Countdown to America's 250th Anniversary: 154 days
Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock
(
)
or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.
We are committed to making federal buildings and facilities fully accessible to all people. Achieving accessibility is reflected in our commitment to excellence in design, development and construction. We are dedicated to meeting or exceeding federal, state and local accessibility standards and to ensuring the full integration of individuals with disabilities who use our facilities. Because our facilities are flexible and adaptable, providing employees and visitors with disabilities the opportunity to take part in all the programs, services and activities our buildings are designed to support is an attainable goal.
Accessibility Desk Guide [PDF - 12 MB], November 24, 2015.
As the architect of projects ranging from the illuminated scaffolding of the Washington Monument to Department of Transportation headquarters, Michael Graves (1934–2015) helped define excellence for federal buildings.
After becoming paralyzed from an infection in 2003, Michael Graves became a particular advocate for disabled people in the design of public places. While physical accessibility has been a federal requirement for decades, he gained newfound sensitivity to the mobility and dignity of all building users. And thanks to him, today architects are pursuing accessibility to the fullest letter—and spirit—of mandates.
Congress enacted the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 requires accessibility in all federal government owned and leased buildings and facilities, and also buildings and facilities constructed, altered or leased with certain federal grants and loans.
We are one of four federal agencies Congress authorized to issue accessibility standards under the ABA. Ourcurrent implementing standard is the Architectural Barriers Act Accessibility Standard. ABAAS went into effect on May 9, 2006, for new construction and alterations, on June 30, 2006, for lease-construction facilities, and on Feb. 7, 2007, for all other leased facilities. ABAAS replaces the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards, which was our previous standard for accessibility. Application of ABAAS is specified in our Federal Management Regulation (subpart c). Unless specifically exempted by ABAAS, all public use areas, common use areas, and employee areas must be accessible. Accessible routes must connect all accessible spaces.
Any person involved in the design, construction, alteration and leasing of federally owned or leased facilities, such as:
The United States Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board, or Access Board, enforces the ABA. The ABA compliance process emphasizes informal resolution. However, if informal resolution cannot be achieved, the Access Board can initiate formal proceedings before an administrative law judge to obtain an order of compliance. Penalties for non-compliance can include the withholding or suspension of federal funds with respect to the building found not to be in compliance with ABAAS.
We have a National Accessibility Officer who is responsible for the implementation of our National Accessibility Program. They can be contacted for technical information and assistance concerning the application of ABAAS to our facilities.
In addition, the U.S. Access Board provides information about the ABA by telephone, fax or email. Design professionals and others can contact the Access Board to ask questions about general or specific ABA requirements including questions about our ABA Accessibility Standard.
Contact the Access Board at:
It is our policy to make all federal buildings accessible without the use of special facilities for persons with disabilities. The intent of this policy is to use standard building products set at prescribed heights and with prescribed maneuvering clearances to allow employees and visitors with disabilities easy use.
ABAAS is mandatory for all of our agency’s design and construction projects. The A/E is also responsible for compliance with all applicable state or local accessibility standards. Where such exist, the most stringent accessibility requirements are to be applied regardless of whether they are contained in state or local codes and regulations or ABAAS.
Where dimensions for clearances are stated in ABAAS, allowance must be made for construction tolerances in the design to ensure that the finished construction is in full compliance with the stated dimensions.
Where existing, unaltered elements of a building or facility comply with an earlier ABA standard such as UFAS, they are not required to be retrofitted to comply with ABAAS. However, if these elements are altered, they must comply with ABAAS or a future implementing standard of the ABA that is applicable at the time of the alteration.
Entrance doors, entrance vestibules, interior doors, corridors, toilet rooms, telephones and TTYs, drinking fountains, visible and audible alarms, signage, wheelchair seating in assembly areas and dining facilities, service counters, and ramps or elevators where changes in level are necessary.
No. Portable ramps and lifts are not permitted under ABAAS, because they are not permanent components of a building.
No. ABAAS requires unassisted use of ramps and lifts.
No. Stairway chairlifts are not permitted under ABAAS, because they do not accommodate an occupied wheelchair.
No. A parallel approach is not allowed under ABAAS, except at certain drinking fountains for children’s use where knee clearances cannot be accommodated because of the lowered height of the unit. Section 602.2 contains an exception that allows a parallel approach to units for children’s use where the spout height is 30 inches maximum above the finish floor or ground and is located 3 1/2 inches maximum from the front edge of the unit, including bumpers.
No. ABAAS defines the term “alteration” in Section F106.5. Normal maintenance, reroofing, painting or wallpapering, or changes to mechanical and electrical systems are not considered alterations unless they affect the usability of the building or facility. For example, if a wall containing doors or doorways must be demolished in order to install new plumbing and vent risers, new doors or doorways that are installed in the rebuilt wall must comply with ABAAS, including providing sufficient clear width, accessible hardware and maneuvering clearances.
No. We define “primary function areas” as those spaces that contain a major activity for which the facility is intended. Primary function areas include areas where services are provided to customers or the public, and offices and other work areas in which the activities of the federal agency using the facility are carried out. Ancillary spaces such as mechanical rooms, boiler rooms, supply storage rooms, employee lounges or locker rooms, janitorial closets, toilet rooms, corridors and entrances are not primary function areas.
Yes for federally owned and funded properties subject to ABAAS and No for leased facilities. For facilities subject to the ABAAS, the costs of alterations to provide an accessible path of travel to an altered area containing a primary function are disproportionate to the costs of the overall alterations when they exceed 20 percent of the costs of the alterations to the primary function area. If a series of small alterations are made to areas containing a primary function and the costs of any of the alterations considered individually would not result in providing an accessible path of travel to the altered areas, the total costs of the alterations made within the three year period after the initial alteration must be considered when determining whether the costs of alterations to provide an accessible path of travel to the altered areas are disproportionate. Facilities for which new leases are entered into must comply with Section F202.6 of ABAAS without regard to whether the costs of alterations to comply with Section F202.6 are disproportionate to the costs of the overall alterations.
Yes. Alterations to qualified historic buildings and facilities (a building or facility that is listed in or eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places, or designated as historic under an appropriate State or local law) are required to meet ABAAS. There are exceptions for alterations to qualified historic buildings and facilities for accessible routes, entrances and toilet facilities when the State Historic Preservation Officer or the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation determines that compliance with the requirements for the specific element would threaten or destroy the historic significance of the building or facility. These exceptions are in Sections F206.2.1, F206.2.3, F206.4 and F213.2, and contain specific requirements for alternative means to achieve access.
Yes. All new leases are required to meet ABAAS except:
No. An accessibility complaint corrective action cannot be placed on hold until the next repair project is undertaken. A valid complaint must be corrected at the earliest possible date. By law, the Access Board has 180 days to resolve a complaint. A correction or corrective plan of action must be proposed within that time.
No. In order to be compliant with ABAAS, the metric equivalents provided in ABAAS must be used.
Yes. Please see the Facilities Standards for the Public Buildings Service, PBS-P100, Section 1.10 (Accessibility Design Standards), Section 3.5 (Exterior Doors), which requires power-assist or automatic doors at all accessible public entrances), Section 9.2 (U.S. Court Facilities, General Requirements, Planning for Accessibility), which contains accessibility requirements for courtroom elements, and Table 9-1 (Accessibility Requirements), which outlines accessibility requirements that apply specifically to courts, including courtrooms, jury and ancillary facilities, and U.S. Marshal Service facilities.
U.S. General Services Administration