36 CFR Parts 1190 and 1191 ADA and ABA Accessibility Guidelines - Preamble (Discussion of Comments and Changes)

Comment. Public facilities, which are defined as State and local government facilities, are permitted an exception from the requirement for access between stories (206.2.3, Exception 2). In the proposed rule, this exception pertained to public facilities that are less than three stories and are not open to the public if the level above or below the accessible level houses no more than five persons and is less than 500 square feet. Comments considered the limit based on occupant load to be sufficient and suggested that the square footage cap was unnecessary.

Response. The 500 square foot maximum was based on a floor area allowance of 100 square feet per occupant, which is consistent with model building code requirements for business and industrial occupancies used in determining the occupant load for egress purposes. The Board agrees that the maximum occupant load is an effective cap on the size of buildings eligible for this exception. The square footage specification has been removed as a criterion of this exception.