JUL 14 1995
Mr. Raymond C. Speciale
Yodice Associates
500 E Street, S.W.
Suite 930
Washington, D.C. 20024

Dear Mr. Speciale:

     This is in response to your letter to Ed Miller regarding
the obligation of the AOPA Air Safety Foundation (ASF) to provide
sign language interpreters at aviation safety seminars. You wish
to know whether ASF is required under the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) to provide sign language
interpreters for deaf pilots who wish to attend a free aviation
safety seminar that is jointly sponsored by ASF and the Federal
Aviation Administration.

     Title III of the ADA prohibits discrimination on the basis
of disability in all places of public accommodation and
commercial facilities. Congress defined place of public
accommodation as a facility that is operated by a private entity,
whose operations affect commerce, and that falls within one of
twelve listed categories. One of those categories covers "places
of education". 42 U.S.C. 12181, 28 CFR 36.104. Thus, your
analysis of section 36.309 is not determinative. As a place of
public accommodation, ASF is required to comply with section
36.303 of the ADA, which requires that:

     A public accommodation shall take those steps that may be
     necessary to ensure that no individual with a disability is
     excluded, denied services, segregated or otherwise treated
     differently than other individuals because of the absence of
     auxiliary aids and services, unless the public accommodation
     can demonstrate that taking those steps would fundamentally
     alter the nature of the goods, services, facilities,
     privileges, advantages, or accommodations being offered or
     would result in an undue burden . . . . A public
     accommodation shall furnish appropriate auxiliary aids and
     services where necessary to ensure effective communication
     with individuals with disabilities.

cc: Records; Chrono; Wodatch; Milton; FOIA
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The term auxiliary aids and services includes qualified
interpreters, notetakers, computer-aided transcription services,
written materials, etc.

     A fundamental alteration is a modification that is so
significant that it alters the essential nature of the goods,
services, facilities, privileges, advantages, or accommodations
offered. An undue burden is defined as "significant difficulty
or expense." Among the factors to be considered in determining
whether an action would result in an undue burden are the
nature and cost of the action; the overall financial resources of
the site or sites involved; the number of persons employed at the
site; the effect on expenses and resources; and the
administrative or fiscal relationship of the site or sites in
question to any parent corporation or entity.

     You assert that ASF is a non-profit entity with limited
resources and that the cost of providing interpreters would
hamper ASF's ability to provide the same number of free seminars
it provides today. While it may be that the provision of
interpreters at all seminars would be an undue burden to ASF, you
should bear in mind that if a public accommodation determines
that providing a particular auxiliary aid or service would result
in a fundamental alteration or undue burden, it is not
necessarily relieved from its obligations under the ADA.
The public accommodation must still provide an alternative
auxiliary aid or service that would not result in an undue burden
or fundamental alteration but that would ensure effective
communication to the maximum extent possible, if such
alternatives are available.

     I hope this information has been helpful to you.

                         Sincerely,



                      John L. Wodatch
                           Chief
                    Disability Rights Section
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