Boating and Fishing

With regard to Questions 39 and Question 43, we oppose any weakening or safe harbor of either the ADAAG boating provisions or the requirements for covered entities. The provisions in Titles II and III for program access and readily achievable barrier removal are already carefully crafted to take the needs of these covered entities into account. If there are significant barriers to compliance, these standards already provide adequate relief.

Fishing Piers and Platforms

Title II Question 38 and Title III Question 44 in part ask about fishing piers and platforms that use gangways (where only one end of route is attached to land) and floating piers (where neither end is attached to land). The response to question 38 and 44 is similar to that of the response to Questions 39 and 43. Fishing piers as well as boating facilities should be made as accessible as possible, within the appropriate defenses such as disproportionality and whether the removal of existing architectural barriers is readily achievable. No additional weakening language is needed.

For example, in a case involving a small marina in Key Largo, Florida, the fixed pier was ten feet lower than the ground level, and attached directly to the sea wall. The marina owner was able to excavate a ramp with an adequate slope to achieve access to the docks. The existing exceptions limit the scope of the ADA’s requirements already and are carefully crafted to take the needs of covered entities into account.