2016 California Standards for Accessible Design Pocket Guide - Eff. Jan. 1, 2017

Safe Harbors

When DOJ adopted the 2004 ADAAG in 2010, it recognized that many business owners and governmental entities had already invested considerable time, effort and money to achieve compliance with 1991 ADAAG, and saw fit to include a Safe Harbor provision in the 2010 ADAS, as follows (yellow highlights added by ETA; green text indicates 2010 ADAS):

[ADA Title III] Appendix to §36.304(d) _|for Public Accommodations and Commercial Facilities; similar for Title II, State and Local Government Facilities|_

Compliance Dates and Applicable Standards for Barrier Removal and Safe Harbor

As indicated in the title of this table, the Safe Harbor provision applies only to barrier removals, not to new construction.  New construction must comply with 2010 ADAS, as of March 15, 2012.

The term "Safe Harbor" does not appear in CBC, but a similar provision is included in Exception 2 at Section 11B-202.4, excerpted here:

11B-202.4 Path of travel requirements in alterations, additions and structural repairs.  When alterations or additions are made to existing buildings or facilities, an accessible path of travel to the specific area of alteration or addition shall be provided. The primary accessible path of travel shall include:

1.      A primary entrance to the building or facility,

2.      Toilet and bathing facilities serving the area,

3.      Drinking fountains serving the area,

4.      Public telephones serving the area, and

5.      Signs.

Exceptions:

1.      …

2.      If the following elements of a path of travel have been constructed or altered in compliance with the accessibility requirements of the immediately preceding edition of the California Building Code, it shall not be required to retrofit such elements to reflect the incremental changes in this code solely because of an alteration to an area served by those elements of the path of travel:

1.      A primary entrance to the building or facility,

2.      Toilet and bathing facilities serving the area,

3.      Drinking fountains serving the area,

4.      Public telephones serving the area, and

5.      Signs.

3-10.         …

The scope of this "Safe Harbor" provision is far more limited than that of 2010 ADAS, and it is important to note that, when the 2016 CBC becomes applicable, "the immediately preceding edition of the California Building Code" will refer to 2013 CBC, updated from 2010 CBC.  This will have an extremely significant impact at accessible water closets in single-user toilet rooms and bathrooms, because the side clearance requirement from an adjacent lavatory was increased by approximately 7 inches from the 2010 CBC to the 2013 CBC, and Item 2 of 11B-202.4 above specifies that toilet and bathing facilities are included in the path of travel requirements to remove existing barriers (also included under ADA, but this condition is Safe Harbored, if compliant with 1991 ADAAG).

As observed in the Background section of this Introduction, a Building Code changes constantly, so "the immediately preceding edition of the California Building Code" is subject to interpretation.  ETA has consulted with DSA-AC on this matter, learning that their interpretation is that this refers to any version of the preceding edition.  Pocket Guide users are cautioned that some Building Officials or other Authorities Having Jurisdiction may apply a different interpretation.

For consistency and clarity, ETA has chosen to use the term "Safe Harbor" in this Pocket Guide to refer to items that may qualify for CBC Section 11B-202.4, Exception 2.  Using DSA-AC's interpretation of "the immediately preceding edition of the California Building Code,"  ETA has identified six of these, included the relevant requirements from 2013 CBC at the end of the book, and provided hyperlinks from the 2016 CBC requirement to the applicable "Safe Harbor" prescription, as well as a hyperlink to return easily to the original requirement.  These are identifiable in the text as follows:  [S.H. Section or Subsection Number;  additional comment or qualification, as deemed beneficial].

There are currently still some uncertainties about how to interpret and apply the Safe Harbor provisions. More information on the Safe Harbor provisions may be found at http://www.ADAsafeharbor.com. You may also register online at http://www.ETAPocketGuides.com to be notified when you can purchase updated versions of this Pocket Guide at a discount that will include additional clarifications of the Safe Harbor provisions as they become available.