The Accessible British Columbia Act received royal assent on June 17, 2021.
The government and prescribed organizations must develop an accessibility plan, in consultation with their mandated accessibility committee, in order to identify, remove and prevent barriers to persons with disabilities who are within the organization or interact with it. The accessibility plan must be reviewed at least once every three years.
Organizations must also establish a feedback system to receive comments from the public about barriers.
A provincial accessibility committee is being established by the Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction. The committee will propose accessibility standards that assist in the identification, removal or prevention of barriers in such areas as:
- employment
- delivery of services
- the built environment
- information and communications
- transportation
- health
- education
- procurement
Any contraventions of the Act may be subject to monetary penalties of up to $250,000. Penalties may be increased in the event of a delay in payment of the penalty.
Accessible British Columbia Act in plain language