WASHINGTON—NAFCU's Allyson Browning met with Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX) to further discuss legislative action to address the rise of frivolous lawsuits stemming from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Many credit unions have been targeted by trial attorneys with litigation related to ADA website compliance. As CUToday.info reported here, CUNA met with the Department of Justice earlier this week to address the same issue.
Browning, NAFCU's associate director of legislative affairs, thanked Poe for his ongoing efforts to address this issue and reiterated NAFCU's support of his bill – the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017 (HR 620). If passed, the bill would set conditions for filing civil actions over the failure to remove an architectural barrier to an existing public place, among other things.
Although the legislation only applies to physical location compliance, NAFCU noted that it has been working with Poe on further efforts to also cover website compliance. The House Judiciary Committee cleared the bill in September, and NAFCU recently sent a letter to the committee urging members to support additional legislation to clarify the ADA's website access requirements.
"This legislation provides businesses a timeframe to fix alleged infractions before a lawsuit can proceed, so that the access and accommodation needs of consumers with disabilities are met before trial attorneys have a chance to benefit," NAFCU stated in the letter. "We would support legislative efforts to address frivolous lawsuits for virtual barriers as well."
The trade association said it also continues to monitor the Department of Justice's approach to the ADA – NAFCU commented on its rulemaking efforts related to "public accommodations" last year – but the issue is not currently on the DOJ's formal regulatory agenda.