[nfbmi-talk] A Victory For Blind, Deaf, And Print-Disabled Movie-Goers

[Kane Brolin]

The U.S. Department Of Justice just issued a watershed ruling that
will benefit greatly those of us who either do not hear fully with our
ears or see fully with our eyes, but who pay fully when we visit a
movie theater to take in a motion picture.

The following is from Melanie Brunson, director of government
relations for the Blinded Veterans Association.  Lee Martin, a member
of the NFB Indiana Board of Directors, is a blinded veteran, and he
forwarded this to the Indiana State Affiliate's mailing list.  But
many who receive my occasional e-mails wouldn't have gotten his
advisory.  So I'm forwarding an abridged version of Melanie's e-mail,
for your convenience.

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2016
(202) 514-2007
TTY (866) 544-5309
WWW.JUSTICE.GOV

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REVISES REGULATIONS TO REQUIRE CLOSED MOVIE
CAPTIONING AND AUDIO DESCRIPTION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced an Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) Title III regulation to further clarify a
public accommodation’s obligation to provide appropriate auxiliary
aids and services for people with disabilities.  The final rule
provides that public accommodations that own, operate or lease movie
theaters are required to provide closed movie captioning and audio
description whenever showing a digital movie that is produced,
distributed or otherwise made available with these features.  ...

The final rule requires movie theaters to have available and maintain
the equipment necessary to provide closed movie captioning and audio
description so that it is delivered to a movie patron’s seat and
available only to that patron.  Movie theaters are also required to
notify the public about the availability of these features and have
staff available to assist movie patrons with the equipment.


The requirements of this rule do not apply to any movie theater that
shows analog movies exclusively.  Additionally, the compliance
limitations under Title III of the ADA apply to this rulemaking, and
thus, the rule makes clear that movie theaters do not have to comply
with the rule’s requirements if compliance would result in an undue
burden or a fundamental alteration. ...

 The department initiated this rulemaking on June 10, 2010, with the
publication of its Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) and
then published its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Aug. 1,
2014.  In total, the department received over 1,500 comments on the
ANPRM and the NPRM, including a comment on the NPRM that was jointly
submitted by advocacy groups representing individuals with hearing
disabilities and the movie theater industry.  The department intends
to publish the final rule in the Federal Register in the near future,
and the rule will take effect 45 days after publication.

The actual written rule is found at
https://www.ada.gov/regs2016/movie_captioning_rule_page.html.

If anyone has questions, he or she may phone (800)514-0301 or (using a
TTY) (800)514-3083.

Cheers,

Kane Brolin