Handicapped Sue State Over Building Access Compliance
Handicapped groups filed suit against several state agencies Wednesday, charging that they have failed to comply with state law guaranteeing the disabled equal access to public buildings.
The Los Angeles City Council on Disability, the California Assn. of the Physically Handicapped, California Gray Panthers and two disabled taxpayers teamed up to make their charges in two Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuits.
They charge that the state Department of General Services, the state architect, the state Health and Welfare Agency and the Office of Statewide Health and Planning Development have not ensured that the disabled have fair access to California buildings.
The suits allege that state regulations promulgated in 1982 conflict with state laws ensuring equal access for the mobility-impaired and effectively discriminate against them.
The handicapped groups say that building owners are allowed to establish “irrational quotas that have the effect of excluding disabled persons” in violation of state law.
The suits point out that auditoriums, assembly halls, theaters and similar facilities must only provide two wheelchair spaces for every 50 seats, four wheelchair spaces for each 51-300 seats and six wheelchair spaces for each 301-500 seats.
The handicapped groups seek court orders forcing compliance with the laws that ensure their equal access.
The Western Law Center for the Handicapped and the American Civil Liberties Union prepared the suits.
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