SRC-JBJ S.B. 1161 76(R)   BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research Center   S.B. 1161
76R8745 CLG-DBy: Duncan
State Affairs
3/23/1999
As Filed


DIGEST 

Currently, all buildings which rent to state entities must comply with all
of the provisions of the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA), which parallels
the Americans with Disabilities Act.  In rare instances, a building
partially occupied by the state did not meet a very narrow provision of the
ABA. For example, somewhere in a building there may be an incorrect toilet
height, door size, or incomplete elevator panels.  The proprietor must
either conform all toilets and doors to the ABA or lose the tenancy of the
state.  In some cases, the corrective measure by the proprietor has
resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in changes for a rental space
that rents for less than $300 per month.  However, the state may need to
pay for the corrections because the state has no other reasonable location,
especially in rural areas.  The corrective measures cost the state a great
amount of time and money in either complying with minor or technical
provisions of the ADA or seeking new accommodations.   

A change in the law could alleviate many costs to the state without
compromising overall access to persons with disabilities.  The commissioner
of licensing and regulation could consider only buildings less than 3,000
square feet and buildings in which the state occupies less than 51 percent
of the building. If these buildings as a whole do not comply with a
particular standard or specification, but do provide reasonable
accommodations for person with disabilities, the  commissioner may consider
the entire building as a whole for purposes of the ADA.  S.B. 1161 would
authorize the commissioner to consider certain buildings that lack a
specific provision of the ADA to be in compliance with adopted standards
regarding persons with disabilities.     

PURPOSE

As proposed, S.B. 1161 authorizes the commissioner of licensing and
regulation to consider certain buildings that lack a specific provision of
the Architectural Barriers Act to be in compliance with adopted standards
regarding persons with disabilities. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1.  Amends Section 2, Article 9102, V.T.C.S., by adding Subsection
(h), to authorize the commissioner of licensing and regulation
(commissioner) to consider as a whole certain sized buildings that the
state partially occupies.  Authorizes the commissioner to consider the
state portion of the building, which may not comply with a particular
standard or specification under this article, to be in compliance with
adopted standards and specifications, if the building as a whole provides
reasonable accommodations for person with disabilities. 

SECTION 2.  Emergency clause.
  Effective date:  upon passage.