Small businesses, nonprofits deserve relief from abusive ADA lawsuits: CALA urges Assembly Judiciary Committee to hear SB 84

California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse is calling on the California Assembly Judiciary Committee to give SB 84, authored by Senator Roger Niello, a hearing to help put an end to shakedown abusive Americans with Disabilities Act lawsuits that target small business owners and nonprofits.

For the last two years, SB 84 passed the State Senate unanimously, but stalled in the Assembly Judiciary Committee without receiving a hearing date. The committee failed to act on the bill last year, and it appears poised to do the same again this year. If the committee does not take action by June 1, it will represent a serious missed opportunity to protect California’s small businesses from abusive litigation.

“We are urging members of the California Assembly Judiciary Committee to give SB 84 a hearing,” said Victor Gomez, Executive Committee, California Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse. “This bill deserves the light of day. The current system disproportionately harms small, family-owned businesses that lack the resources to fight costly legal challenges.”

The bill would provide a 120-day window for businesses to correct non-compliant Americans with Disabilities Act issues before lawsuits can proceed. Supporters say the change would protect small businesses from being blindsided by technical violations that are often measured in fractions of an inch.

“The goal is not to weaken accessibility laws, but to ensure businesses have a fair opportunity to comply before facing financial penalties,” Gomez continued. “Without reform, the pattern of minor violations leading to major lawsuits will continue, and local businesses will pay the price.”

About Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse
Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse, a non-profit grassroots organization made up largely of small business owners, is leading the push for reform.