HB6236 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB096 17287 RPM 32637 b

96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB6236

Introduced 2/11/2010, by Rep. Paul D. Froehlich

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

410 ILCS 25/5

from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 3715

Amends the Environmental Barriers Act. Sets forth certain places to which the accessibility standards adopted by the Capital Development Board shall not apply.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning public health.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Environmental Barriers Act is amended by changing Section 5 as follows:

(410 ILCS 25/5) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 3715)

Sec. 5. Scope.

(a) The standards adopted by the Capital Development Board shall apply to:

(1) Public Facilities; New Construction. Any new public facility or portion thereof, the construction of which is begun after the effective date of this Act. However, any new public facility (i) for which a specific contract for the planning has been awarded prior to the effective date of this Act and (ii) construction of which is begun within 12 months of the effective date of this Act shall be exempt from compliance with the standards adopted pursuant to this Act insofar as those standards vary from standards in the Illinois Accessibility Code.

(2) Multi-Story Housing Units; New Construction. Any new multi-story housing unit or portion thereof, the construction of which is begun after the effective date of this Act. However, any new multi-story housing unit (i) for which a specific contract for the planning has been awarded prior to the effective date of this Act and (ii) construction of which is begun within 12 months of the effective date of this Act shall be exempt from compliance with the standards adopted pursuant to this Act insofar as those standards vary from standards in the Illinois Accessibility Code. Provided, however, that if the common areas comply with the standards, if 20% of the dwelling units are adaptable and if the adaptable dwelling units include dwelling units of various sizes and locations within the multi-story housing unit, then the entire multi-story housing unit shall be deemed to comply with the standards.

(a-1) Accessibility of structures; new construction. New housing subject to regulation under this Act shall be constructed in compliance with all applicable regulations and, in the case where the new housing and the new housing not defined as multi-story for the purposes of this Act is a building in which 4 or more dwelling units or sleeping units intended to be occupied as a residence are contained within a single structure, with the technical requirements of the Department of Housing and Urban Development's Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines published March 6, 1991, and the Supplement to Notice of Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines: Questions and Answers about the Guidelines, published June 28, 1994.

This subsection (a-1) does not apply within any unit of local government that by ordinance, rule, or regulation prescribes requirements to increase and facilitate access to the built environment by environmentally limited persons that are more stringent than those contained in this Act prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 94th General Assembly.

This Act, together with the Illinois Accessibility Code, 71 Ill. Adm. Code 400, has the force of a building code and as such is law in the State of Illinois.

(b) Alterations. Any alteration to a public facility shall provide accessibility as follows:

(1) Alterations Generally. No alteration shall be undertaken that decreases or has the effect of decreasing accessibility or usability of a building or facility below the requirements for new construction at the time of alteration.

(2) If the alteration costs 15% or less of the reproduction cost of the public facility, the element or space being altered shall comply with the applicable requirements for new construction.

(3) State Owned Public Facilities. If the alteration is to a public facility owned by the State and the alteration costs more than 15% but less than 50% of the reproduction cost of the public facility, the following shall comply with the applicable requirements for new construction:

(i) the element or space being altered,

(ii) an entrance and a means of egress intended for use by the general public,

(iii) all spaces and elements necessary to provide horizontal and vertical accessible routes between an accessible means entrance and means of egress and the element or space being altered,

(iv) at least one accessible toilet room for each sex or a unisex toilet when permitted, if toilets are provided or required,

(v) accessible parking spaces, where parking is provided, and

(vi) an accessible route from public sidewalks or from accessible parking spaces, if provided, to an accessible entrance.

(4) All Other Public Facilities. If the alteration costs more than 15% but less than 50% of the reproduction cost of the public facility, and less than $100,000, the following shall comply with the applicable requirements for new construction:

(i) the element or space being altered, and

(ii) an entrance and a means of egress intended for use by the general public.

(5) If the alteration costs more than 15% but less than 50% of the reproduction cost of the public facility, and more than $100,000, the following shall comply with the applicable requirements for new construction:

(i) the element or space being altered,

(ii) an entrance and a means of egress intended for use by the general public,

(iii) all spaces and elements necessary to provide horizontal and vertical accessible routes between an accessible entrance and means of egress and the element or space being altered; however, privately owned public facilities are not required to provide vertical access in a building with 2 levels of occupiable space where the cost of providing such vertical access is more than 20% of the reproduction cost of the public facility,

(iv) at least one accessible toilet room for each sex or a unisex toilet, when permitted, if toilets are provided or required,

(v) accessible parking spaces, where parking is provided, and

(vi) an accessible route from public sidewalks or from the accessible parking spaces, if provided, to an accessible entrance.

(6) If the alteration costs 50% or more of the reproduction cost of the public facility, the entire public facility shall comply with the applicable requirements for new construction.

(c) Alterations to Specific Categories of Public Facilities. For religious entities, private clubs, and owner-occupied transient lodging facilities of 5 units, compliance with the standards adopted by the Capital Development Board is not mandatory if the alteration costs 15% or less of the reproduction cost of the public facility. However, if the cost of the alteration exceeds $100,000, the element or space being altered must comply with applicable requirements for new construction. Alterations over 15% of the reproduction cost of these public facilities are governed by subdivisions (4), (5), and (6) of subsection (b), as applicable.

(d) Calculation of Reproduction Cost. For the purpose of calculating percentages of reproduction cost, the cost of alteration shall be construed as the total actual combined cost of all alterations made within any period of 30 months.

(e) No governmental unit may enter into a new or renewal agreement to lease, rent or use, in whole or in part, any building, structure or improved area which does not comply with the standards. Any governmental unit which, on the effective date of this Act, is leasing, renting or using, in whole or in part, any building, structure or improved area which does not comply with the standards shall make all reasonable efforts to terminate such lease, rental or use by January 1, 1990.

(f) No public facility may be constructed or altered and no multi-story housing unit may be constructed without the statement of an architect registered in the State of Illinois that the plans for the work to be performed comply with the provisions of this Act and the standards promulgated hereunder unless the cost of such construction or alteration is less than $50,000. In the case of construction or alteration of an engineering nature, where the plans are prepared by an engineer, the statement may be made by a professional engineer registered in the State of Illinois or a structural engineer registered in the State of Illinois that the engineering plans comply with the provisions of this Act and the standards promulgated hereunder. The architect's and/or engineer's statement shall be filed by the architect or engineer and maintained in the office of the governmental unit responsible for the issuance of the building permit. In those governmental units which do not issue building permits, the statement shall be filed and maintained in the office of the county clerk.

(g) Accessibility standards shall not apply to:

(1) raised areas used primarily for purposes of security or life or fire safety, including, but not limited to, observation or lookout galleries, prison guard towers, fire towers, or fixed life guard stands;

(2) nonoccupiable spaces accessed only by ladders, catwalks, crawl spaces, very narrow passageways, tunnels, or freight (nonpassenger) elevators, and frequented only by service personnel for maintenance, repair, or occasional monitoring of equipment; such spaces may include, but are not limited to, elevator pits, elevator penthouses, piping or equipment catwalks, water or sewage treatment pump rooms and stations, electric substations and transformer vaults, and highway and tunnel utility facilities;

(3) single occupant structures accessed only by a passageway that is below grade or that is elevated above standard curb height, including, but not limited to, toll booths accessed from underground tunnels;

(4) raised structures used solely for refereeing, judging, or scoring a sport;

(5) water slides;

(6) animal containment areas that are not for public use; or

(7) raised boxing or wrestling rings.

(Source: P.A. 94-283, eff. 1-1-06.)