Disability Law Summaries
Kentucky, Disability Law Summaries
Kentucky has two laws dealing with disability discrimination in employment. The state's Equal Opportunity Act, which deals exclusively with protecting the rights of persons with disabilities, is codified in the Kentucky Revised Statutes at Title XVII, Chapter 207. This law covers public and private employers employing 8 or more individuals and is summarized below. This law also includes accessibility and housing provisions.
Full text of the Equal Opportunities Act is available at Employment Practices Guide ¶18-20,750.01 .
Kentucky's fair employment practices law, which is codified in the Kentucky Revised Statutes at Title XXVII, Chapter 344, prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of disability, among other things. This law covers public and private employers with 15 or more employees and is summarized at ¶18-2500 . Accessibility and housing provisions are summarized below.
Full text of the fair employment practices law is available at Employment Practices Guide ¶18-20,025.01 .
Other disability provisions are located in the Kentucky Revised Statutes Annotated at Title XVII, Chapter 198B (Accessibility); Title XXI, Chapter 258 (Accessibility and Transportation); Title XXIV, Chapter 278 (Telecommunications) and Title XXVII, Chapter 337 (Subminimum wages).
Interaction of disability laws. State or local disability laws that provide protection that is greater than or equivalent to that of the Americans with Disabilities Act are not nullified by the Act, and neither are laws that provide less protection than the ADA. However, if either law provides less protection than the other, the law with the lesser standard cannot be used as a defense to the law with the higher standard.
Before making any decisions that will affect the rights of people with disabilities, it is important that state laws be compared with the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. A person with a disability may prefer to file charges under a state law with fewer protections if that state law has greater remedies than the ADA.
DEFINITIONS
“Employer” : means a person or governmental unit or officer in Kentucky having in his or its employ eight or more individuals, and any person acting in the interest of an employer, directly or indirectly (Sec. 207.130).
“Persons” means one or more individuals, partnerships, municipalities, the state, or other political subdivisions within the state, associations, labor organizations, or corporations (Sec. 207.130).
“Physical disability” means the physical condition of a person, whether congenital or acquired, that constitutes a substantial disability to that person and is demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques (Sec. 207.130).
ACCESSIBILITY
Fair Employment Practices Law.- It is an unlawful practice for a person to deny an individual the full and equal enjoyment of the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of a place of public accommodation, resort, or amusement on the ground of disability (Sec. 344.120).
Advertisements. It is an unlawful practice for a person, directly or indirectly, to participate in the publishing, circulation, issuance, display, or mailing of a written, printed, oral, or visual communication, notice, or advertisement which indicates that the goods, services, facilities, privileges, advantages, and accommodations of a place of public accommodation, resort, or amusement will be refused, withheld from, or denied an individual on account of disability, or that the patronage of, or presence at, a place of public accommodation, resort, or amusement, of an individual, on account of disability is objectionable, unwelcome, unacceptable, or undesirable (Sec. 344.140).
Enforcement. If the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights determines that an unlawful practice relating to public accommodations has occurred, it will issue a cease and desist order and require the violator to take appropriate affirmative action (Sec. 344.230).
Equal Opportunities Act.- A person must not discriminate against an otherwise qualified person in public accommodations or government services on the basis of the fact that the individual is, or is regarded as being, infected with HIV (Sec. 207.135).
Service animals.- For purposes of this section, “person” means a person with a disability as defined by Sec. 210.770 (someone with a physical or mental impairment, including individuals who have a record or history of an impairment, or are regarded as having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities). “Person” also includes a trainer of an assistance dog (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
If a person is accompanied by an assistance dog, neither the person nor the dog may be denied admittance to any hotel, motel, restaurant, or eating establishment, nor may the person be denied full and equal accommodations, facilities, and privileges of all public places of amusement, theater, or resort when accompanied by an assistance dog (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
No person accompanied by an assistance dog may be denied admittance and use of any public building, nor denied the use of any elevator operated for public use (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
Any person accompanies by an assistance dog may keep the dog in his or her immediate custody while he or she is a tenant in any apartment or building used as a public lodging (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
All trainers accompanies by an assistance dog must have in their personal possession identification verifying that they are trainers of assistance dogs (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S.B. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
Additionally, this section does not apply unless the person complies with the legal limitations applicable to nondisabled persons and unless all requirements of Secs. 258.015 and 258.135 have been complied with (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 189 (S. 133), L. 2004, effective July 13, 2004).
Penalties. Any person violating Sec. 258.500 (above and under TRANSPORTATION below) shall be punished by a fine of not less than $250, nor more than $1,000, or by imprisonment in the county jail for not less than 10 nor more than 30 days, or both (Sec. 258.991, as amended by Ch. 48 (S 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
Building code.- The regulations of the state's Board of Housing, Buildings, and Construction require, as a minimum, that all buildings, with the exception of one-and two-family dwellings, multifamily projects consisting of 24 living units or less, church buildings, and historical structures whose historic significance would be threatened or destroyed, be accessible to persons with a disability. If multifamily projects are not exempt, only one out of every 25 units must be accessible to persons with a disability (Sec. 198B.260, as amended by Ch. 416, L. 1994).
EMPLOYMENT
No employer may do any of the following (Sec. 207.150):
fail or refuse to hire, discharge or discriminate against any individual who has a disability with respect to wages, rates of pay, hours or other terms and conditions of employment because of the person's physical disability unless the disability restricts the individual's ability to engage in the particular job for which he or she is eligible, or unless otherwise provided by law;
fail or refuse to hire, discharge or discriminate against an individual on the basis of the results of an HIV-related test, unless the absence of the HIV infection is a bona fide occupational qualification of the job in question;
limit, segregate or classify individuals with disabilities in any way that would deprive them of employment opportunities or affect employee status because of physical disability, unless the disability constitutes a bona fide and necessary reason for the limitation, segregation or classification; or
limit, segregate or classify individuals on the basis of the results of an HIV test, unless the absence of HIV infection constitutes a bona fide and necessary reason for the limitation, segregation or classification.
HIV.- No person may require an individual to take an HIV-related test as a condition of hiring, promotion or continued employment, unless the absence of HIV infection is a bona fide occupational qualification for the job in question (Sec. 207.135).
A person who asserts that a bona fide occupational qualification exists for HIV-related testing has the burden of proving that:
The HIV-related test is necessary to ascertain whether an employee is currently able to perform in a reasonable manner the duties of the particular job or whether an employee will present a significant risk of transmitting the HIV infection to other persons in the course of normal work activities; and
There exists no means of reasonable accommodation short of requiring the test (Sec. 207.135).
A person who asserts that an individual who is infected with HIV is not otherwise qualified has the burden of proving that no reasonable accommodation can be made to prevent the likelihood that the individual will, under the circumstances involved, expose other individuals to a significant possibility of being infected with the virus (Sec. 207.135).
No person may fail or refuse to hire or discharge any individual, segregate or classify any individual in any way that would deprive or tend to deprive that individual of employment opportunities or adversely affect his or her status as an employee, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment on the basis of the fact that the individual is a licensed health care professional who treats or provides patient care to persons infected with HIV (Sec. 207.135).
Modifications of physical facility.- No employer is required to modify its physical facility or grounds in any way, or exercise a higher degree of caution for an individual with a disability than for any person who does not have a disability (Sec. 207.150).
Apprenticeship programs.- No employer controlling apprenticeship programs or other training programs may discriminate against an individual because of physical disability in admission to, or employment in, any such program, except as otherwise provided by law (Sec. 207.170).
Exceptions. Rejection of an applicant for employment on the basis of any of the following is not prohibited (Sec. 207.140):
a physical disability that interferes with a person's ability to perform assigned job duties adequately;
any disability that is not demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques, including, but not limited to, alcoholism, drug addiction, and obesity; or
any communicable disease carried by or afflicting the applicant.
Retaliation.- Employers may not discriminate against a person because the person has opposed any unfair employment practice based on disability or because the person has filed a charge, testified, assisted or participated in an investigation, citizen's action suit, proceeding or hearing under the Equal Opportunity Act (Sec. 207.170).
Enforcement.- The Kentucky Department of Workplace Standards is authorized to enforce these provisions. In addition, any individual deeming himself or herself injured by a discriminatory act has a civil cause of action in circuit court to enjoin further violation, and to recover actual damages (Sec. 207.200).
State government. All applicants and employees for positions in the state government shall not be discriminated against on the basis of disability (Executive Order 2008-473, as signed June 2, 2008, effective immediately).
Minimum wages. Workers with disabilities may be employed at rates lower than the minimum wage if they have been issued a certificate by the Commissioner of Workplace Standards (Sec. 337.010, as amended by Ch. 99 (S. 47), L. 2005, effective June 20, 2005).
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
TDD equipment.- On or before July 1, 1995, the Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing will establish a program to distribute specialized telecommunications equipment to any deaf, hard-of-hearing, or speech-impaired person qualified to receive the equipment (Sec. 163.525, as amended by Ch. 23 (S. 88), L. 2006, effective July 12, 2006).
Factors to determine a person's eligibility to receive specialized telecommunications equipment will include, but not be limited to (Sec. 163.525, as amended by Ch. 23 (S. 88), L. 2006, effective July 12, 2006):
Kentucky residency;
Attainment of at least five years of age; and
Certification as deaf, hard of hearing, or severely speech-impaired by a licensed physician, audiologist, speech pathologist, or by any other method recognized by the Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Certification implies that the individual cannot use the telephone for communication without adaptive equipment.
Relay services.- Kentucky provides telecommunications relay services, including interstate services, by which a deaf, hard of hearing or speech-impaired user of specialized telecommunications equipment can communicate with an intermediary party, who then verbally relays the first party's message or request to a third party, or vice versa. Relay service users pay rates no greater than the rates paid for functionally equivalent voice communication services provided without a telecommunications relay (Secs. 278.547, as amended by Ch. 23 (S.B. 88), L. 2006, effecive July 12, 2006, 278.548 and 278.549, as amended by Ch. 237, L. 1994).
TRANSPORTATION
Service animals.- Any person accompanied by an assistance dog is entitled to full and equal accommodations on all public transportation, if the dog does not occupy a seat in any public conveyance, nor endanger the public safety. No person may be required to pay additional charges or fare for the transportation of any accompanying assistance dog (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).
See also ACCESSIBILITY above.
HOUSING
Equal Opportunities Act.- A person must not discriminate against an otherwise qualified person in housing on the basis of the fact that the individual is, or is regarded as being, infected with HIV (Sec. 207.135).
Rejection of an applicant for housing on the basis of any of the following is not prohibited (Sec. 207.140, as amended by Ch. 405, L. 1994):
Any disability that is not demonstrable by medically accepted clinical or laboratory diagnostic techniques, including, but not limited to, alcoholism, drug addiction, and obesity; or
Any communicable disease, either carried by, or afflicting the applicant.
Fair Employment Practices Law.- It is an unlawful housing practice for a real estate operator, or for a real estate broker, real estate salesman, or any person employed by or acting on behalf of any of these to take any of the following actions (Sec. 344.360, as amended by Ch. 405, L. 1994):
To discriminate in the sale or rental, or to otherwise make unavailable or deny, a housing accommodation to any buyer or renter because of a disability of that buyer or renter; a person residing in or intending to reside in the accommodation; or any person associated with that buyer or renter;
To discriminate against a person in the terms, conditions, or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling, or in the provision of related services or facilities, because of a disability of that person; a person residing in or intending to reside in that housing accommodation; or any person associated with that person.
Discrimination includes (Sec. 344.360, as amended by Ch. 405, L. 1994):
A refusal to permit, at the expense of the person with the disability, reasonable modifications of existing premises occupied or to be occupied by a person, if the modifications are necessary to afford the person full enjoyment of the premises;
A refusal to make reasonable accommodations in rules, policies, practices, or services, when the accommodations are necessary to afford the person equal opportunity to use and enjoy a housing accommodation; or
In connection with the design and construction of covered multifamily housing accommodations for first occupancy after January 1, 1993, a failure to design and construct such accommodations with at least one entrance on an accessible route unless impractical to do so because of the terrain or unusual characteristics of the site.
Housing accommodations with a building entrance on an accessible route must comply with the following requirements (Sec. 344.360, as amended by Ch. 405, L. 1994):
the public use and common use portions must be readily accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities;
all doors designed to allow passage into and within all premises must be sufficiently wide to allow passage by persons in wheelchairs; and
all premises must contain the following features: an accessible route into and through the accommodation; environmental controls in accessible locations; reinforcements in bathroom walls to allow later installation of grab bars; and kitchens and bathrooms usable by an individual in a wheelchair.
Enforcement. An aggrieved person may file a complaint with the Kentucky Commission on Human Rights not later than one year after an alleged discriminatory housing practice has occurred or terminated. The commission, on its own initiative, or the Attorney General may also file a complaint (Sec. 344.600, as amended by Ch. 378, L. 1994).
Service animals. Any person accompanied by an assistance dog may keep the dog in his or her immediate custody while a tenant in any apartment, or building used as a public lodging (Sec. 258.500, as amended by Ch. 48 (S. 23), L. 2007, effective June 26, 2007).