TLCIL recently advocated against NYS Senate Bill S7374. The bill, if signed into law, would have created barriers for people with visual and hearing disabilities to enforce their rights.

The bill summary states: “Requires that a claimant alleging that the contents of a website or mobile application that describes goods and services provided at a place of public accommodation constitutes an unlawful discriminatory practice against visually and hearing-impaired individuals serve written notice on the owner and provide 60 days to cure the alleged violation prior to commencing an action.”

If this were to become the case, then according to Disability Rights New York, “individuals with disabilities would incur significant additional time and expense to navigate the inconsistency and logistical problems with the postal service’s Certified Return Receipt process.
This amendment inappropriately bestows unique power to the owner of a public accommodation by essentially allowing them to determine whether there is a problem in the first instance or not at all.
This amendment removes any incentive to ensure that websites or mobile applications are accessible to people with disabilities.”

We are happy to report that through the efforts of CILs and other disability rights organizations, this bill will not be going to committee.

If you are a business owner with concerns about the accessibility of your website, please give us a call and we can connect you to the right person for all of your website accessibility needs.