                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

RIGHTS OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES IN PUBLIC PLACES AND PLACES OF PUBLIC
ACCOMMODATION (§ 51.5-44)

A. A person with a disability has the same rights as other persons to the full
and free use of the streets, highways, sidewalks, walkways, paths of travel,
public playgrounds, public buildings, public facilities, public entities, and
other public places. For purposes of this section, a &#8220;person with a
disability&#8221; means a person whose disability is unrelated to his ability to
utilize and benefit from a place of public accommodation or public service.

B. Each place of public accommodation shall ensure that barriers to
accessibility are removed when the removal is readily achievable. To determine
whether an action is readily achievable, the following factors shall be
considered:

   1. The nature and cost of the action needed to remove the barriers;

   2. The overall financial resources of the place of public accommodation
   involved in the action; the number of persons employed at the place of public
   accommodation; the effect on expenses and resources; legitimate safety
   requirements that are necessary for safe operation, including crime prevention
   measures; or the impact otherwise of the action upon the operation of the
   place of public accommodation;

   3. The geographic separateness and the administrative or fiscal relationship
   of the place of public accommodation in question to any parent corporation or
   entity;

   4. If applicable, the overall financial resources of any parent corporation or
   entity; the overall size of the parent corporation or entity with respect to
   the number of its employees or the number, type, and location of its
   facilities; and

   5. If applicable, the type of operation or operations of any parent
   corporation or entity, including the composition, structure, and functions of
   the workforce of the parent corporation or entity.
   				A person with a disability is entitled to full and equal accommodations,
   advantages, facilities, and privileges of all common carriers, airplanes,
   motor vehicles, railroad trains, motor buses, streetcars, subways, boats or
   any other public conveyances or modes of transportation, restaurants, hotels,
   lodging places, places of public accommodation, amusement or resort, public
   entities including schools, and other places to which the general public is
   invited subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law and
   applicable alike to all persons.

C. Each town, city, or county, individually or through transportation district
commissions, shall ensure that persons with disabilities have access to the
public transportation within its jurisdiction by either (i) use of the same
transportation facilities or carriers available to the general public, (ii)
provision of paratransit or special transportation services for persons with
disabilities, or (iii) both. All persons with disabilities in the
jurisdiction&#8217;s service area who, by reason of their disabilities, are
unable to use the service for the general public shall be eligible to use such
paratransit or special transportation service. No fee that exceeds the fee
charged to the general public shall be charged a person with a disability for
the use of the same transportation facilities or carriers available to the
general public. Paratransit or special transportation service for persons with
disabilities may charge fees to such persons comparable to the fees charged to
the general public for similar service in the jurisdiction service area, taking
into account especially the type, length, and time of trip. Any variance between
special service and regular service fares shall be justifiable in terms of
actual differences between the two kinds of service provided.

D. Nothing in this title shall be construed to require retrofitting of any
public transit equipment or to require the retrofitting, renovation, or
alteration of buildings or places to a degree more stringent than that required
by the applicable building code in effect at the time the building permit for
such building or place is issued.

E. Every totally or partially blind person shall have the right to be
accompanied by a dog in harness trained as a guide dog, every person who is deaf
or hard of hearing shall have the right to be accompanied by a dog trained as a
hearing dog on a blaze orange leash, and every mobility-impaired or otherwise
disabled person shall have the right to be accompanied by a dog trained as a
service dog in a harness, backpack, or vest identifying the dog as a trained
service dog in any of the places listed in subsection B without being required
to pay an extra charge for the dog, provided that he shall be liable for any
damage done to the premises or facilities by such dog. The provisions of this
section shall apply to persons accompanied by a dog that is in training, at
least six months of age, and is (i) in harness, provided such person is an
experienced trainer of guide dogs or is conducting continuing training of a
guide dog; (ii) on a blaze orange leash, provided such person is an experienced
trainer of hearing dogs or is conducting continuing training of a hearing dog;
(iii) in a harness, backpack, or vest identifying the dog as a trained service
dog, provided such person is an experienced trainer of service dogs or is
conducting continuing training of a service dog; (iv) wearing a jacket
identifying the recognized guide, hearing, or service dog organization, provided
such person is an experienced trainer of the organization identified on the
jacket; or (v) the person is part of a three-unit service dog team and is
conducting continuing training of a service dog.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 63.1-171.2; 1972, c. 156; 1979, c. 207; 1985, c. 421, §
51.01-44; 1987, c. 500; 1989, c. 326; 1994, c. 108; 2001, c. 443; 2008, cc. 431,
506; 2012, cc. 803, 835; 2014, c. 616; 2019, c. 288; 2024, c. 648; 2025, c. 378.