearance. But who is responsible for making sure it happens? Is it the agency that’s occupying that building?

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Charles Hardy: Typically, we’re hiring architects to work with our agencies and our clients to and this is in our P100, which is our facility standards that mandates us as the compliance required. Going back to the last questions too, it’s the industry that’s being challenged that GSA is challenging the industry that we’re pushing forward on this to come up with creative solutions to meet that functional requirement that Katie noted of making it useful for everybody in this universal design concept where everyone’s flowing through the same paths to get to a place and having that same experience in a building. And so as we move toward that, we’re relying on the architectural design community to not only leverage their design thought but leverage current technology, current solutions, and come up with new solutions that start to move us forward in a way that we’re all experiencing the same way we experience our buildings and our lives through accessibility.

Tom Temin: And I imagine that GSA and the federal government as a large lessee for commercial space has some influence over how those places get designed and updated.

Charles Hardy: Yeah, this goes across our program. On our leases and our federal buildings, we’re following that same compliance. So yeah, it is definitely a driver of change in a positive way.

Tom Temin: And what’s the timeline? When do these rules go into effect? And what are the deadlines for being compliant with the latest round?

Charles Hardy: They went in effect September 4. So forward, we’ll be complying with these.

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