Bush to Overhaul Access for Disabled

With an eye to aging Boomers and Iraq vets, the Bush administration is set to propose wide-ranging new rules to improve disabled access to public spaces from retail stores to golf courses, the New York Times reports. The move, which updates  implementation of the 1990 Americans With Disabilities Act, would affect 7 million businesses and all state and local government agencies. While some call the plan's $23 billion price tag too steep, advocates for the disabled say it’s not enough.

The rules will be published tomorrow and be available for 60 days of public comment before being finalized. They include:

• Required lifts or ramps in courthouses, auditoriums, and swimming pools
• Height requirements for hotel-room light switches and fishing-pier railings
• Disabled accessibility to at least half the holes at mini-golf courses
• Accessibility to playground equipment for children in wheelchairs

(More disabled stories.)