Request By:
Mr. John L. Arnett
Attorney at Law
128 W. Dixie Avenue
P.O. Box 847
Elizabethtown, Kentucky 42701
Opinion
Opinion By: Steven L. Beshear, Attorney General; By: Walter C. Herdman, Assistant Deputy Attorney General
This is in response to your letter of February 12, in which you raise the following question:
"Must a municipality provide in public parking facilities, handicapped parking places? If so, how many must be provided and must the privilege be free, or can a charge be levied for handicapped persons parking in those places?"
There are two statutes relating to the above subject. The first, KRS 186.041, pertains to the issuance of license plates and parking periods for disabled veterans and provides the following:
"(6) When a motor vehicle bearing plates issued to a disabled veteran as prescribed in this section is being operated by or for the benefit of the disabled veteran, the motor vehicle may be parked for a period of two (2) hours in excess of the legal parking period permitted by local authorities, except where local ordinances or police regulations prohibit parking on a highway for the purpose of creating a fire lane or where the ordinances or police regulations provide for the accommodation of heavy traffic during morning, afternoon or evening hours where the motor vehicle is parked in such a manner as to clearly be a traffic hazard. "
The other statute relating to handicapped persons generally, is KRS 189.456, from which we quote subsection (6), as follows:
"(6) When a motor vehicle displaying an auto registration plate as provided in KRS 186.042, and out of state handicapped registration plate or a special parking permit issued to a handicapped person as prescribed in this section is being operated by or for the benefit of the handicapped person, the motor vehicle may be parked in a designated handicapped parking place. When parked where a parking limit is imposed, the vehicle may be parked for a period of two (2) hours in excess of the legal parking period permitted by local authorities except where local ordinances or police regulations prohibit parking on a highway for the purpose of creating a fire lane or where the ordinances or police regulations provide for the accommodation of heavy traffic during morning, afternoon or evening hours or where the motor vehicle is parked in such a manner as to clearly be a traffic hazard. No person shall park in a designated handicapped parking area in a motor vehicle not displaying either a handicapped auto registration plate as provided in KRS 186.042 or an out of state handicapped registration plate on the rear of the vehicle unless he displays on the rear view mirror of his motor vehicle a special parking permit issued to the handicapped. No person shall park a vehicle displaying a special parking permit in a designated handicapped parking area where such vehicle is not being used for the benefit of a handicapped person. "
Neither of the above statutes requires a city to provide specific handicapped parking facilities though there appears to be an implication to this effect under KRS 189.456(6) which authorizes handicapped persons qualifying under this statute to park in a designated handicapped parking place even when a parking limit is imposed by allowing such vehicle to be parked for a period of two hours in excess of the legal parking period prescribed by the local authorities with certain exceptions mentioned therein.
It is also noted under KRS 186.041, pertaining to disabled veterans, that their vehicles may be parked in any parking space for a period of two hours in excess of the legal parking period permitted by local authorities with certain exceptions, thus not requiring the city to specify certain parking spaces for disabled veterans. The question of whether a city must furnish specific handicapped parking places for handicapped persons under KRS 189.456 is one that must necessarily be decided in court. As far as the levying of fees, we find nothing under either statute prohibiting the charging of parking fees, the same as would be required for parking generally.
On the other hand, the State Building Code, particularly KRS 198B.260, requires the adoption of state regulations to require public building and public accommodation facilities to be accessible to physically handicapped persons, which has been done, and is found in Section 315.0 of the Code, a copy of which we are attaching. You will note section 5, setting forth the minimum number of parking spaces that must be furnished handicapped persons based upon the total number of parking spaces made available to the public generally at all public buildings and places of public accommodations, as the terms are defined in Section 1.
Incidentally, we find no previous record of a similar request having been made by you.