[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 10560 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 10560
To promote the provision of exercise machines and equipment, and
exercise and fitness classes and instruction, that are accessible to
individuals with disabilities.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 24, 2024
Mr. DeSaulnier introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and the Workforce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To promote the provision of exercise machines and equipment, and
exercise and fitness classes and instruction, that are accessible to
individuals with disabilities.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Exercise and Fitness for All Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) Individuals with disabilities can maintain and improve
their health through appropriate physical activity.
(2) According to a 2023 meta-analysis published in the
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public
Health, physical exercise programs reduced depressive symptoms
in adults with both intellectual and physical disabilities,
while other data shows that adults with disabilities report
experiencing mental distress approximately five times as often
as adults without disabilities.
(3) In the 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans
(referred to in this section as the ``Guidelines''), the
Department of Health and Human Services recommends that
individuals with disabilities, who are able, participate in
regular aerobic activity.
(4) The Guidelines also recommend that adults with
disabilities, who are able, do muscle strengthening activities
of moderate or high intensity on two or more days a week, as
these activities provide additional health benefits.
(5) The Guidelines recommend that when adults with
disabilities are not able to meet the Guidelines, they should
engage in regular physical activity according to their
abilities and avoid inactivity.
(6) According to a study published in the Disability and
Health Journal in 2020, approximately 60 percent of disabled
adults with mobility challenges reported performing no aerobic
activity, and those who do not perform aerobic activity are
more likely than their physically active counterparts to report
at least one of four chronic conditions (heart disease, stroke,
diabetes, or cancer).
(7) Many individuals with disabilities are unable to engage
in the exercises or fitness activities recommended in the
Guidelines, as a study published in the American Journal of
Preventive Medicine in 2004 identified 178 barriers to physical
activity participation among persons with disabilities,
including barriers related to the built and natural
environment, economic challenges, barriers in access to
equipment, and barriers related to interpretation of
regulations and laws, among other challenges.
(8) The failure to provide accessible exercise machines and
equipment, as well as accessible exercise and fitness classes
and instruction, prevents people with disabilities from being
full participants in their communities.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is--
(1) to carry out the objectives of the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (referred to in this section as the
``ADA''), including providing ``a clear and comprehensive
national mandate for the elimination of discrimination'' and
``clear, strong, consistent, enforceable standards addressing
discrimination''; and
(2) specifically, to carry out those objectives by issuing
guidelines and regulations for exercise or fitness service
providers specifying the accessible exercise machines and
equipment, and the accessible exercise or fitness classes and
instruction, necessary to ensure that individuals with
disabilities can--
(A) obtain the benefits of physical activity; and
(B) fully participate in the services offered by
exercise or fitness service providers.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Access board.--The term ``Access Board'' means the
Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board
established under section 502 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973
(29 U.S.C. 792).
(2) Exercise machines and equipment.--The term ``exercise
machines and equipment'' means devices such as motorized
treadmills, stair climbers or step machines, stationary
bicycles, rowing machines, weight machines, circuit training
equipment, cardiovascular equipment, strength equipment, or
other similar equipment.
(3) Exercise or fitness service provider.--The term
``exercise or fitness service provider''--
(A) means an entity that--
(i) provides exercise machines and
equipment, or exercise or fitness classes or
instruction, for the use of patrons; and
(ii) is considered a public entity under
section 201 of the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131) or is considered
a public accommodation under section 301 of
such Act (42 U.S.C. 12181); and
(B) includes a stand-alone exercise or fitness
center and an exercise or fitness center within an
entity such as a hotel, retirement community,
gymnasium, elementary or secondary school, or
institution of higher education.
(4) Individual with a disability.--The term ``individual
with a disability'' means any person with a disability as
defined in section 3 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of
1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102).
SEC. 4. EXERCISE AND FITNESS ACCESSIBILITY GUIDELINES AND REGULATIONS.
(a) Establishment of Guidelines.--Not later than 18 months after
the date of enactment of this Act, the Access Board shall develop and
publish guidelines for exercise or fitness service providers regarding
the provision of accessible exercise machines and equipment.
(b) Contents of Guidelines.--The guidelines described in subsection
(a) shall ensure that--
(1) the appropriate number of items and types of accessible
exercise machines and equipment are provided by an exercise or
fitness service provider; and
(2) each accessible exercise machine and equipment that has
communications features or an interface is accessible for
disabled individuals through the availability of features such
as closed captioning on monitors, audible output of visual
content and tactile buttons for people who are blind or have
low vision, and visual indications of information conveyed
audibly.
(c) Review and Amendment.--The Access Board shall periodically
review and, as appropriate, amend the guidelines, and shall issue the
resulting guidelines as revised guidelines.
(d) Regulations.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the Access
Board issues guidelines under this section, the Attorney
General shall issue regulations pursuant to section 302(a) of
the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12182)
regarding--
(A) the provision of accessible exercise machines
and equipment; and
(B) the accessibility of exercise or fitness
classes and instruction.
(2) Equipment.--With respect to the provision of accessible
exercise machines and equipment, the regulations issued
pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C.
12101 et seq.) shall be consistent with the Access Board
guidelines developed pursuant to subsection (a).
(3) Exercise or fitness classes and instruction.--The
regulations shall--
(A) specify that service providers are required to
make reasonable accommodations to ensure that exercise
or fitness classes and instruction are accessible for
people with disabilities; and
(B) ensure that the service provider makes
available at least one employee who is able to assist
individuals with disabilities in their use of
accessible exercise machines and equipment.
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