t.

7/6/94
MAF:NM:ls/rjc
DJ 204-58-0
DATE ILLEGIBLE

The Honorable Tony P. Hall

Member, U.S. House of Representatives
501 Federal Building
200 West Second Street
Dayton, Ohio 45402

Dear Congressman Hall:

This is in response to your letter on behalf of your

constituent, XX , who is concerned about the
opening force of doors to public restrooms. We apologize for the
delay in responding.

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) authorizes the

Department of Justice to provide technical assistance to
individuals and entities that are subject to the Act. This
letter provides informal guidance to assist you in understanding
provisions applicable to your constituent. However, this
technical assistance does not constitute a legal interpretation
of the application of the statute and it is not binding on the
Department.

The Department of Justice's regulation implementing title II

of the ADA prohibits discrimination against qualified individuals
with disabilities on the basis of disability by State and local
governments. The Department of Justice's regulation implementing
title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis of
disability by privately owned places of public accommodation and
commercial facilities. The title III regulation requires that
all newly constructed or altered facilities comply with the ADA
Standards for Accessible Design (ADA Standards). The title II
regulation requires that all newly constructed or altered
facilities comply with either the ADA Standards or the Uniform
Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS). Both the ADA Standards
and UFAS require that all interior doors have a maximum opening
force of five pounds. Thus, in any restroom facilities
constructed or altered after January 26, 1992, interior doors
would be required to meet this maximum door opening force
requirement.
Records, CRS, Chrono, Friedlander, Milton, FOIA
udd\Milton\Congress\Doors.Hal

01-03342
​ -2-

In existing facilities (facilities that were not constructed

or altered after January 26, 1992) covered by title II, State and
local governments are required to make all programs, services,
and activities in the facility accessible to people with
disabilities. If a State or local government facility, such as a
publicly owned highway rest area, contained restrooms that were
open to the public, the government would be providing a service
to the public that they would therefore have to provide to people
with disabilities. If the doors to the restrooms were too heavy
for someone with a disability to open, the government entity
would either have to make some of the doors accessible by making
them lighter or would have to find some other way to make some of
the restrooms accessible.

In existing facilities covered by title III, privately owned

places of public accommodation must remove architectural barriers
to access where such removal is readily achievable (easy to
accomplish without much difficulty or expense). Where barrier
removal is not readily achievable, a public accommodation must
make its services available through alternative methods.

Please note that the provisions requiring a maximum of five

pounds of force for opening doors apply only to interior doors.
Neither UFAS nor the ADA Standards set a limit for the maximum
door opening force for exterior hinged doors. Thus, exterior
hinged doors, including entrances to restrooms from exterior
areas, need not be built in compliance with any specific design
standards. Nevertheless, exterior doors to State and local
restroom facilities are not exempt from the ADA. Title II of the
ADA requires that qualified individuals with disabilities be
given an equal opportunity to participate in the programs and
services of covered entities, and title III likewise requires
equal opportunity. Providing an equal opportunity may entail
provision of fully accessible restrooms, including accessible
exterior doors that can be opened using less than five pounds of
force.

Finally, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers

Compliance Board (Access Board) is in the process of developing
guidelines for automated doors under the ADA. (Currently,
automated doors are not required either by UFAS or the ADA
Standards.) Preliminary research on automated doors has been
completed and is being studied by the Access Board's ADA
Accessibility Guidelines Review Committee, which was established
to provide advice on issues related to amending the ADA
Accessibility Guidelines. Once the Access Board has completed
developing its guidelines for automated doors, it is anticipated
that the ADA Standards will be amended to incorporate those new
guidelines.

01-03343
​ -3-

If XX wishes to file a complaint against a

specific State or local government entity that maintains
inaccessible restrooms, she should send her complaint to
Merrily A. Friedlander, Acting Chief, Coordination and Review
Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of Justice,
P.O. Box 66118, Washington, D.C. 20035-6118. If she wishes to
file a complaint against a specific privately owned place of
public accommodation that maintains inaccessible restrooms, she
should send her complaint to Mr. John Wodatch, Chief, Public
Access Section, Civil Rights Division, U.S. Department of
Justice, P.O. Box 66738, Washington, D.C. 20035-6738.

We hope this information is helpful to you in responding to

your constituent.

Sincerely,

Deval L. Patrick
Assistant Attorney General
Civil Rights Division

01-03344
​HANDWRITTEN ILLEGIBLE
May 20, 1994
Honorable Tony Hall,
I'd like to call your attention
to a difficulty for handicapped people
who must use public restrooms.
The pressure mechanism is set so
heavy that handicapped people have
difficulty entering and leaving the
restroom. Some are so heavy if some
one doesn't open the door for us we
could not go in or leave.
Im sure you or whoever is
responsible for the inspection of the
public restrooms and doors do not
think of this problem. I never did
until four years ago when we were
hit by a DUI driver and I was
handicapped with walking ILLEGIBLE
go in wheelchair or very short dist-
ance with my walker ILLEGIBLE
I must have someone open them

01-03345

for me.
We must travel to visit our
children in Florida, Louisiana,
Indiana, Tennessee - So we do
get into a many different rest rooms.
Last trip we stopped in a State
at Welcome Station and the pressure
on the door was so light I could
open the door by myself. So I
know it can be remedied if it
is brought to the right persons
attention.
The ILLEGIBLE in your Dayton Office
said to write to you and you'd
see it would get to the correct
person.
Thank you for your attention
and help.
Sincerely

XX
XX
XX

01-03346