In the fourth review of the AODA, Rich Donovan states that Ontario will not be fully accessible by 2025. In other words, the provincial government will not meet its own deadline under the AODA. Limited creation, implementation, and enforcement of AODA standards impacts the well-being and safety of Ontarians with disabilities. Therefore, Donovan recommends that the Ontario government should declare this lack of progress on accessibility a crisis. This crisis state should last six (6) months. During this time, the Ontario government should form a crisis committee to implement crucial accessibility improvements in the province. The Premier should act as the chair of this committee, and the Secretary of Cabinet should act as co-chair. Furthermore, Donovan outlines tactical recommendations the province should follow to fulfill its remaining responsibilities in the public sector. One of these tactical recommendations is creation of measurable outcomes for accessibility success.
Measurable Outcomes for Accessibility Success
The review states that there is no simple way to measure progress toward accessibility in Ontario. As a result, the review recommends new procedures to help organizations measure and make progress to become more accessible. For example, some of these recommendations are:
- Accessibility plans for government services and employment
- An accessibility action plan to support private-sector organizations
In addition, the review recommends that the accessibility agency should assess the current degree of accessibility in sectors such as:
The agency should consult people with disabilities during this assessment. Furthermore, the agency should establish new measurable outcomes for accessibility that these sectors must aim to achieve. Outcomes should include clear “benchmarks” that are easy for organizations to understand.
Moreover, the accessibility agency should update these outcomes and benchmarks regularly, so that organizations can continue to strive toward new goals. Finally, the agency should publish accessibility assessments and outcomes on the public dashboard of information about disability.