ADA FAQ Knowledge Base
ADA FAQ Knowledge Base
For the most common questions, see ADA Common Questions.
ADA Basics
- Am I responsible for the animal while the person with a disability is in my business?
- Are all people who have disabilities covered by the ADA?
- Are psychiatric disabilities covered, too?
- Are there any limitations on the ADA’s auxiliary aids requirements?
- Are there any limits on the kinds of modifications in policies, practices, and procedures required by the ADA?
- Can a public accommodation use eligibility criteria to determine who may receive services?
- Do businesses need to have Braille materials, such as menus and sales tags, on hand in order to comply with Title III?
- Do businesses need to have a qualified interpreter on hand in order to communicate with a person who is deaf?
- Do the revised ADA Regulations that went into effect on March 15, 2011 require the city or state government to create or update a self-evaluation and transition plan?
- Does the ADA apply to State and local governments?
- How are the ADA’s requirements for State and local governments enforced?
- How can I file an ADA complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice?
- How can I tell if an animal is really a service animal and not just a pet?
- How does title II affect participation in a State or local government’s programs, activities, and services?
- How many people in the United States have a disability?
- How will the public accommodations provisions be enforced?
- I heard that miniature horses are considered to be service animals by the ADA. Is this true?
- I heard there is a new ADA?
- Is the Federal government covered by the ADA?
- Must alternative steps be taken without regard to cost?
- What are major life activities?
- What changes must a public entity make to its existing facilities to make them accessible?
- What does “regarded as” having a disability mean?
- What does the term “readily achievable” mean?
- What if a service animal barks or growls at other people, or otherwise acts out of control?
- What is a self-evaluation?
- What is a service animal?
- What is another power-driven mobility device (OPDMD)?
- What is the definition of a wheelchair under the ADA?
- What is the definition of disability under the ADA?
- What is the difference between a “reasonable accommodation” and a “reasonable modification”?
- What kind of law is the ADA?
- What kinds of things does the ADA cover?
- What must I do when an individual with a service animal comes to my business?
- What, if any, are the specific disabilities that are covered under the ADA Title I employment regulations?
- When do the requirements for State and local governments become effective?
- When did the ADA become a law?
- Where can I find a lawyer to represent me for free if I have a complaint or need consultation?
- Who has responsibility for ADA compliance in leased places of public accommodation, the landlord or the tenant?
Communication
Education
Employment
- Are applicants or employees who are currently illegally using drugs protected by the ADA?
- Are people with alcohol use disorder protected by the ADA?
- As long as I meet the ADA definition of disability, am I covered by Title I?
- Can an employer be required to modify, adjust, or make other reasonable accommodations in the way a test is given to an applicant or employee with a disability?
- Can an employer be required to reallocate an essential function of a job to another employee as a reasonable accommodation?
- Can an employer consider health and safety when deciding whether to hire an applicant or retain an employee with a disability?
- Can an employer establish specific attendance and leave policies?
- Can an employer maintain existing production/performance standards for an employee with a disability?
- Can you give me an example of someone who has a “record of” a disability without having a current disability?
- Can you give me an example of someone who is “regarded as” having a disability?
- Does an employer have to give preference to an applicant with a disability over other applicants?
- Does the ADA override federal and state health and safety laws?
- Does the ADA require employers to develop written job descriptions?
- Does the ADA require that an applicant or employee with a disability be qualified for the position?
- Does the ADA require that an employer post a notice explaining its requirements?
- Does title II cover a public entity’s employment policies and practices?
- How are the employment provisions enforced?
- How do workers’ compensation programs and the ADA overlap?
- Is testing for the illegal use of drugs permissible under the ADA?
- Must an employer modify existing facilities to make them accessible?
- What are an employer’s recordkeeping requirements under the employment provisions of the ADA?
- What are my employer’s obligations after I return from medical leave? (What kind of documentation can the employer ask for when I return from medical leave?)
- What are some of the accommodations applicants and employees may need?
- What are the “essential functions” of a job?
- What are the limitations on the obligation to make a reasonable accommodation?
- What do you mean by “association with a person with a disability”?
- What does a “record of” a disability mean?
- What financial assistance is available to employers to help them make reasonable accommodations and comply with the ADA?
- What is a “reasonable accommodation”?
- What is considered an “undue hardship” for a reasonable accommodation?
- What is discrimination based on “relationship or association” under the ADA?
- What is the process to request a reasonable accommodation in employment?
- What limitations does the ADA impose on medical examinations and inquiries about disability?
- What practices and activities are covered by the employment nondiscrimination requirements?
- What resources does the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission have available to help employers and people with disabilities understand and comply with the employment requirements of the ADA?
- When can an employer ask an applicant to “self-identify” as having a disability?
- When is an employer required to make a reasonable accommodation?
- Which employers are covered by title I of the ADA?
- Who is a “qualified individual”?
- Who is protected from employment discrimination?
Facilities Access & Parking
- Are businesses entitled to any tax benefit to help pay for the cost of compliance?
- Are there any limitations on the ADA’s barrier removal requirements for existing facilities?
- Businesses and non-profit organizations are required by the ADA to remove architectural barriers when it is “readily achievable” to do so. How do businesses and non-profit organizations determine what is “readily achievable”?
- Can I charge maintenance or cleaning fees for customers who bring service animals into my business?
- Does the ADA cover private apartments and private homes?
- Does the ADA permit an individual with a disability to sue a business when that individual believes that discrimination is about to occur, or must the individual wait for the discrimination to occur?
- How do the 2010 changes to the ADA Standards for Accessible Design impact parking spaces that already exist?
- How does the ADA affect existing State and local building codes?
- How is “readily achievable” determined in a multisite business?
- How will a State or local government know that a new building is accessible?
- If I am a business or non-profit organization leasing building space from a building owner and the parking lot is not compliant with the 2010 ADA Standards, am I obligated to address this or is it solely the responsibility of the building owner?
- If I am altering or doing an addition to my building, can I still follow the older 1991 ADA Standards for Accessible Design or must I use the new 2010 ADA Standards?
- Is it expensive to make all newly constructed places of public accommodation and commercial facilities accessible?
- Is my building “grandfathered in” under the older 1991 ADA Standards for Accessible Design or do I need to comply with the 2010 ADA Standards?
- What accessibility standards for buildings and facilities must be followed by commercial facilities and places of public accommodation?
- What are examples of the types of physical modifications or barrier removal that would be readily achievable in most cases?
- What are the ADA requirements for altering facilities?
- What are the compliance dates mandated by the new 2010 ADA Standards?
- What does the ADA require in new construction?
- What does title II require for new construction and alterations?
- What funding assistance is available for individuals with disabilities to purchase assistive devices, ramps, etc.?
- What funding assistance is available for removing barriers and accommodating customers with disabilities?
- What is the effect of certification of a State or local code or ordinance?
- What should be applied to a situation when both the local or state code and the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design need to be considered?
- What standards apply to newly constructed and altered facilities covered by the ADA?
- What types of accessible means of entry are required for swimming pools under the 2010 ADA Standards?
- When barrier removal is not readily achievable, what kinds of alternative steps are required by the ADA?
- When must structural changes be made to attain program accessibility?
- Where can I find a complete set of ADA standards for accessible design?
- Will businesses need to install elevators?
- Will businesses need to rearrange furniture and display racks?
Hospitality & Recreation
- If I am doing a renovation on a hotel, how many guest rooms need to be accessible?
- My county health department has told me that only a “guide dog in harness” has to be admitted to my restaurant. If I follow their advice, am I violating the ADA?
- What are public accommodations?
- What are the new requirements for public and private swimming pools (pools owned/operated by businesses covered by Title III, such as hotels and motels, health clubs, recreation centers, public country clubs)?
- When are the public accommodations provisions effective?