Ontario is determined to make Ontario accessible for people with disabilities.

And it has the laws to do it.

Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005

The Ontario Legislature passed the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005 on June 13, 2005 by a unanimous vote.

That means that every MPP in the House supported the passage of this landmark legislation.

The act calls on the:

• business community
• public
• not-for-profit sector
• people with disabilities or their representatives

to develop, implement and enforce mandatory accessibility standards in many important areas of life:

• built environment (buildings and other structures)
• customer service
• employment
• information and communications
• transportation

The first standard to come into effect (on January 1, 2008) is the Accessibility Standards for Customer Service.

All businesses or organizations that provide goods or services to the public or to other third parties in Ontario are legally required to comply with the requirements of the standard.