April 30, 2017
Ontario passed the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act in 2005. Manitoba passed the Accessibility for Manitobans Act in 2013. Last week Nova Scotia became the third province in Canada to pass accessibility legislation. The Accessibility Act, which was passed last Thursday, has set a goal of making Nova Scotia accessible by 2030.
The government will create six standards in the areas of goods and services, information and communication, public transportation and transportation infrastructure, employment, education, and the built environment which includes buildings, rights-of-way and outdoor spaces.
The Nova Scotia Government has also invested $1.8 million dollars in this year’s budget to increase provincial ACCESS-Ability grants for community buildings and to launch a new grant program for small businesses to become more accessible.
Other accessibility legislations are also in the works. The Federal Government is working on a national accessibility law and Barrier-Free BC is pressing political candidates to promise a BC Disabilities Act.