WASHINGTON President Bush has signed into law a controversial measure that compels federal safety regulators to beef up motorcoach industry compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The law requires the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to deny operating authority to existing and new operators that willfully fail to comply with federal accessibility rules. (See Jan. 2008, and Dec. 1 and Dec. 15, 2007 issues of Bus & Motorcoach News.)

Additionally, the measure requires the USDOT and the Justice Department to enter into a memorandum of understanding to clearly define each departments role and responsibility for enforcing ADA provisions that apply to over-the-road bus operators.

The intent of the legislation is to force the FMCSA put compliance with ADA on par with compliance with federal safety rules.

The measure was pushed through Congress by the American Bus Association, Greyhound Lines and the Amalgamated Transit Union. The United Motorcoach Association opposed the measure. FMCSA officials reportedly are none too happy about the measures passage either.

While the law is primarily aimed at those competitors of Greyhound, Peter Pan Bus Lines and other intercity carriers that fail to meet ADA requirements, it applies to companies that operate motorcoaches.

"This legislation will ultimately increase access and mobility for disabled Americans, and will help our operators serve more customers," said

ABA Senior Vice President for Government Affairs Clyde Hart. "It also helps to distinguish between responsible, law-abiding motor carriers that characterize ABA-member companies, and the rogue operators (that) disobey the laws and deny the disabled access to motorcoach transportation," Hart added.

UMA and other industry opposition to the bill was based on the belief the new law will require a rulemaking by the FMCSA, raising the specter of additional paperwork requirements for operators, plus tougher penalties when a paperwork or actual ADA violation occurs.

There also is worry about possible administrative nightmares for companies that operate mixed fleets of line-run buses, where ADA requirements are more stringent, and tour-and-charter coaches, which have different ADA rules.

Even if the paperwork burden doesnt grow substantially, certainly there will be greater scrutiny of the ADA annual reports operators are required to submit to the FMCSA.

One FMCSA official, interviewed by Bus & Motorcoach News late last year, predicted federal compliance reviews would become longer and more time consuming, and record keeping requirements would expand if the measure became law. It has.