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standards for new and altered buildings; reasonable modifications to policies, practices, and procedures;

effective communication with people with hearing, vision, or speech disabilities; and other access requirements.

Additionally, public accommodations must remove barriers in existing buildings where it is easy to do so.

Courses and examinations related to professional, educational, or trade-related applications, licensing,

certifications, or credentialing must be provided in a place and manner accessible to people with disabilities, or

alternative accessible arrangements must be offered. A failure to take such steps is defined as discrimination.

c. Enforcement of ADA Title II and III is undertaken by the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice:

Through lawsuits and both formal and informal settlement agreements, the Department can achieve greater

access for individuals with disabilities. The Department of Justice cannot file a lawsuit unless it has first

attempted to settle the dispute through negotiations. The Department sometimes resolves cases by means of

formal written settlement agreements and numerous cases with other settlement agreements. The Department

can file lawsuits in the Federal court to enforce the ADA and can obtain court orders including compensatory

damages and back pay to remedy discrimination. Under Title III the Department can also obtain civil penalties of

up to $55,000 for the first violation and $110,000 for any subsequent violation. Mediation: Under a contract

with the Department of Justice, The Key Bridge Foundation receives referrals of complaints under Titles II and III

for mediation. Many people with disabilities and disability rights organizations request the Department to refer

their complaints to mediation. More than 400 professional mediators are available nationwide to mediate ADA

cases and over 75% of the cases in which mediation has been completed have been successfully resolved.

d. Enforcement of Accessibility by the US Access Board: The Architectural and Transportation Barriers

Compliance Board (“Access Board”) is responsible for publishing standards for accessibility. Some figures of its

impressive outreach were provided in its Annual Report of 2009: The Board conducted 86 sessions and provided

training to approximately 7,000 people. It responded to over 13,600 technical inquiries, it advanced 148

investigations and closed 40 cases. Barriers were successfully remedied in all cases where the law applied, and

in some cases, voluntarily where it did not.

The Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) ensures services to children with disabilities throughout

the nation in the least restrictive environment -- e.g., regular classrooms. In no other country of the world is

accessibility required to a such extent: all education services have to be accessible and provided in the least

restrictive environment. IDEA is composed of four parts, the main two being part A and part B. Part A covers the

general provisions of the law, Part B covers assistance for education of all children with disabilities, Part C covers

infants and toddlers with disabilities which includes children from birth to age three, and Part D is the national

support programs administered at the federal level. Each part of the law has remained largely the same since

the original enactment in 1975. In practice, IDEA is composed of six main elements that illuminate its main

points. These six elements are: Individualized Education Program (IEP), Free and Appropriate Public Education

(FAPE), Least Restrictive Environment (LRE), Appropriate Evaluation, Parent and Teacher Participation, and

Procedural Safeguards. To go along with those six main elements there are also a few other important