To the immediate attention of the Clerk and Council
June 16, 2006 - Alert 06/030

Government Announces Next Steps in AODA

Issue:  The Minister of Community and Social Services and Minister Responsible for Ontarians with Disabilities, Madeleine Meilleur has announced that the Government will be moving forward on developing three new accessibility standards.

Background:

The Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005(AODA) came into force upon Royal Assent on June 13, 2005. The proposed legislation was introduced as Bill 118 on October 12, 2004 and passed Second Reading by unanimous vote of the legislature on December 2, 2004.

The purpose of the AODA is to achieve accessibility for Ontarians with disabilities by 2025 by developing, implementing and enforcing accessibility standards respecting: goods, services, facilities; accommodation; employment; buildings, structures and premises.  Five key areas for standards development under the AODA have been identified for priority action: Customer Service, Transportation, Information and Communications, the Built Environment and Employment.

The first two of the five standard development committees, Transportation and Customer Service Standards Development Committees (SDCs), established under the AODA in February 2006, are working towards completing their proposed accessibility standards. The proposals will be posted for public review. 

AMO had representation on both of the current SDCs and will be canvassing for membership on the following three SDCs.

While supportive of the legislation, and recognizing that a 20-year implementation period does mitigate some immediate cost pressures, concern continues to exist regarding municipal cost impacts.

Action: 

AMO will continue to monitor the development of standards and address municipal concerns and interests through the AMO Barrier Free Access Working Group.

This information is available in the Policy Issues section of the AMO website at www.amo.on.ca

For more information, contact:   Petra Wolfbeiss, AMO Senior Policy Advisor, at 416-971-9856 extension 329.