RIMS backs ADA reform bill

The Risk & Insurance Management Society Inc. on Monday urged risk managers to support a congressional bill sponsored by Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Calif., that would reform the Americans with Disabilities Act for small businesses.

Introduced by Rep. Calvert on July 30, H.R. 4099, the ADA Compliance for Customer Entry to Stores and Services Act, also known as the ACCESS Act, aims to reduce “frivolous” ADA lawsuits and address ADA violations more efficiently, New York-based RIMS said in a statement.

The bill also provides small business owners with adequate time to remedy compliance failures, RIMS said.

Under the act, any person “aggrieved by a violation of the ADA would have to provide the owner or operator with a written notice of the specific violation and identify the barrier to their access,” RIMS said in the statement.

“Businesses would then have 60 days to respond to this notice and 120 days to make improvements before a suit is filed,” RIMS said.

The bill also develops educational programs and training for state and local governments and property owners on effective and efficient strategies for promoting access to public accommodations for the disabled, RIMS said in the statement.

“The recent rise of frivolous, and sometimes baseless lawsuits has led to legislation such as the ACCESS Act to be necessary to protect both business owners and the disabled,” RIMS President Gloria Brosius said in the statement.