Bill Text: HI SB2815 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Persons with Disabilities; Disability and Communication Access Board; Fees

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-25 - (S) Referred to HTH, WAM. [SB2815 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2012-SB2815-Introduced.html

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THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2815
TWENTY-SIXTH LEGISLATURE, 2012
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

 

 

RELATING TO BUILDING DESIGN FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES.

 

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 

     SECTION 1.  Hawaii law requires that all plans and specifications for the construction of public buildings, facilities, and sites be prepared so that the buildings, facilities, and sites are accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities.  Section 103-50, Hawaii Revised Statutes, requires that buildings, facilities, and sites conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines and the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, which establish the design standard for accessibility to persons with disabilities.

     The legislature established a mechanism for the review of all plans and specifications for state and county buildings, facilities, and sites or buildings, facilities, and sites funded with state or county funds by the disability and communication access board to ensure that design and construction plans would be corrected prior to the construction of the building, facility, or site.  The disability and communication access board reviews an average of nine hundred to one thousand plans each year.  The review process has been heretofore offered to the architectural and design community at no charge.

     The legislature finds that compliance with the statutory design requirements to ensure accessibility is neither consistent nor uniformly understood in the architectural, engineering, and design community.  The legislature further finds that the review process by the disability and communication access board is a valuable service that should be continued.  The review process ensures appropriate access to people with disabilities by uncovering design flaws that are corrected prior to construction, which prevents costly litigation and retrofits.

     The legislature believes that the fees required to be charged under this Act by the disability and communication access board should be incorporated into the capitalization costs of the projects.  A reasonable fee schedule would generate revenues sufficient to pay for the salaries of the staff conducting the reviews after July 1, 2013.  The review process will remain general funded until June 30, 2013.  The fees provide a mechanism to defray a portion or all of the costs of the review process.

The purpose of this Act is to require the disability and communication access board to charge a fee for the review, similar to other fees that are charged for permits, as part of the design and construction process.

     SECTION 2.  Section 103-50, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

     "§103-50  Building design to consider needs of persons with disabilities.  (a)  Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, all plans and specifications for the construction of public buildings, facilities, and sites shall be prepared so that the buildings, facilities, and sites are accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities.  The buildings, facilities, and sites shall conform to the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines, Title 36 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1191, and the requirements of the Federal Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988, as established in Title 24 Code of Federal Regulations Part 100, Subpart D, as adopted and amended by the disability and communication access board under chapter 348F.

     (b)  All state and county agencies subject to this section shall seek advice and recommendations from the disability and communication access board on any construction plans prior to commencing with construction.

     (c)  The disability and communication access board shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 91 for the design of buildings, facilities, and sites, by or on behalf of the State and counties to effectuate the purposes of this section, except that the board, without regard to chapter 91, instead, may adopt federal amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines, Title 36 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1191.

     (d)  The disability and communication access board may approve a [site specific] site-specific alternate design when an alternate design provides equal or greater access.

     (e)  The disability and communication access board shall charge a review fee for services rendered.  The review fees shall be based on estimated construction costs as follows:

Estimated Construction Costs               Fees

(1)  Plans and specifications not subject

to accessibility guidelines

under this section                      $50

(2)  Up to $ 50,000                         $200

(3)  $50,001 to $100,000                    $400

(4)  $100,001 to $500,000                 $1,000

(5)  $500,001 to $1,000,000               $2,000

(6)  $1,000,001 to $2,500,000             $3,000

(7)  $2,500,001 to $5,000,000             $4,000

(8)  $5,000,001 to $10,000,000            $5,000

(9)  More than $10,000,000                $6,000 + $1,000

for each

additional

$5,000,000 or

portion thereof.

     In addition, there shall be a $3,000 maximum plan review fee charged at the discretion of the disability and communication access board for infrastructure projects and projects managed by private non-profit entities.

     (f)  All monies collected as review fees shall be deposited into the disability and communication access board special fund established under section 348F-7.

     (g)  The disability and communication access board shall report to the legislature annually regarding the revenues collected under this section.  The report shall include a summary of the number and types of plans reviewed and the fees collected from each state or county department or agency.

     [(e)] (h)  For the purposes of this section, "public buildings, facilities, and sites" means buildings, facilities, and sites that:

     (1)  Are designed, constructed, purchased, or leased with the use of any state or county funds or federal funds administered by the State or a county;

     (2)  House state or county programs, services, or activities that are intended to be accessed by the general public; or

     (3)  Are constructed on state or county lands or lands that will be transferred to the State or a county.”

     SECTION 3.  Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken.  New statutory material is underscored.

     SECTION 4.  This Act shall take effect upon its approval; provided that the fees established in section 103-50(e), Hawaii Revised Statutes, shall take effect on January 1, 2013.

 

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________
	BY REQUEST

 

 

Report Title:

Persons with Disabilities; Disability and Communication Access Board; Fees

 

Description:

Requires the Disability and Communication Access Board (DCAB) to charge fees to defray expenses of reviewing construction plans to ensure compliance with law, establishes a fee schedule to be effective January 1, 2013, and requires the fees to be deposited into the DCAB special fund.

 

 

 

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