The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements fall into four main areas: employment, state and local government services, private businesses open to the public, and telecommunications. The law bars discrimination against people with disabilities and, in most settings, obliges the covered entity to take affirmative steps—reasonable accommodations at work, accessible programs in government, barrier removal in stores and restaurants, relay services on the phone lines—so that a disability does not shut someone out of ordinary life. Who must comply depends on which title of the ADA is in play, and the thresholds are not the same across titles.
Who Counts as Disabled
The ADA defines disability three ways: a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having one.1ADA.gov. Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, As Amended Major life activities include walking, seeing, hearing, breathing, learning, concentrating, and working, along with major bodily functions like immune, digestive, and neurological function.
The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 made this definition significantly broader. Whether an impairment substantially limits a major life activity is now judged without regard to the benefits of medication, hearing aids, prosthetics, or other mitigating measures. A condition that is episodic or in remission still qualifies if it would substantially limit a major life activity when active.2U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. ADA Amendments Act of 2008 The statute instructs that “disability” be construed in favor of broad coverage.
One narrow carve-out: the “regarded as” category does not reach impairments that are both transitory (six months or less) and minor.
Employer Obligations (Title I)
Title I applies to private employers with 15 or more employees, along with state and local government employers, employment agencies, and labor unions. It prohibits discrimination throughout the employment relationship: postings, interviews, hiring, pay, promotions, discipline, and termination.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. Chapter 126 – Equal Opportunity for Individuals with Disabilities A “qualified individual” is someone who can perform the essential functions of the job with or without a reasonable accommodation.
Reasonable Accommodations
Reasonable accommodations are adjustments that let a qualified employee do the job. Modified schedules, ergonomic equipment, reassignment to a vacant position, remote work, and physical changes to a workspace are all common examples. The employer does not have to grant the exact accommodation requested, but it does have to engage in a good-faith interactive process to find one that works.
An employer can refuse only if the accommodation would impose an “undue hardship,” meaning significant difficulty or expense measured against the employer’s resources, size, and operations.4U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on Reasonable Accommodation and Undue Hardship under the ADA What is trivial for a large company can be genuinely burdensome for a small one, and the analysis is fact-specific.
What an Employee Can Recover
An employee who proves ADA employment discrimination can recover back pay, reinstatement, and attorney fees. Compensatory and punitive damages are also available, but capped by employer size:
- 15 to 100 employees: $50,000
- 101 to 200 employees: $100,000
- 201 to 500 employees: $200,000
- More than 500 employees: $300,000
The caps apply to combined compensatory and punitive damages per complaining party.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. 1981a – Damages in Cases of Intentional Discrimination in Employment Back pay and attorney fees sit outside the cap, so total recovery can be higher.
State and Local Government Obligations (Title II)
Title II reaches every program, service, and activity of state and local government, no matter how small the entity and whether or not it takes federal funding. Courts, public schools, transit, parks, licensing offices, social services, emergency response, and voting all fall inside.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. Chapter 126 Subchapter II – Public Services
The core standard is “program accessibility.” Viewed as a whole, the government’s services must be usable by people with disabilities. That does not always require retrofitting every building; a service in an inaccessible location can be moved, offered elsewhere, or delivered by another method, as long as it actually reaches people with disabilities in a meaningful way. Public entities must also provide effective communication through auxiliary aids—sign language interpreters, real-time captioning, large-print materials, screen-reader-compatible digital documents—and must give primary consideration to the aid the person requests. Written notes are not a substitute for a qualified interpreter in a complex legal proceeding.
Websites and Mobile Apps
In April 2024 the Department of Justice finalized a rule requiring state and local government websites and mobile apps to meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.1, Level AA.7ADA.gov. Fact Sheet: New Rule on the Accessibility of Web Content and Mobile Apps Provided by State and Local Governments That standard addresses barriers like missing alt text on images, uncaptioned video, and forms that cannot be navigated by keyboard or screen reader.
Compliance deadlines were extended in April 2026. Government entities serving populations of 50,000 or more must comply by April 26, 2027. Smaller entities and special district governments have until April 26, 2028.8Federal Register. Extension of Compliance Dates for Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability; Accessibility of Web Content and Mobile Applications
Private Business Obligations (Title III)
Title III covers “places of public accommodation,” a term that goes well beyond storefronts. Restaurants, hotels, retail stores, movie theaters, doctors’ offices, private schools, day care centers, gyms, funeral parlors, and banks are all inside, along with the rest of the 12 statutory categories.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 42 U.S.C. Chapter 126 Subchapter III – Public Accommodations and Services Operated by Private Entities
Existing businesses must remove architectural barriers when doing so is “readily achievable”—that is, without significant difficulty or expense. A ramp over a single step, a wider doorway, a lowered section of counter, or rearranged furniture usually qualifies. When barrier removal is not readily achievable, the business must offer its goods or services another way, such as curbside pickup or staff assistance. Businesses must also provide auxiliary aids for effective communication with customers who have hearing, vision, or speech disabilities.
Web accessibility for private businesses sits in a different posture. DOJ has not issued a Title III web rule, but courts have increasingly applied Title III’s general nondiscrimination requirements to websites, and hundreds of lawsuits are filed each year. WCAG 2.1 Level AA is the standard courts and settlements typically reference.
Service Animals
Under Titles II and III, only dogs qualify as service animals, and they must be individually trained to perform a specific task related to a person’s disability—guiding someone who is blind, alerting someone who is deaf, interrupting a panic attack, and so on. Emotional support animals, comfort animals, and therapy dogs do not qualify.10ADA.gov. ADA Requirements: Service Animals
When it is not obvious what a dog does, staff may ask only two questions: whether the dog is a service animal required because of a disability, and what task it has been trained to perform. Staff cannot ask about the disability, demand documentation, or require a demonstration. Miniature horses trained to perform disability-related tasks get a separate, narrower accommodation right that considers the horse’s size, whether it is housebroken, and whether the facility can safely accommodate it.
Exemptions
Religious organizations are completely exempt from Title III. That covers not only places of worship but also schools, hospitals, shelters, and other programs the religious entity controls, even when open to the public. The exemption does not carry over to a non-religious business simply renting space from a religious organization. Bona fide private membership clubs are also exempt if they have genuine membership criteria, member control, and do not open their facilities to the general public.
Penalties
The Department of Justice can pursue civil penalties for Title III violations, adjusted annually for inflation. As of mid-2025, they reach $118,225 for a first violation and $236,451 for subsequent violations.11eCFR. 28 CFR Part 85 – Civil Monetary Penalties Inflation Adjustment Private individuals cannot recover money damages under Title III, but they can sue for injunctive relief—a court order to fix the problem—and for attorney fees.
Telecommunications (Title IV)
Title IV amended the Communications Act to require telecommunications carriers to provide relay services nationwide, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.12Federal Communications Commission. Title IV of the Americans with Disabilities Act (Section 225) Traditional relay connects a text telephone user with a voice telephone user through a communication assistant who types and reads the conversation. Video relay service extends this for callers who use American Sign Language, with an interpreter on video signing and voicing in real time.13Federal Communications Commission. Video Relay Service (VRS) Any television public service announcement produced or funded by a federal agency must include closed captioning of its verbal content.14Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 47 U.S.C. 611 – Closed-Captioning of Public Service Announcements
Building Design Standards
The 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design set the technical rules for new construction and significant alterations, and they apply to both government buildings and public accommodations.15ADA.gov. 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design A few of the numbers people most often need:
- Interior doors: minimum 32 inches of clear opening at 90 degrees.16U.S. Access Board. Chapter 4: Entrances, Doors, and Gates
- Ramps: maximum slope of 1:12, with handrails on both sides when the rise exceeds 6 inches.17U.S. Access Board. Chapter 4: Ramps and Curb Ramps
- Parking: car-accessible spaces at least 96 inches wide with a 60-inch access aisle; van-accessible spaces either 132 inches wide with a 60-inch aisle or 96 inches wide with a 96-inch aisle.18ADA.gov. Accessible Parking Spaces
- Reach ranges: operable controls like light switches and thermostats mounted between 15 and 48 inches above the floor.
These are minimums. Local building codes sometimes go further. For existing buildings not undergoing alterations, day-to-day barrier removal follows the lower “readily achievable” standard rather than full compliance with the 2010 Standards.
How to File a Complaint
The right filing path depends on which title was violated.
Employment (Title I). File a charge with the EEOC. The deadline is 180 calendar days from the discriminatory act, extended to 300 days in states or localities with their own anti-discrimination agency, which most have. For ongoing harassment, the clock runs from the last incident. Federal employees must contact their agency’s EEO counselor within 45 days.19U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Time Limits For Filing A Charge
Government services (Title II). File with the appropriate federal agency or with DOJ. The deadline is 180 days, extendable for good cause.20ADA.gov. Americans with Disabilities Act Title II Regulations A lawsuit is available without exhausting the administrative process.
Private businesses (Title III). File with DOJ or go directly to federal court. There is no administrative exhaustion requirement. Private plaintiffs can seek injunctive relief and attorney fees but not money damages; DOJ can seek civil penalties.
Tax Help for Businesses Paying to Comply
Two federal tax provisions offset accessibility costs. Small businesses with gross receipts under $1 million or no more than 30 full-time employees can claim the Disabled Access Credit under Internal Revenue Code Section 44. The credit is 50 percent of eligible access expenditures above $250 and up to $10,250, for a maximum annual credit of $5,000.21Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 44 – Expenditures to Provide Access to Disabled Individuals
Any business, regardless of size, can deduct up to $15,000 per year under Section 190 for removing architectural and transportation barriers.22Internal Revenue Service. Tax Benefits for Businesses That Accommodate People with Disabilities Eligible small businesses can use both in the same year, applying the credit first and then deducting the remaining cost, which can cut the out-of-pocket price of an accessibility project by more than half.