Architectural Barriers Act of 1968

The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 was one of the foundational legislations in disability history in the United States. The act was geared toward improving the quality of life of those with disabilities primarily by providing better access to physical infrastructure. While eradicating architectural barriers was its primary concern, the act also addressed basic issues of communication barriers. This act worked to pave the way toward subsequent legislations, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, insofar as it outlined major access issues that continue to be mitigated.

The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 12, 1968. The law required buildings and facilities that were designed, constructed, altered, or leased with the use of federal funds or leased by federal agencies to be accessible to or usable by persons with physical disabilities. The Architectural Barriers Act governs all federal buildings and facilities, including post offices, Social Security offices, prisons, and national parks. Additionally, the Architectural Barriers Act applies to the architectural standards in new and altered buildings and in newly leased facilities. A building does not need to be a government facility to be governed by the Architectural Barriers Act; federal funding is often the determining factor as to whether a building must comply with the law’s accessibility requirements. Any facility that falls under the purview of the Architectural Barriers Act must comply with federal standards for physical disability, but the law does not address any of the activities in those buildings or facilities. Facilities that predate the Architectural Barriers Act are generally not covered, but alterations or leases undertaken after the law took effect can trigger coverage.

The Architectural Barriers Act began with a study sent to Congress by the National Commission on Architectural Barriers to Rehabilitation of the Handicapped. This study made numerous recommendations to Congress as to how to address the issue of accessibility for disabled individuals, the most significant of which was the suggestion that one federal government agency establish and enforce government-wide policies, procedures, and specifications to achieve at least minimum access. The commission said that legislation to address accessibility was necessary because many organizations would not voluntarily act to implement or improve standards. As a result, the Architectural Barriers Act lays out numerous accessibility requirements that must be met for a building or facility to be in compliance with the law. Four U.S. government agencies play a role in establishing accessibility standards. The Department of Defense (DOD) sets standards for DOD installations, the Department of Housing and Urban Development sets standards for all residential facilities covered by the act except for those funded [Page 33]or constructed by the DOD, and the U.S. Postal Service sets standards for all postal facilities. Finally, the General Services Administration prescribes accessibility requirements for all buildings subject to the act that are not covered by one of the other three agencies.

In 1976, the Architectural Barriers Act was amended to require each standard-setting agency to ensure that their buildings were designed, constructed, or altered to provide ready access and use by handicapped individuals instead of simply authorizing each agency to prescribe standards. Initially, the law contained no instructions concerning enforcement, other than requiring each standard-setting agency to establish a system of surveys and investigations to ensure compliance with the law. The initial act was basically a congressional policy statement and, because compliance with the act was weak, Congress created the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (ATBCB) through the use of section 502 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Any person may complain to the ATBCB about instances of noncompliance with the law. One of the biggest factors determining whether a written complaint is acted upon is jurisdiction, because the ATBCB can enforce compliance with the Architectural Barriers Act only if the building or facility in question falls under the umbrella of the law. As written, there appear to be only three exemptions from the Architectural Barriers Act: (a) military buildings or facilities used primarily by able-bodied military personnel, (b) privately owned residential structures, unless they are leased by the government for subsidized housing, and (c) areas that will not be open to the public or will not result in employment or residence of physically handicapped individuals; however, other provisions and statutes cause many other buildings that do not qualify for the exemption to fall out of the ATBCB’s jurisdiction. For example, the Architectural Barriers Act can be enforced only on buildings designed, constructed, or altered after September 1969. The issue of the law’s jurisdiction has been a large source of frustration both to the ATBCB, which is powerless to enforce the law on buildings outside its jurisdiction, and to individuals and groups filing complaints, who question why certain buildings do not fall under the purview of the act.

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