Are the new ADA rules in effect yet?
No, although the ANSI standards upon which the new proposed guidelines are based were first published in 1998, and the first version of the “new ADAAG” came before the public in 1999. The ANSI standards for signs remained the same in 2003, but the text is shortened and simplified. There have been many bureaucratic delays in the process of Access Board approval, along with some changes, but in late 2006 the revised Design Standards finally reached the Department of Justice. Although the Department of Transportation and some other federal agencies are already using the new Design Standards, until the DOJ certifies them, they are not “official” for most projects. However, you don’t need to wait to use most of the new sign section, since very little of it conflicts in any way with the old guidelines.
