Disability Rights New Jersey

October 25, 2011 Kathleen Blank Riether Senior Attorney Office of the Assistant General Counsel for Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings c/o Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of Transportation 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., Room W12–140, Washington, DC 20590–0001 Dear Ms. Reither: The following comments on the Department of Transportation’s proposed amendments to the Code of Federal Regulations concerning enforcement of the Air Carrier Access Act of 1986 (ACAA), 49 U.S.C. § 41705, are submitted by Disability Rights New Jersey (DRNJ), the designated protection and advocacy system for individuals with disabilities in New Jersey, pursuant to the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000, 42 U.S.C. §§ 5041 to 15045; the Protection and Advocacy for Mentally Ill Individuals Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 10801 to 10807; the Client Assistance Program of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 732; the Protection and Advocacy for Individual Rights Program of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794e; and the Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities, 29 U.S.C. § 3004. DRNJ welcomes the Department’s decision to include accessibility to airline and travel agency websites and self-service kiosks as a component to ACAA enforcement. However, DRNJ has significant concerns regarding how the Department intends to enforce these standards. Without a robust system of enforcement, even the most carefully thought-out standards may not result in accessibility for air travelers with disabilities. DRNJ suggests that the Department require all carriers to report on the actual costs associated with compliance with these new regulations. The Department is properly concerned that the actual costs incurred by carriers may substantially exceed the estimated costs in the 2004 NPRM. It is likely, as the Department suggests, that the use of more sophisticated web authoring tools and services will result in lower costs for ca