[nabs-l] [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law preemptsblindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

Tue May 31 22:57:27 UTC 2011

Either them or the TSA.  They run the airports, right? The 
airlines just run the gates and terminals and stuff.

 Chris

"A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities motto)

--- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ----- Original Message -----
From: Jorge Paez <computertechjorgepaez at gmail.com
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list 
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Date sent: Wed, 25 May 2011 19:19:47 -0400
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal 
law preemptsblindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

Chris:
Good point.
So,
should we rather sue the transportation department instead of the 
airlines?

On May 25, 2011, at 4:05 PM, Chris Nusbaum wrote:

 Yes, but that's hopefully a temporary fix.  We're trying to get 
* independent access to the kiosks, just like sighted people.  If 
there's a big line at the manned counter, a sighted person has 
the option of going over to the kiosk and checking in just as 
easily.  We need that same access!

 Chris

 "A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities 
motto)

 --- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ----- Original Message -----
 From: "Brian Miller" <brian-r-miller at uiowa.edu
 To: "'Blind Talk Mailing List'" <blindtlk at nfbnet.org>,"'NABS 
list'" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>, "'NFBMD list'" <nfbmd at nfbnet.org
 Date sent: Tue, 24 May 2011 16:33:37 -0400
 Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law 
preempts blindflyers'claims over airport kiosks

 I agree that this is a set-back, and I do hope we continue to 
press the
 issue.  However, I have to confess that as annoying as these 
kiosks are,
 their presence has yet to keep me off a plane or prevent me from 
checking
 in.  I just insist on getting assistance from a human being and 
I always get
 it.  It's when we can't check in at all, or when there are no 
longer any
 human beings at the counter at all that we are in trouble.  
Another scenario
 could be that checking in at kiosks earns passengers special 
privileges,
 such as better selection of seating, or discounted baggage fess.  
I don't
 believe this is the case yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if it 
is on the
 horizon.  When that day comes, we are in real trouble, and I 
believe we will
 have an even stronger case of discrimination to make.

 I think also it has to be noted that it appears this judge 
didn't rule on
 the merits of the case, or whether or not there was a violation 
of state law
 -- just that state law didn't apply in this case due to the 
overriding
 precedence of the Air Carrier Act.  In other words, if I 
understand this
 correctly, the court in California wasn't saying we didn't have 
standing at
 all, just that we didn't have standing in that court -- or at 
the state
 level, and that we need to address the issue at the federal 
level.

 Brian Miller

 -----Original Message-----
 From: blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org 
[mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
 Behalf Of Chris Nusbaum
 Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 3:58 PM
 To: NABS list; Blind Talk list; NFBMD list
 Subject: [Blindtlk] [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law preempts 
blind
 flyers'claims over airport kiosks

 And back to court we go...  just to be dismissed! Hope they 
appeal!

 Chris

 "A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities 
motto)

 --- Sent from my BrailleNote

 ---- Original Message ------
 From: "Sherri" <flmom2006 at gmail.com
 Subject: [nfb-talk] {Disarmed} Federal law preempts blind 
flyers'
 claims over airport kiosks
 Date sent: Tue, 24 May 2011 02:22:38 -0400

 I'm sure we'll think of some other way to solve this problem.

 Sherri

 Westlaw Journal Aviation
 Federal law preempts blind flyers' claims over airport kiosks
 5/23/2011 COMMENTS (0)

 May 23 (Westlaw Journals) - Federal law preempts a class action 
brought by
 the National Federation of the Blind and several visually 
impaired people
 over the accessibility of airport ticketing kiosks, a California 
federal
 judge has ruled.

 U.S.  District Judge William Alsup of the Northern District of 
California
 dismissed the NFB's lawsuit, finding the claims preempted by the 
Air Carrier
 Access Act and the Airline Deregulation Act.

 The NFB and other plaintiffs alleged United Airlines violates 
California
 disability law by failing to make airport ticketing kiosks 
accessible to the
 blind.

 According to the complaint, the kiosks employ a visual computer 
screen with
 prompts and touch-screen navigation but do not offer an audio 
output or
 other medium to make the kiosks accessible to the blind.

 The plaintiffs brought their class action on behalf of all 
legally blind
 people in the United States who have flown on United from a 
California
 airport and have been unable to use the airline's kiosks.

 United moved for dismissal, arguing that the Airline 
Deregulation Act and
 the Air Carrier Access Act preempt the plaintiffs' claims.

 Judge Alsup agreed.

 The claims are field-preempted under the ACAA because the 
Department of
 Transportation pervasively regulates airport kiosk 
accessibility, he said.

 In addition, the Airline Deregulation Act expressly preempts the 
claims
 because they defendants provide an airline "service" as defined 
in the
 statute.

 Finally, the judge rejected the plaintiffs' argument that the 
Airline
 Deregulation Act was meant to target airline deregulation rather 
than
 discrimination.

 "The Airline Deregulation Act unequivocally declares that no 
state may enact
 a law related to airline service," the Judge Alsup said.
 "Congress could
 have drawn the preemption provision more narrowly.  It did not."

 National Federation of the Blind et al.  v.  United Airlines 
Inc., No.  C
 10-04816 WHA, 2011 WL 1544524 (N.D.  Cal.  Apr.  25, 2011).

 (Reporting by Jennifer Long, Westlaw Journal Aviation)

-----------------------------------------------------------------
 ---------------

 Register or log in to comment.
 C 2011 Thomson Reuters

 a..  Co
 Have you visited my personal page at
 http://www.raceforindependence.org/goto/Sherri.Brun
 If so, Thank you for changing what it means to be blind.
 If not, please go there now!
 Thank you.
 flmom2006 at gmail.com
 _______________________________________________
 nfb-talk mailing list
 nfb-talk at nfbnet.org
 http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org
 To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account 
info for
 nfb-talk:

http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nfb-talk_nfbnet.org/dotkid.
 nusbaum%40gmail.com

 _______________________________________________
 blindtlk mailing list
 blindtlk at nfbnet.org
 http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
 To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account 
info for
 blindtlk:

http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/brian-r
 -miller%40u
 iowa.edu

 _______________________________________________
 blindtlk mailing list
 blindtlk at nfbnet.org
 http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/blindtlk_nfbnet.org
 To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account 
info for blindtlk:

http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/blindtlk_nfbnet.org/dotkid.
 nusbaum%40gmail.com

 _______________________________________________
 nabs-l mailing list
 nabs-l at nfbnet.org
 http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
 To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account 
info for nabs-l:

http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/computert
echjorgepaez%40gmail.com

_______________________________________________
nabs-l mailing list
nabs-l at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nabs-l_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info 
for nabs-l:
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nabs-l_nfbnet.org/dotkid.nu
sbaum%40gmail.com