28 CFR Part 36 Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations and in Commercial Facilities NPRM: Preamble (2008 Title III NPRM Preamble)

Purchase of multiple tickets. (Section-by-Section Analysis)

The Department has received numerous complaints that public accommodations are unfairly restricting the number of tickets that can be purchased by individuals with disabilities.  Many public accommodations limit the number of tickets an individual with a disability may purchase, requiring the individual to purchase no more than two tickets (for himself or herself and a companion), while other patrons have significantly higher purchase limits (if any).  This is particularly unfair for families, friends, or other groups larger than two that include a person who requires accessible seating.  If the ticket number is limited, the result for wheelchair users is that parents and children, friends, classmates, and others are separated.  Section 36.302(f)(9) clarifies the application of title III to ameliorate such a situation.

There are various ways that covered entities can accommodate groups that require at least one wheelchair space.  The proposed regulation permits up to three companions to sit in a designated wheelchair area, platform, or cross-over aisle that is designated as a wheelchair area, even if the number of companions outnumbers the individuals requiring a wheelchair space.  For example, a parent who uses a wheelchair could attend a concert with his or her spouse and their two children who do not use wheelchairs, and all four could sit together in the wheelchair area.  The Department recognizes that some advocates may object to this use of designated wheelchair areas because it will reduce the amount of accessible seating available for those who need it.  On balance, however, the Department believes that the opportunity to sit with family and friends, as other patrons do, is an integral element of the experience of attending a ticketed event, and it is an element that is often denied to individuals with disabilities. 

By limiting the number of tickets that can be purchased under this provision to four, the Department seeks a balance by which groups and families can be accommodated while still leaving ample space for other individuals who use wheelchairs.  The Department seeks comments from individuals, business entities, and advocacy organizations on whether the proposed rule will appropriately effectuate the integration and nondiscrimination principles underlying the rule.

Question 23:  Is the proposed rule regarding the number of tickets that a public accommodation must permit individuals who use wheelchairs to purchase sufficient to effectuate the integration of wheelchair users with others?  If not, please provide suggestions for achieving the same result with regard to individual and group ticket sales.