[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 101 (Thursday, May 26, 2005)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 30381-30382]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-10581]


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ARCHITECTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS COMPLIANCE BOARD

36 CFR Part 1195

[Dockets No. 2004-1; 2004-2]
RIN 3014-AA11


Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessibility Guidelines 
for Passenger Vessels; Large Vessels; Small Vessels

AGENCY: Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board.

ACTION: Availability of draft guidelines; advance notice of proposed 
rulemaking; notice of hearing.

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SUMMARY: The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board 
(Access Board) has placed in the docket and on its Web site for public 
review and comment draft guidelines which address accessibility to and 
in newly constructed or altered passenger vessels which are permitted 
to carry more than 150 passengers or more than 49 overnight passengers. 
The Access Board has also issued an Advance Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking which addresses newly constructed or altered passenger 
vessels which carry 150 or fewer passengers or 49 or fewer overnight 
passengers. The Access Board will hold two public hearings on June 24, 
2005, and July 25, 2005, at the times and locations noted below.

DATES: The Access Board will hold two hearings on the draft guidelines 
and the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Friday June 24, 2005, 
from 2 p.m. until 5 p.m. and on Monday, July 25, 2005, from 10 a.m. 
until noon.

ADDRESSES: The hearing on June 24, 2005, will be held at the Beverly 
Hilton, 9876 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CA. The hearing on July 
25, 2005, will be held at the Marriott at Metro Center, 775 12th 
Street, NW., Washington, DC.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul Beatty, Office of Technical and 
Information Services, Architectural and Transportation Barriers 
Compliance Board, 1331 F Street, NW., suite 1000, Washington, DC 20004-
1111. Telephone number (202) 272-0012 (voice); (202) 272-0082 (TTY); 
electronic mail address: board.gov">pvag@access-board.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Notice of Availability of Draft Guidelines for Large Vessels

    On November 26, 2004, the Architectural and Transportation Barriers 
Compliance Board (Access Board) issued a notice of availability of 
draft guidelines. The draft guidelines address accessibility to and in 
newly constructed or altered passenger vessels covered by the Americans 
with Disabilities Act, which are permitted to carry more than 150 
passengers or more than 49 overnight passengers (69 FR 69244; November 
26, 2004). The notice of availability and the draft guidelines along 
with supplementary information have been placed in the rulemaking 
docket and on the Board's Web site (http://www.access-board.gov/pvaac/noa.htm). The Board is soliciting comments on the draft guidelines and 
will issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) following a review of 
comments received. The deadline for commenting on the draft guidelines 
was extended by a subsequent notice until July 28, 2005 (70 FR 14435, 
March 22, 2005).

Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Small Vessels

    Also on November 26, 2004, the Access Board published an Advance 
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) in the Federal Register (69 FR 
69245; November 26, 2004). The ANPRM addresses the development of 
accessibility guidelines for newly constructed or altered passenger 
vessels covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, which carry 150 
or fewer passengers or 49 or fewer overnight passengers. The ANPRM is 
also on the Board's Web site at http://www.access-board.gov/pvaac/anprm.htm. The deadline for commenting on ANPRM was extended by a 
subsequent notice until July 28, 2005 (70 FR 14435, March 22, 2005.)

Regulatory Assessment

    The Board has also drafted a plan for conducting a regulatory 
assessment of the passenger vessels guidelines. The plan provides for 
evaluating the potential impacts of the guidelines on new construction 
of passenger vessels through case studies, and outlines some methods 
for examining the impacts of the guidelines on alterations to passenger 
vessels. The plan is available for public review on the Board's Web 
site and the Board invites comment on the plan (http://www.access-board.gov/pvaac/assess-plan.htm).

Public Hearings

    The Board held an initial public hearing on the draft guidelines 
for large vessels and the ANPRM for small vessels on January 10, 2005, 
in Washington DC. The Board will hold two hearings on June 24, 2005, 
and July 25, 2005, to give the public additional opportunities to 
provide input on the Board's draft guidelines. Persons wishing to 
testify are encouraged to contact the Access Board at (202) 272-0012 
(voice) or (202) 272-0082 (TTY) to pre-register to attend the hearing. 
The hearings will be accessible to persons with disabilities. Sign 
language interpreters, real-time captioning and an assistive listening 
system will be available. Persons attending the hearings are requested 
to refrain from using perfume, cologne, and other fragrances for the 
comfort of other participants.

Department of Transportation

    The Department of Transportation (DOT) is conducting a separate 
rulemaking to adopt the Access Board's guidelines as accessibility 
standards for passenger vessels covered by the ADA. The DOT rulemaking 
will also address operational issues related to passenger vessels. DOT 
issued a separate Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) in the 
Federal Register on November 26, 2004 (69 FR 69246; November 26, 2004).

Availability of Copies and Electronic Access

    Single copies of the passenger vessels rulemaking (Availability of 
Draft Guidelines, Draft Guidelines and Supplementary Information, Draft 
Plan for Regulatory Assessment, and ANPRM on Access to and in Small 
Passenger

[[Page 30382]]

Vessels) may be obtained at no cost by calling the Access Board's 
automated publications order line (202) 272-0080, by pressing 2 on the 
telephone keypad, then 1 and requesting publication S-45. Please record 
your name, address, telephone number and publication code S-45. Persons 
using a TTY should call (202) 272-0082. Documents are available in 
alternate formats upon request. Persons who want a publication in an 
alternate format should specify the type of format (cassette tape, 
Braille, large print, or ASCII disk). The documents are also available 
on the Board's Web site (http://www.access-board.gov).

Lawrence W. Roffee,
Executive Director, Architectural and Transportation Barriers 
Compliance Board.
[FR Doc. 05-10581 Filed 5-25-05; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8150-01-P