Education Law

Senate Press Release on ADA Amendments

By Charles Fox

The following is a press release from Senator Orrin Hatch of Utah who along with Senator Harkin of Iowa have sponsored a bi-partisan bill to overturn the Supreme Court's narrowing of the scope and application of the  ADA. Here is an un-annotated version of the pending bill. Download ada_restoration_bill.doc The bill has already passed the House. (Nod to Jess Butler of COPAA for making both the draft bill and press release available)

ADA Amendments Act Responds To Supreme Court Decisions that Wrongly Narrowed Definition of Disabilitiy

WASHINGTON, D.C. ? One week after the 18th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law, Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) introduced legislation last night that would clarify the law?s intent and ensure that all Americans with disabilities are protected from discrimination.

The ADA Amendments Act, S. 3406, is co-sponsored by Senators Kennedy, Enzi, Specter, Obama, McCain, Dodd, Gregg, Clinton, Alexander, Johnson, Roberts, Kerry, Coleman, Feingold, Snowe, Leahy, Dole, Burr, Brown, Smith, Durbin, Murkowski, Lautenberg, Warner, Sanders, Brownback, Reed, Martinez, Mikulski, Isakson, Casey, Craig, Murray, Bennett, Landrieu, Collins, Biden, Allard, Nelson, Sununu, Cardin, Thune, Levin, Barrasso, McCaskill, Crapo, Schumer, Stevens, Salazar, Voinovich, Tester, Cochran, Reid, Luger, Chambliss, Boxer, Feinstein, Klobuchar, Stabenow, Kohl, Lincoln, Menendez, and Wyden.

The bill is similar to bipartisan legislation introduced in the House by Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner. That bill passed by a 402-17 margin last month.

Considered to be one of the landmark civil rights laws of the 20th century, the ADA was designed to protect any individual who is discriminated against on the basis of disability. The law was passed with overwhelming bipartisan support and was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush.

Since the ADA became law, a series of court decisions have unduly narrowed the category of who qualifies as an ?individual with a disability,? contrary to Congressional intent. By raising the threshold for an impairment to qualify as a disability, these court decisions have deprived individuals of the discrimination protections Congress intended to provide.

The ADA Amendments Act would remedy this problem and restore workplace protections to every American with a disability. The bill leaves the ADA?s familiar disability definition intact, but takes several specific steps to direct courts toward a more generous meaning and application of the definition. The legislation would make it easier for people with disabilities to be covered by the ADA because it effectively expands the definition of disability to include many more major life activities, as well as a new category of major bodily functions.

?Just like the bi-partisan passage of the original ADA, this bill has been conceived and crafted in a spirit of genuine bipartisanship ? members of both parties coming together to do the right thing for Americans with disabilities,? said Harkin. ?The erosions of rights created by these court cases have created a bizarre catch-22 where people with serious conditions like epilepsy or diabetes could be forced to choose between treating their conditions and forfeiting their protections under the ADA, or not treating their conditions and being protected. That is not what Congress intended when we passed the law, and this bill is the right fix.?

Hatch, who played a critical role in the development and passage of the original ADA, said: ?Working with my good friend Tom Harkin, who has been a tireless advocate on behalf of the disabled, we were able to craft a strong bipartisan bill, which is a landmark piece of legislation that will ensure the disabled share in the American dream.

?This is a monumental bill that people from across the political spectrum can wholeheartedly endorse.? Hatch added. ?It strikes an appropriate balance in broadening and safeguarding ADA protections for our disabled fellow Americans without introducing provisions that courts could once again misconstrue. It further safeguards institutions of higher learning from being forced to compromise academic standards.?

Full post as published by Special Education Law Blog on August 04, 2008 (boomark / email).