Italicized text was added to the original Title II Technical Assistance Manual through supplements issued in 1993 and 1994.
Regulatory references: 28 CFR 35.130-35.135.
A public entity must reasonably modify its policies, practices, or procedures to avoid discrimination. If the public entity can demonstrate, however, that the modifications would fundamentally alter the nature of its service, program, or activity, it is not required to make the modification.
ILLUSTRATION 1: A municipal zoning ordinance requires a set-back of 12 feet from the curb in the central business district. In order to install a ramp to the front entrance of a pharmacy, the owner must encroach on the set-back by three feet. Granting a variance in the zoning requirement may be a reasonable modification of town policy.
ILLUSTRATION 2: A county general relief program provides emergency food, shelter, and cash grants to individuals who can demonstrate their eligibility. The application process, however, is extremely lengthy and complex. When many individuals with mental disabilities apply for benefits, they are unable to complete the application process successfully. As a result, they are effectively denied benefits to which they are otherwise entitled. In this case, the county has an obligation to make reasonable modifications to its application process to ensure that otherwise eligible individuals are not denied needed benefits. Modifications to the relief program might include simplifying the application process or providing applicants who have mental disabilities with individualized assistance to complete the process.
ILLUSTRATION 3: A county ordinance prohibits the use of golf carts on public highways. An individual with a mobility impairment uses a golf cart as a mobility device. Allowing use of the golf cart as a mobility device on the shoulders of public highways where pedestrians are permitted, in limited circumstances that do not involve a significant risk to the health or safety of others, is a reasonable modification of the county policy.
ILLUSTRATION 4: C, a person with a disability, stops at a rest area on the highway. C requires assistance in order to use the toilet facilities and his only companion is a person of the opposite sex. Permitting a person of the opposite sex to assist C in a toilet room designated for one sex may be a required reasonable modification of policy.
ILLUSTRATION 5: S, an individual with an environmental illness, requests a public entity to adopt a policy prohibiting the use of perfume or other scented products by its employees who come into contact with the public. Such a requirement is not a "reasonable" modification of the public entity's personnel policy.
A public entity is not required to provide individuals with disabilities with personal or individually prescribed devices, such as wheelchairs, prescription eyeglasses, or hearing aids, or to provide services of a personal nature, such as assistance in eating, toileting, or dressing. Of course, if personal services or devices are customarily provided to the individuals served by a public entity, such as a hospital or nursing home, then these personal services should also be provided to individuals with disabilities.
Virginia Commonwealth University | www.dbtac.vcu.edu |