Who is Exempt from ADA Compliance?
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Most businesses are required to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and ensure their physical and digital spaces are accessible to individuals with disabilities. However, a small percentage of organizations are exempt. We’ll explore exemptions in more detail below.
Originally Posted May 26, 2022
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits businesses open to the public, non-profit service providers, and government agencies from discriminating on the basis of disability. If your organization is “generally open to the public,” you have a responsibility to provide reasonable accommodations to people with disabilities.
While some organizations are exempt from complying with the ADA, those exemptions are extremely limited. Below, we’ll explain who is exempt, how those exemptions work, and provide an overview of ADA regulations for websites, mobile apps, and other digital content.
Title I, Title II, and Title III ADA Compliance
Since 1990, the ADA has played a fundamental role in establishing legal protections for people with disabilities. The Civil Rights Law is divided into five sections that address different areas of public life, with Title III being the most applicable to organizations that serve the public.
Under Title I, employers cannot discriminate against individuals with disabilities in employment practices, including hiring, firing, promotions, training, and employment conditions. Employers are also required to provide reasonable accommodations to employees with disabilities. Failing to comply with Title I can lead to discrimination charges filed by individuals or by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Title II of the ADA prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in places of public accommodation and applies specifically to state and local government entities and public places. Previously, the act only applied to physical spaces; now, however, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has repeatedly stated that the internet is considered a public space. Therefore, government municipalities must provide equal access to their digital content.
Additionally, recent updates to Title II included new technical specifications on which digital content must be accessible under the ADA. Government agencies must adhere to the accessibility standards included in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA.
Under Title III, people with disabilities are entitled to “the full and equal employment of the goods and services at any place of public accommodation.” More simply, individuals with disabilities deserve full and fair use of goods and services in any public entity. For example, private businesses must provide accommodations during new construction and when modifying their commercial facilities to ensure they are accessible. Additionally, companies must proactively remove existing architectural barriers to access if they will not take on an “undue burden” when doing so.
Title III of the ADA applies to nearly every business, regardless of size, industry, or other characteristics. This includes:
- Hotels and other places of lodging
- Office buildings
- Restaurants and bars
- Parks, zoos, and other places of recreation
- Retail establishments
- Hospitals and healthcare facilities
- Schools, universities, and other places of education
- Museums, libraries, galleries, and other places of public display or collection
It’s important to note this is not a comprehensive list. Generally, if an organization provides products or services to the public, it must comply with Title III of the ADA.
ADA Exemptions
Most organizations are required to comply with Title I, II, and III of the ADA. However, there are some exemptions.
Title II Exemptions
As mentioned above, Title II of the ADA applies to government entities; however, federal government agencies are exempt from Title II compliance. Instead, federal agencies must comply with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Private entities are also not covered under Title II; Title III applies specifically to private entities.
Title III Exemptions
Title III of the ADA is applicable to private businesses (such as the ones mentioned above), but the following entities are exempt:
- Religious organizations: Churches, synagogues, mosques, and other religious entities, including their places of worship, are exempt from Title III requirements, even if they operate public accommodations like schools or daycare centers.
- Private clubs: Private clubs — not open to the public and have selective membership criteria — are exempt from Title III.
- Historic buildings: Though not entirely exempt from ADA guidelines, historic buildings may have more lenient accessibility requirements to preserve their architectural integrity.
It’s important to note that the ADA may be applicable to nonreligious entities that organize within religious facilities, and private clubs may lose their exemption if they open their facilities to the general public.
For example, if a nonreligious organization rents space from a church or synagogue to run a community event, the ADA would apply to that nonreligious organization, even though the event takes place in a religious facility. For private clubs, if the club hosts an event that is open to the public, the club could temporarily lose its ADA exemption for the duration of that event and would need to comply with accessibility requirements.
Limited Entrances to Physical Spaces
Physical buildings that have limited access points have some flexibility in meeting ADA standards. This is especially true for older buildings or historic sites where modifying entrances may be structurally or financially burdensome.
However, this is not a complete exemption. Instead, it allows organizations to provide an alternative accessible route, such as installing ramps or making side entrances accessible.
Exemptions by Period of Time in Business
While there is no explicit exemption under the ADA based on how long a business has been operating, there are some physical buildings that have less stringent accessibility standards.
Older facilities (or existing facilities) are not required to make extensive changes to their physical building unless they’re undergoing major renovation or new construction. However, organizations must still make “readily achievable” accommodations, meaning they must make modifications that are easy to accomplish without excessive cost, difficulty, or disruption to the business.
For example, if a small, long-established bakery operated in a building from the 1920s, the organization may not have to install an elevator to make its upper floors accessible. Still, it could be required to install grab bars in their restrooms or a portable ramp at the main entrance.
Exemptions According to Business Size
Smaller businesses, particularly those with limited financial resources, may have some leeway in complying with the ADA’s requirements.
A small, independently owned coffee shop, for example, may not be required to install an expensive automatic door open. Still, it might be expected to provide a portable ramp or rearrange furniture to allow for wheelchair access.
What are “Readily Achievable” ADA Accommodations?
Businesses may be exempted from making certain accommodations that are not “readily achievable”. For example, if a small business would need to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to make their public property accessible for people who use wheelchairs, they may argue that the accommodation isn’t readily achievable.
The size of the business typically plays an important role in determining the “readily achievable” requirement. For example, larger businesses are considered to have more resources for making accommodations and removing barriers, so they’re often expected to make more efforts to accommodate people with disabilities. Smaller businesses may have more leeway.
What is Undue Hardship?
Undue hardship refers to a significant difficulty or expense an organization may face when attempting to make its physical or online spaces more accessible to individuals with disabilities. This doesn’t refer to minor inconveniences but rather a substantial burden on a business’s operations.
For example, a small business might not be able to afford a $50,000 elevator installation, making this an undue hardship. Or if the same small business needed to completely overhaul its website for a substantial cost, this could be considered undue hardship.
Website Accessibility and ADA Compliance
While most business owners understand that the ADA applies to physical establishments, they find the connection to online content and digital services less clear. However, it’s important to understand the law also prohibits discrimination online.
As mentioned above, the DOJ has stated that websites and mobile apps are “places of accommodation.” This official stance occurred in 2022 when the DOJ mandated organizations meet the accessibility standards included in WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), WCAG includes success criteria that remove website barriers that affect people with disabilities. Following a principle-oriented approach, the guidelines enable businesses to create better content for users with visual impairments (such as low vision), hearing impairments, neurocognitive differences, and other disabilities.
To comply with ADA standards for accessible design, every business should seek conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA guidelines.
Some of the common WCAG failures you’ll find in a checklist for ADA compliance include:
Low Color Contrast
Color contrast is the difference in light between a website’s foreground content (including text) and its background. Low color contrast can make text unreadable for people with low vision, color vision deficiencies, and other vision impairments.
According to the 2024 WebAIM report, 81% of the web’s top 1 million homepages had low-contrast text, violating WCAG requirements. Using a color contrast checker can help ensure appropriate contrast between text and other web elements, improving readability for users.
Missing Alt Text for Non-Text Content
Many users can’t perceive content visually. If a website uses images to convey information (for example, with images of text or images that provide important context for navigating the site), the images need accurate alternative text (also known as alt text).
Adding alt text is usually easy, but if businesses aren’t aware of the issue, they can’t address it. WebAIM found that 21.6% of homepages have missing alt text, preventing users with visual disabilities or assistive technology users from interacting with the content.
Issues with Keyboard Accessibility
To comply with the ADA, websites must be usable with screen readers and other assistive technologies. Many assistive tools are operated with a keyboard alone (no mouse). If a website has keyboard accessibility issues, some users might become “stuck” on form fields or other interactive elements.
While meeting all WCAG conformance criteria can seem overwhelming, most conformance standards can be met with some minor adjustments.
The Legal Costs of Website Accessibility Issues
Unfortunately, the vast majority of modern websites have issues that could constitute ADA testing or WCAG violations, which explains the rising number of web accessibility lawsuits in the last several years. Per one estimate from Seyfarth Shaw, the number of ADA non-compliance lawsuits filed in the first half of 2024 totaled 4,280, with lawsuits projected to reach around 8,500 by the end of the year. And that number is only expected to rise in the coming years as the world becomes increasingly digital.
ADA compliance lawsuits are also incredibly expensive. In fact, a single ADA demand letter can mean thousands of dollars in legal expenses, with a maximum penalty of $75,000 for a first violation and up to $150,000 for subsequent violations.
How AudioEye Helps Businesses Become ADA-Compliant
Regardless of your budget, you can take immediate steps to improve your website’s accessibility.
AudioEye’s Accessibility Platform includes numerous accessibility features designed to improve accessibility and meet ADA compliance standards. Our free Web Accessibility Scanner scans your site for more than 30 WCAG violations (more than any other tool on the market) and applies Automatic Fixes to these violations — all without affecting the visual appearance of your website. AudioEye supplements this testing with expert audits conducted by our team of human experts who find more complex accessibility issues and provide expert guidance to fix them.
Facing an ADA lawsuit? Get expert support from AudioEye’s trusted legal team, which has the lowest legal claim rate in the industry at just 17%. We’ll determine the validity of the lawsuit and offer reimbursement for legal costs or settlements if the claim is valid. With AudioEye on your side, you’ll enjoy up to 400% more protection than consulting or automation-only responses.
Ready to get started? Enter the URL of your digital content below to check for common WCAG violations, or schedule a demo to see AudioEye in action.
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