Does Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act apply to born-digital archival collections?

Question

In April 2024, the Federal Register published the US Department of Justice’s final rule on Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The rule includes specific requirements for state and local governments to ensure that web content and mobile applications are accessible to people with disabilities.

Answer

Thank you for such a thoughtful (and complex) question.

To answer it, I am going to respond in the form of a dialogue between a lawyer and librarian that will allow other Ask the Lawyer readers at public institutions to assess if their born-digital archives must comply, too.

LED Lighting And Accessibility

Question

A member of the public called me regarding the trend to switch to LED lighting in many libraries, especially rural libraries applying for NYS Public Library Construction Funding. She told me that she suffers from Photosensitive Epilepsy, and LED lights (among other light sources) cause her to have seizures, which result in injuries.

Answer

This question is at the tip of a large and fast-moving iceberg.

As with many iceberg-type issues, when I started my research, I didn’t know how deep things went.

So, I did my usual thing when a question involves the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), went to AskJAN.org, to see what they had to say about LEDs and epilepsy.

Accessibility Devices for In-Library Use

Question

We have a large facility. Sometimes patrons have to walk far to get to various programs and spaces. We have had a few patrons in the recent couple of months ask if we have a wheelchair or walker they could use to help them get around. We consulted with our insurance provider about this and he basically said to ask a lawyer.

Answer

This is such a beautiful idea! In my experience, there are three things that often impede beautiful ideas:

  1. Insurance concerns;
  2. Legal concerns; and
  3. People who worry that there might be insurance or legal concerns.

This question shows how to protect an idea from these impediments:

Retention Period for Employee Records

Question

How long should the library retain employee records, payroll records, sales and purchase records, mortgage and loan documents, and other records?

Answer

Several considerations impact the answer to this question:

For a public library, the bare minimum record retention periods are found in a document called "the LGS-1."[1]  The LGS-1 has rules for retention covering everything from your library's charter, to how long you hold onto circulation records.

Creating adaptive copies of textbooks using text-to-speech

Question

My institution subscribes to the "Kurzweil Reading Program", a "Text-to-Speech" product for those with reading impairments (dyslexia, English language learners, blind/vision impaired, etc.)

Section 121 indicates these users are "eligible persons" for "fair use", but others, without such disabilities could use the program (like an audiobook in the car!).

Answer

This question reflects the level of savvy "Ask the Lawyer" readers bring to their submissions.  The member submitting the question has already set out (in a manner much more succinct than I usually achieve) the interplay of:

Open Meetings Law 2022 Library Board Chart and Checklist

Question

"Ask the Lawyer" got two questions about the April 9, 2022 changes to the Open Meetings Law ("OML"), which will enable library boards to more easily meet via videoconferencing.  The questions asked for sample resolution language to enable a board to meet via videoconference, and compliance checklists to make sure a board is getting all the new details right.

Answer

To answer these questions, we've created an "Open Meetings Law 2022 Library Board Chart and Checklist" that sets out:

Accessibility options for school ebooks

Question

Students in a school are reading a simultaneous use eBook. The students with IEPs[1] have access to a screen reader but this feature is very robotic and doesn't meet their needs. The school librarian and the School Library System searched for an audio version of this book but could not find one for purchase.

Answer

The school may be covered by Fair Use but for this scenario, it doesn't need to be in order to make the recording proposed by the member.

Why?

Filling Out Forms for Patrons

Question

We had a patron come in this past week who said that he couldn't see well and also couldn't type or use a mouse, but he needed to certify Unemployment Insurance. He asked the staff member to login with his username and password and do this for him, and the staff member was, understandably, uncomfortable doing it.

Answer

At first glance, this question seems simple: what are the possible legal risks to a librarian helping a patron fill out a legal document?

But within this question lies another, slightly more complex issue: when does good customer service become an accommodation for a disability?

Gender neutral restroom signs

Question

Some of my member libraries have questions about the new Gender Neutral Bathroom Legislation:
 

1) Type of signage required to be placed on or near the bathroom door. That is, does the sign have to specify "gender neutral", or, is "bathroom" ok.  Also, can one use a sign that uses symbols (male, female, ADA) rather than sex?

Answer

Above all, "Ask the Lawyer" strives to provide useful, plain-language legal information and analysis for the members of New York's regional library councils.

So before I delve into the background, legal analysis, and compliance tips I would like to offer in response to these questions, here are some useful, plain-language answers: