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In This Issue
ADAAA Proposed Regulations Available for Comment
Dear Friends,
Proposed regulations for the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 are now available for public comment.
October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, the perfect time to tell the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) your views on the EEOC proposed regulations for the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA), published on September 23. Comments are due on November 23. It is important that the EEOC hear from the disability community in order to ensure that the final regulations support the original intent of the ADA.
The EEOC and the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice (DOJ) will also hold a series of Town Hall Listening Sessions in four different cities in the coming weeks to obtain input from the public, including the business/employer communities and the disability community, on the proposed regulations. See below for more information.
Congress enacted the ADAAA on September 25, 2008, and it went into effect on January 1, 2009. This law made a number of changes to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) definition of disability. The disability community strongly supported the new law, which was needed to correct significant problems caused by several unfavorable Supreme Court ADA decisions.
The Act emphasizes that the definition of disability should be construed broadly to cover individuals with disabilities to the maximum extent permitted. The effect of these changes is to make it easier for an individual seeking ADA protection to establish that he or she has a disability within the meaning of the ADA. The Act retains the ADA's basic definition of disability as an impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, a record of such an impairment, or being regarded as having such an impairment. However, it changes the way that these statutory terms should be interpreted.
Information about the proposed regulations is available at http://www.eeoc.gov/ada/amendments_notice.html.
DREDF will submit comments and also expects to circulate suggestions for disability community comments in the coming weeks. Check our website for updates.
Town Hall Listening Sessions
The Town Hall Listening Sessions will be presided over by EEOC Acting Chair, Stuart J. Ishimaru Acting Vice Chair, Christine Griffin, and Commissioner Constance S. Barker; DOJ Deputy Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Samuel Bagenstos; Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Mazen Baswari; and Chief of the Disability Rights Section of the Civil Rights Division, John Wodatch. The forums are an opportunity for these officials to hear directly from stakeholders of all perspectives on the proposed regulations.
Five-minute time slots to address the panel will be available from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 P.M. Some of the slots will be available on an advance registration basis and some on first-come, first-served sign-up basis at the event. Members of the public are also invited to attend and view the proceedings, with space available on a first-come, first-served basis.
As a reasonable accommodation, there will be limited availability to provide public input by telephone. To request this accommodation, you must register in advance.
Individuals representing themselves or organizations are urged to take advantage of this opportunity to provide input on the EEOC's Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.
Here is the schedule of stakeholder meetings:
Monday, October 26, 2009 - Oakland
9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
The California Endowment
Greater Bay Area Regional Office
1111 Broadway, 7th floor
Oakland, CA 94607
For more information, or to register as a speaker please contact:
Linda Li at 415-625-5618 (TTY 415-625-5610) or at Linda.Li@eeoc.gov.Friday, October 30, 2009 - Philadelphia
9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
Liberty Resources
714 Market Street, Suite 100
Philadelphia, PA 19106
For more information, or to register as a speaker, please contact:
Mary M. Tiernan at 215-440-2671 (TTY 215-440-2610) or Mary.Tiernan@eeoc.gov.Tuesday, November 17, 2009 - Chicago
9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
Access Living
115 West Chicago Avenue
Chicago, IL 60654
For more information, or to register as a speaker, please contact:
Rita Coffey at 312-353-7254 (TTY 312-353-2421) or at Rita.Coffey@eeoc.gov.Friday, November 20, 2009 - New Orleans
9:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M.
University of New Orleans
2000 Lakeshore Drive
New Orleans, LA 70148
For more information, or to register as a speaker, please contact:
Maple Thomas at 504-595-2827 (TTY 504-595-2958) or at Maple.Thomas@eeoc.gov.
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