(a) There is hereby established in the Division of the State Architect a Disability Access and Education Revolving Fund, as set forth in Section 4470, for the purpose of increasing disability access and compliance with construction-related accessibility requirements by the following means:
(1) Increasing the number of private and public certified access specialists available to assist building owners and tenants to understand and comply with construction-related accessibility requirements by using some of the funds to moderate some of the costs of certification and testing.
(2) Establishing and maintaining oversight of the certified access specialist program, including, but not limited to, adopting best practices guidelines for certified access specialists, providing continuing education on construction-related accessibility requirements, and performing its audit and discipline functions under Sections 4459.7 and 4459.8.
(3) Increasing outreach efforts and developing educational resources for persons with disabilities and businesses to facilitate compliance with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. Sec. 12101 et seq.), the Unruh Civil Rights Act (Section 51 of the Civil Code), and Title 24 of the California Code of Regulations, as they relate to providing full and equal access to public facilities for persons with disabilities.
(b) In developing educational resources with this fund, emphasis shall be placed on the development and dissemination of educational materials, such as toolkits, modules, and checklists, as appropriate, to facilitate a commercial property owner’s or tenant’s understanding of, and compliance with, the construction-related accessibility requirements.
(c) In developing and disseminating educational resources with this fund, the Division of the State Architect shall consult and work with the Department of Rehabilitation and the California Commission on Disability Access, and may contract with those agencies to develop educational resources. It is the intent of the Legislature that any development or dissemination of educational resources under this section shall be coordinated with educational efforts by other state agencies so as to expand the reach and effectiveness of each effort or the combined efforts.
(Added by Stats. 2012, Ch. 383, Sec. 15. (SB 1186) Effective September 19, 2012.)