Proposals on access for disabled stir concern

Small business will bear the brunt of improving access for disabled people under proposed changes to the federal Americans with Disabilities Act.

That's the conclusion of a study commissioned by the Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy, which based its findings on construction costs, staffing and building size.

The cost of complying will be two to four times steeper for small businesses than large firms, both on a per-square-foot and per-employee basis, according to analysis by North Carolina-based research firm E.H Pechan and Associates.

Most of the proposed recommendations are focused on removing architectural barriers: modifying public entrances and restrooms; enlarging employee-only areas; and lowering light switches, alarms and thermostats.

"We find that small firms face substantial costs from the adoption" of the more comprehensive guidelines, which were first recommended in 2004.

A typical small business, like a restaurant, would need to spend $82,450 for barrier removal under the proposed guidelines, according to the study. That includes, for instance, lowering countertops or widening public entrances for wheelchair access.

That concerns Valen Lee, owner of Lee's Food King supermarket in Sacramento. His business was sued in federal court in 2006 for not complying with ADA standards. Lee settled last month after making more than $50,000 in improvements to the supermarket's restrooms.

Lee said many small businesses are located in older buildings, which adds to the cost of modifications. He called the prospect of additional new regulations "scary."

"I don't think there's anybody who is blatantly denying access, (but) this is opening an endless expense for small businesses in older facilities," said Lee, whose Franklin Boulevard building is more than 50 years old.

According to the study, one-time barrier removal costs range from about $2 per square foot for small hospital buildings to $18.25 per square foot for offices.

Federal tax credits of up to $5,000 for the cost of ADA modifications are available to small businesses with total revenue of $1 million or less in the previous tax year or 30 or fewer full-time employees.

But given the costs, Lee said the bill for disabled modifications can still be daunting.

"The (guidelines) are not possible to meet unless you have an open-ended checkbook," he said.

Susan Chandler, past president of Sacramento-based Californians for Disability Rights, is largely unsympathetic to complaints by business owners that it's a financial hardship.

She lays part of the blame on designers and architects slow to embrace so-called "universal design" strategies that provide easier access for disabled people to public and private buildings.

"This is real simple, but people's attitudes are still in the 10th century," said Chandler, by phone from Los Osos in San Luis Obispo County. "We've just got to keep pushing."

She said tougher enforcement of existing ADA regulations is needed. "There's no enforcement teeth. People are saying, 'Just sue me,' and then they get upset when they're sued."

The proposed modifications, recommended in 2004 by the federal Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, would update the landmark 1992 disabled access federal legislation.

Three years into the process, the recommendations still "aren't quite ripe yet" said Michael Hull, a regional advocate for the U.S. Small Business Administration. SBA officials anticipate the proposals will be unveiled later this month.

Officials at the Department of Justice's Disability Rights Section, which will issue the proposals, were unavailable for comment Friday.

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