The Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce is working with the New York State Hospitality & Tourism Association to get the ADA Website Legislation passed into law. This legislation will help small businesses in the hospitality and tourist industry being affected by lawsuits that target their digital sites, the groups say.
These lawsuits allege the websites or mobile apps for tourist attractions and accommodations are in violation of the American Disabilities Act by not providing access for visually- or hearing-impaired individuals.
The NYHTA has been working with the Campground Association of New York and the Ski Industry Association of New York.
“We got together to write the bill because our members are being hit by these ‘drive-by lawsuits’ whether it’s a campground, ski resort or hotel,” said NYHTA President Mark Dorr. “What we’re trying to do with this legislation is keep the business community and the state from settling on bogus lawsuits that are just filed to make money.”
The bill, introduced during this year's legislative session, will require that claimants alleging an unlawful form of discrimination on a website or mobile app provide the owner a written notice explaining the violation. The owner will have 60 days to fix the violation before the claimant commences further action.
“We have not seen it so much in the Lake George area, but we have seen it in other parts of the state, where some small organizations have paid up to $12,000 in punitive damages to some law firms because their website was not ADA compliant,” said Gina Mintzer, Executive Director of the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau.
In this frivolous situation, Dorr and Mintzer said, letters are sent out to businesses, hundreds at a time stating the business is not following ADA regulations. The letter asks for an amount ranging between $5,000 and $15,000 dollars, to settle the matter out of court.
“The hotel, ski area or campground, are compliant but they get scared,” so they settle out of court, Dorr said.
He said he knows some lawsuits have merit, but this practice is giving a bad reputation to those legitimate lawsuits, adding that the bill is an attempt to eliminate the “drive-by” lawsuits without affecting the real ones.
Phil Jessen, the CEO of the Glens Falls Association for the Blind says that he has not heard people in his association complaining of bad websites.
“Your iPhones and your PCs and your tablets, all that stuff has been pretty much adapted for our constituents,” he said, adding that software can increase the size of text or read a webpage quite well. Although people might find difficulty with technology if they are limited in sight, it has not risen to the level of a lawsuit for the participants in his programs, he said.
Dorr has heard of a little pushback on the bill coming from some disability support groups but Dorr he said he was planning to meet with them soon and discuss corrections.
New York is the current leader in web-related ADA lawsuits according to the NYS Business Council website. In 2021, 12 ski areas were sued and settled out of court in amounts up to $50,000. Approximately 30 campgrounds have also been sued and settled out of court, according to the website.
The bill has been discussed since 2018 but a new push has come from Assembly member Carrie Woerner and Senator Jeremy Cooney, along with Mark Dorr.
“Mark Dorr...really helped rally all of us, as destination marketing organizations around the state, to make sure that we have been lobbying all of our legislators to get this bill passed," Mintzer said.