ADA REGULATIONS for swimming pools

There are over 50 million people with disabilities in the United States, which equates to 18% of the population – making persons with disabilities the largest minority group. To protect this population, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was designed to prevent discrimination against a person based on a disability. The goal of the ADA is to provide a level playing field so that a person with a disability can compete equally for jobs and also enjoy the same benefits of living in the United States as a person who is able-bodied.

As part of the legislation passed by the ADA, over 100,000 commercial swimming pools will be required to become accessible to people with disabilities by March 15, 2012. Generally, this legislation will only affect state and local government owned facilities, parks and recreation departments, state run schools and universities, as well as hotels, health clubs, private schools and community centers. Private residences, apartments and condominiums are not affected, with a few exceptions:
• If an apartment complex sells memberships to their pool to people living outside the complex, the pool IS considered public and is subject to the ADA regulations.
• If a condominium actively rents out their units, similar to a hotel, this is also considered a public accommodation and subject to ADA regulations.