A.5.2.3.2 HUD Recognized Safe Harbors

A. Presently there are ten HUD-recognized safe harbors for compliance with the Act’s design and construction requirements as listed below. Any one of the referenced safe harbors may be relied upon,

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Appendix 5 Architectural and Construction Analysis A.5.2 Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities

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but only when used in its entirety without the designer or builder selecting provisions from more than one safe harbor or a variety of sources and without any waiver(s) of provisions as might be obtained from a state or local agency. (See HUD’s final rule Design and Construction Requirements, Compliance with ANSI A117.1 Standards, published in the Federal Register on October 24, 2008. See Resources, Appendix 5, Section A.5.2.3.2.A.5, below). When conducting an assessment for a building, the Needs Assessor should use the safe harbor standard referenced in the original design documents whenever the identity of the standard is known. If unknown, the Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines (safe harbor # 1 below) should be used. The Needs Assessor must name the standard used in the CNA Narrative Section 7.1 of the CNA e-Tool. The ten safe harbors are as follows:

1. HUD’s March 6, 1991, Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines and the June 28, 1994, Supplemental Notice to Fair Housing Accessibility Guidelines: Questions and Answers About the Guidelines.

2. ANSI A117.1-1986 – Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, used in conjunction with the Act, HUD’s Regulations and the Guidelines.

3. CABO/ANSI A117.1-1992 – Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, used in conjunction with the Act, HUD’s Regulations, and the Guidelines.

4. ICC/ANSI A117.1-1998 - Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, used in conjunction with the Act, HUD’s Regulations, and the Guidelines.

5. HUD’s Fair Housing Act Design Manual published in 1996 and revised in 1998.

6. Code Requirements for Housing Accessibility 2000 (CRHA), approved and published by the International Code Council (ICC), October 2000.

7. International Building Code (IBC) 2000, as amended by the IBC 2001 Supplement to the International Codes.

8. 2003 International Building Code (IBC), with one condition. Effective February 28, 2005, HUD determined that the IBC 2003 is a safe harbor, conditioned upon the International Code Council publishing and distributing the following statement to jurisdictions and past and future purchasers of the 2003 IBC:

• ICC interprets Section 1104.1, and specifically, the exception to Section 1104.1, to be read together with Section 1107.4, and that the Code requires an accessible pedestrian route from site arrival points to accessible building entrances, unless site impracticality applies. Exception 1 to Section 1107.4 is not applicable to site arrival points for any Type B dwelling units because site impracticality is addressed under Section 1107.7.

9. ICC/ANSI A117.1-2003 - Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities, used in conjunction with the Act, HUD’s Regulations, and the Guidelines.

10. 2006 International Building Code, published by ICC, January 2006, with the 2007 erratum (to correct the text missing from Section 1107.7.5), and interpreted in accordance with relevant 2006 IBC Commentary.