Book titled CFDA. CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC ASSISTANCE

16.108:  Americans With Disabilities Act Technical Assistance Program

Popular Name:  ADA

Objectives:  To ensure that public accommodations and commercial facilities and State and local governments learn of the requirements of Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and acquire the knowledge needed to comply with these requirements.

MAIN TOPICS:

16.108 ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS:

Applicant Eligibility:  Nonprofit organizations, including trade and professional associations or their subsidiaries, organizations representing State and local governments or their employees, other organizations representing entities covered by the ADA, State and local governments agencies, national and State-based organizations representing persons with disabilities, and individuals.

Beneficiary Eligibility:  The target audiences of funded grants will include State and local governments, businesses and nonprofit organizations that operate public accommodations and commercial facilities, and individuals with disabilities.

Credentials/Documentation:  Not applicable.

16.108 APPLICATION AND AWARD PROCESS:

Preapplication Coordination:  None. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedure:  Notice of solicitation of grant applications published in Federal Register. Applications are typically submitted in 45 to 60 days prior to award. Solicitation requires that the following forms be submitted with the application: SF 424 and 424A Application for Federal Assistance; Office of Justice Programs (OJP) Form 4000-3 (attached to SF 424); OJP Form 4061/6 (3-91); certifications regarding lobbying, debarment, suspension, and other responsibility matters; and Drug-Free Workplace Requirement; OJP Form 7120/1 (1/85), Accounting System and Financial Capability Questionnaire.

Award Procedure:  Final award decisions are made by the Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division. Civil Rights Division Program personnel receive and review proposals and make recommendations to the Assistant Attorney General. All grants are made directly to applicants. No State Plan required.

Deadlines:  Variable. Announced in the solicitation published in the Federal Register.

Range of Approval/Disapproval Time:  The range is 60-120 days.

Appeals:  None.

Renewals:  None.

Criteria for Selecting Proposals:  Criteria for selection of projects published in the solicitation of application.

Examples of Funded Projects:  The Police Executive Research Forum was awarded funding to create a set of materials on protecting the rights of persons with seizure disorders, speech and hearing impairments, mental retardation, and mental illness, to be integrated into police academy training and others for use in on-the-job roll-call training. The Chief Officers of State Library Agencies was awarded funding to place a collection of ADA material in 15,000 local libraries nationwide. The National Association of Towns and Township was awarded funding to produce ADA training materials to assist regional and State ADA technical assistance providers in educating officials from small towns across the country on how to comply with the ADA. The American Association of Retired Persons was awarded funding to create materials and conduct training sessions throughout the country to educate older persons with disabilities about their rights under the ADA. In 1995 and 1996, the Program funded state based grant projects to increase knowledge about the requirements of the ADA and awareness of resources available locally and at the State, regional, and national levels.

Range and Average of Financial Assistance:  Not available.

16.108 RELATED PROGRAMS:

None.

16.108 PROGRAM ACCOMPLISHMENTS:

Recent accomplishments include initiating litigation against national theater chains to correct violations in the design, construction and operation of stadium style movie theaters; and against a cruise line for discriminating against individuals who are blind. The Department intervened in a number of lawsuits to defend the constitutionality of title II suits against States for monetary damages. Often Departmental challenges under the ADA are resolved by a consent decree filed at the same time as a formal complaint. The decree is monitored and enforced by the Federal court in which they are entered. This avenue was used to correct retaliation for filing a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; to enforce the prohibition of refusal of medical services to an individual because of HIV; and to ensure modification of designs for stadium style theaters. Formal settlement agreements were used to require effective communications with inmates who are deaf, and to reach agreements under Project Civic Access with 16 communities, bringing to 40 the number of communities making themselves accessible; and to modify a policy banning services dogs in over 60 resorts and campgrounds. Much of the Department's enforcement effort focuses on resolution without litigation or formal agreements. For example, under a contract the Department refers complaints to professional mediators who have been trained in the legal requirements of the ADA. This has resulted in more accessible seating in a theater, accessible restaurant restrooms, providing an interpreter in a dentist's office, and an increase in accessible parking, to name a few of the hundreds of settlements. Additional informal settlements have resulted in changes of policy and damages to complainants, including money paid to a person with low vision who won a settlement against a national financial services company who had refused to read for him. The Department's successful enforcement and educational efforts are detailed in quarterly reports published by the Section and available online. The Technical Assistance Program, mandated under Section 506 of the ADA, provides answers to questions and free publications to businesses, state and local governments, people with disabilities, and the general public. The Section develops and disseminates free ADA publications, provides training and information at meetings nationwide, and carries out a variety of outreach and educational initiatives to reach audiences affected by the ADA. The Section's technical assistance publications range from detailed technical assistance manuals to basic Question-and-Answer booklets and illustrated guides addressing specific topics. Publications can be obtained 24 hours a day through a free fax-on-demand service or through the Section's ADA Website. This web site, one of the top five in the Department, received 17 million visits to its pages and graphics in FY 2001. The Section also chairs an ADA Technical Assistance Coordinating Committee and works with other agencies to coordinate technical assistance activities nationwide. In 2001, the Section developed eight new publications including an ADA Guide for People with Disabilities Seeking Employment, a Guide for Places of Lodging Serving Guests Who Are Blind or Have Low Vision, and a basic ADA Questions-and-Answers booklet in Cambodian, Hmong, Japanese, and Laotian. The Section also published an article about the ADA-related tax credits and deductions in an IRS newsletter that reached 6.8 million businesses nationwide. As part of its outreach to rural and minority populations, the Section answered ADA questions and distributed information at meetings of the National Council of La Raza, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Urban League, and the Colorado and New Mexico State Fairs. In addition, the Section completed four dissemination projects sending targeted materials to small museums, schools of building construction, African American churches, and hospitals. The Section also released its ADA Technical Assistance CD-ROM containing a full set of technical assistance publications, including a new electronic version of the ADA Standards, for easy use by businesses and contractors in the field. Lastly, the Section completed a project to produce a video on the ADA for law enforcement officers. .

16.108 FINANCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INFO:

Federal Agency:  CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE (Home Page)

Type of Assistance:  Dissemination of Technical Information; Training; Investigation of Complaints; Project Grants.

Obligations:  (Grants) FY 01 $12,206; FY 02 est $100,000; and FY 03 est $100,000. (Salaries and Expenses) FY 01 $14,493,794; FY 02 est $15,490,000; and FY 03 est $15,807,000.

Budget Account Number:  15-0128-0-1-752.

Authorization:  Americans with Disabilities Act, Public Law 101-336, Section 506.

Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature:  Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 25980-25983, June 5, 1991. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 13797-13208, March 15, 1993, and Federal Register 15523, March 23, 1993. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 29160-29168, June 3, 1994. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 28484-28489, May 31, 1995. Notice of solicitation of grant applications, Federal Register 25744-25749, May 22, 1996.

16.108 INFO CONTACTS:

Regional or Local Office:  None.

Headquarters Office:  Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, Disability Rights Section, Washington, DC 20530. Phone: (800) 514-0301 (Voice) (800) 514-0383 (TDD). Contact: Office of Public Affairs, Phone: (Voice) (202) 514-2007; (TDD) (202) 514-1888.

Web Site Address:  http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/drs/drshome.htm

(See Appendix IV for more contact info.)

16.108 ASSISTANCE CONSIDERATIONS:

Formula and Matching Requirements:  Not applicable.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance:  Normally 12 months. Release by Letter of Credit and as required.

Uses and Use Restrictions:  Grants limited to the provision of technical assistance and educational activities that have a wide impact, including the development and dissemination of materials, the conduct of seminars, conferences, and training, and the provision of technical assistance on a state, regional or national basis depending on the funding priorities announced each year. Because the grant program is educational in nature, the Department does not fund projects to research or resolve issues that are outside the scope of the Department's current ADA regulations and court interpretations. The program is not intended to fund or support site- specific compliance implementation (e.g., funding to make specific facilities more accessible), or to fund or support inspections, reviews, or tests to determine whether an entity is meeting its compliance obligations.

16.108 POST ASSISTANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Reports:  Quarterly financial (SF 269A (Rev. 4/88)) and program (OJP 4587/1 (Rev. 2/90)) reports.

Audits:  Grants may be audited by the Office of Justice Programs using standard audit procedure mandated by GAO.

Records:  Organization financial audits for each calendar year in which grant was effective.

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Text updated:  June 2002