Duckworth, Schakowsky Lead Bill To Provide Accessible Housing For Veterans, Individuals With Disabilities And Aging Americans

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09) today reintroduced bicameral legislation to reduce housing accessibility barriers and improve mobility for people with disabilities. The Eleanor Smith Inclusive Home Design Act would require all newly constructed single-family homes, townhouses and multi-level dwelling units built with federal funding include at least one accessible (or “zero step”) entrance into the home, doorways wide enough for a wheelchair on the main level and one wheelchair accessible bathroom, as well as light switches and thermostats at reachable heights from a wheelchair. Companion legislation was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09).

“Over 15 percent of households are home to someone with a physical disability but only six percent of all homes actually meet accessibility standards—that’s unacceptable,” said Senator Duckworth. “Veterans, seniors and people with disabilities deserve to be able to move around their own homes and visit friends and family without worrying about architectural barriers, and I’m proud to work alongside Congresswoman Schakowsky to help make homes and communities more accessible for everyone.”

“The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) helped expand opportunity for millions of Americans, but our work is far from over,” said Congresswoman Schakowsky. “I am proud to once again join Senator Duckworth in introducing the Eleanor Smith Inclusive Home Design Act to ensure federally assisted homes are built with accessibility in mind from the start. This commonsense legislation will help more people live safely and independently because everyone deserves a home where they can age in place with dignity.”

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The Eleanor Smith Inclusive Home Design Act would require all newly built federally funded single-family homes, townhouses, modular homes and multi-level dwelling units incorporate “visitability” principles: at least one zero step entrance; doorways wide enough for a wheelchair on main level; one wheelchair accessible bathroom; and light switches and thermostats at reachable heights. According to findings in HUD’s 2019 American Housing Survey, 23.1 million households—or about one in five—are home to at least one individual with accessibility needs, and 9.2 million of those households require stairs to access the home and do not have ramps or lifts of some type. As our population continues to age rapidly, it is important to address our insufficient supply of visitable homes. Remodeling a home to include accessibility features costs more than $4,000 on average, which is significantly more expensive than the cost of incorporating these features in the initial construction process.

Duckworth and Schakowsky first introduced identical House and Senate legislation in the 116th Congress. The bill is named after Eleanor Smith, a leader in the thirty-year movement to ensure that all new homes are visitable by mobility-impaired individuals. Smith has successfully secured accessibility requirements in local building codes across the country, however federal accessibility requirements are still nonexistent for privately-owned homes.

The American Association of Interior Designers, Autism Society, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund, Independence First, National Council on Independent Living, Paralyzed Veterans of America, the Arc of the United States, National Low Income Housing Coalition, the Kelsey and Justice in Aging all support the Eleanor Smith Inclusive Home Design Act.

Full text of the bill is available on Senator Duckworth’s website.

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