Final Regulatory Assessment and Final Regulatory Flexibility Analysis Final Rule - Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations - Movie Theaters; Movie Captioning and Audio Description

The major provisions of this rule can be summarized as follows. 

First, the captioning and audio description requirements of this rule apply only to movie theaters with auditoriums that exhibit digital movies.  The Department defers to a later date the decision whether to engage in rulemaking addressing the application of this rule to movie theater auditoriums that exhibit analog movies exclusively. 

Second, within 18 months of the rule’s publication in the Federal Register, movie theaters must ensure that their auditoriums exhibiting digital movies provide captioning and audio description to patrons with hearing and vision disabilities at all showings whenever the movie is produced or distributed with these features.  In no case does the rule require movie theaters to add captions or audio description for movies that are not produced or distributed with these features.  Nor does the rule prohibit movie theaters from showing digital movies that are not produced with captions or audio description or from choosing to show the analog version of a particular movie, even if that movie is also produced in digital format with captions and audio description.  The rule also specifies that movie theaters that convert from analog projection systems to digital cinema projection systems after the rule’s publication in the Federal Register must comply with the requirements of the rule either six months from the date of conversion or 24 months from the publication date, whichever is later.

Third, movie theaters must maintain a minimum number of fully operational captioning devices and provide them to patrons upon request.  This requirement is based on the number of auditoriums at each movie theater that exhibit digital movies and is designed to ensure the availability of a sufficient number of devices for use at peak attendance times by individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.  An overview of these requirements by venue type is presented in more detail in Table 3-17 in Section 3.3. 

Fourth, movie theaters must maintain a minimum number of fully operational audio description devices and provide them to patrons upon request.  The rule permits movie theaters to use the assistive listening receivers that they are already required to provide to patrons pursuant to sections 219 and 706 of the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design (2010 Standards)⁷ to meet this requirement if those assistive listening receivers have a second channel available to deliver audio description.  An overview of these requirements by venue type is presented in more detail in Table 3-18 in Section 3.3.

Fifth, movie theaters may meet their obligation to provide captioning and audio description to patrons with hearing and vision disabilities through the use of alternative technologies, including open movie captioning, so long as that technology provides communication as effective as that provided to movie patrons without disabilities.

Sixth, movie theaters that exhibit digital movies must provide the public with notice as to the availability of captioning and audio description.  This provision is necessary so that movie patrons who are deaf or hard of hearing, or blind or have low vision, can find out which movies are accessible to them.

Finally, movie theaters that exhibit digital movies must have staff available to operate and respond to problems with all equipment necessary to deliver captioning and audio description and to show patrons how to use the individual devices whenever digital movies with such features are shown.

As with other effective communication obligations under the ADA, movie theaters do not have to comply with these requirements to the extent that they constitute an undue burden or a fundamental alteration.