A few bad actors are abusing the ADA, exploiting this landmark civil rights law for personal financial gain. No one disputes this abuse is happening or says this increases access.
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Today, the House passed the ADA Education and Reform Act-- a bipartisan bill I helped introduce to ensure businesses can spend money on access not lawyers.
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A small restaurant in downtown San Diego tells this story: It was sued by a lawyer who had filed 50 ADA suits against San Diego Country restaurants in one year. Though no violations existed, proving it in court would have cost $50,000 or more, So they paid $2,500 to settle.
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The only winner was the lawyer who was filing the same cookie cutter lawsuit all around town.
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We hear these stories all the time-- lawsuits being settled without violations being fixed--so much, that state governments have acted to curb this abuse. CA Democrats have led this fight.
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SB 269 was authored by a Democratic State Senator, passed by a Democratic majority legislature, and signed into law by Governor Brown in 2016.
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The bipartisan CA bill:
gives business 120 days to fix violations
educates business owners on compliance
redirects payouts toward improving access
protects against serial lawsuitsShow this thread -
Today we provided the same corrections at the federal level. Let me be clear: this bill does not shield businesses or public accommodations from complying with the ADA. Here's the breakdown:
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This bill will not turn anyone into a second class citizen.
This bill extends "notice and cure" requirements that already apply to other civil rights laws.Show this thread -
This bill does not relieve business of their obligation to comply with the ADA.
Public accommodations are still responsible for ensuring access, must respond to violation notices, and can be sued if they do not improve access.Show this thread
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This bill does not shift the burden of compliance from business to victims.
The bill still requires businesses to comply with ADA. The only difference for victims is whether they provide notice or file a lawsuit.Show this thread
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This bill does not weaken the rights of the disabled.
The bill facilitates the removal of barriers to ensure better access in a shorter period of time and discourages quick payoff lawsuits that do nothing for access.Show this thread
End of conversation
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