Handicapped Requirements for Church Facilities
Question:
What are the requirements for handicap facilities for churches? Ramp grades, restroom facilities?
Answer:
In Illinois, newly constructed church facilities and church facilities that are renovated must follow the accessibility requirements under the Illinois Accessibility Code (“IAC”), which was adopted to implement the Illinois Environmental Barriers Act (“EBA”). See 71 Ill. Admin. Code 400; 410 ILCS 25. The EBA governs physical access for people with disabilities in new construction, additions, and alterations to public facilities. The IAC has the force of a building code and contains the design standards required by the EBA (e.g., requisite door widths, toilet room dimensions, the number of accessible parking spaces, etc.). The Illinois Attorney General offers an Environmental Barriers Act and Americans with Disabilities Act Site Inspection Checklist as a guide to help people determine whether public facilities are accessible to people with disabilities and compliant with state and federal accessibility standards. You may view both the Site Inspection Checklist and the Illinois Accessibility Code itself at http://www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov/rights/environmental_barriers.html.
Your church may also be subject to the nearly identical federal accessible design standards in certain circumstances. Specifically, the ADA Accessibility Guidelines for Buildings and Facilities establish the minimum scoping and technical requirements for accessibility during the design, construction, and alteration of buildings and facilities subject to the Americans with Disabilities Act’s (“ADA”) Title III regulations. See http://www.access-board.gov/adaag/. While facilities within “religious organizations" are exempt as public accommodations under Title III of the ADA, this exemption does not extend to non-religious entities that rent facilities owned by religious organizations. Thus, non-religious entities may be subject to Title III of the ADA when operating in inaccessible facilities that are rented (as opposed to donated) from a religious organization. See 56 Fed. Reg. 35,554 (July 26, 1991); Department of Justice ADA Title III Technical Assistance Manual SIII-1.5200 (1992).