Outdoor Developed Areas: A Summary of Accessibility Standards for Federal Outdoor Developed Areas

Notification Forms

Documentation is required where a condition for exception prohibits full compliance with a specific technical requirement. The documentation must include the reason that full compliance could not be achieved and should be retained with the project records. In addition to the reason for the exception, documentation should include the date the decision was made and the names and positions of the individuals making the decision.

Where extreme or numerous exceptions make it impracticable to provide a newly constructed or altered trail or beach access route that meets the technical requirements, the standards provide an exemption for the entire trail or beach access route (see 1017.1, exception 2 and 1018.1, exception 2). In these rare cases, an explanation of the conditions that resulted in the determination that it was impracticable for the entire trail or beach access route to comply must be recorded and the documentation must be retained with the records for that project. A copy must also be sent to the Access Board (see F201.4.1).

The Access Board has developed sample notification forms with assistance from the accessibility program managers for the Federal land management agencies. These forms can be used to notify the Access Board when an entire trail or beach access route is exempted. The Access Board plans to monitor situations where the exceptions for trails and beach access routes result in exempting an entire trail or beach access route. The notification forms do not require approval or any other action on the part of the Access Board or the Federal agency. The Access Board will use the information provided by the Federal agencies to develop additional guidance on exempting entire trails and beach access routes. Federal agencies are encouraged to seek technical assistance from the Access Board at outdoor@access-board.gov when considering exempting an entire trail or beach access route.

• Entire Trail Exemption Form (1017.2 Exception 2)

• Entire Beach Access Route Exemption Form (1018.2 Exception 2)