H.R. 620: Reforming Disabled Americans’ Civil Rights Backwards
October 17, 2018 | Cecilia S. Grugan, 2018 AAPD Summer Intern
For 28 years now, disabled Americans have been flourishing in a garden of opportunity unlike any era preceding the 21st Century. The newly founded civil rights today were granted by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). Such an act outlaws discrimination in many facets of life including employment, transportation, education, and all else that is open to the public. It was not until recent years that such legislation became controversial. Select legislative powerhouses have since been considering a new amendment.
Since 2013, the provisions of the law have led to the triple amount of lawsuits generated primarily by anti-business lawyers. Due to these results, H.R. 620, the ADA Education and Reform Act is an effort to amend a requirement that mandates a “notice and cure” period by any person claiming a discriminatory experience. It is imperative to note that no such other civil rights legislation has such a provision.
Supporters say the bill will put the brakes on the lawsuits that benefit lawyers more than disabled Americans. In opposition to the bill, disabled Americans will be robbed of remedies provided by ADA violations. Representative Jim Langevin, the first disabled American with quadripalegia elected to Congress, stated that “This bill reverses decades of progress by undercutting our ability to assert our rights under the law through the use of a ‘notice and cure’ provision.” Nevertheless, the United States House of Representatives’ final vote included 225 in favor, 192 against, and 13 abstentions. This voting outcome allowed for the bill to pass the House. However, the bill still needs to slide through the Senate and be signed by the President before it has a chance to become adopted.
If such a bill does pass, the law will require disabled Americans to provide a written notice about an ADA violation to the offending entity and wait up to 60 days before the entity responds. Not only that, but after the entity responds, the entity has an additional 120 days to make meaningful progress toward fixing the discriminatory claim. With these timeframes, entities essentially can respond over a period of six months. These strenuous results for the disabled American community symbolize the coined phrase by William E. Gladstone, “Justice delayed is justice denied.” Seek out justice and call your Senators!
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Cecilia Grugan is a 2018 AAPD Summer Intern. She interned with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
