1. ADA, 504, IDEA ADA Coverage Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

2. ADA, 504 and IDEA • Why does a Rehabilitation Counselor need to understand the ADA? • What level of knowledge? • CR text Chapter 16 • Does the ADA supersede 504? • How do the civil rights protections in IDEA overlap with ADA? • How much should a RC know? Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

3. Defining disability under ADA • Congress chose a 3 pronged approach: • Individual must have physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity • have a record of such impairment, or • Be regarded as having such an impairment. Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

4. Ongoing shaping of law by courts • E.G., “Substantial limitations” • Supreme Court has ruled that condition must be evaluated in its “mitigated state” i.e., with medication, eyeglasses, etc. • “most integrated setting appropriate” • Olmstead v. L.C. decision Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

5. ADA Coverage • Employment (Title I) • Includes private and public employers • Who employ 15 or more employees • Defines disability as “qualified person with a disability” • Person must be able to perform “essential functions of the job with or without reasonable accommodations.” • Reasonable means no “undue hardship.” Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

6. ADA Coverage • Title II – Government services, programs • Required to make programs accessible as a whole when viewed in their entirety. • E.G., a court house does not need to make every courtroom accessible as long as it makes one accessible. Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

7. ADA Coverage • Public Schools and higher education • Covered under Title II for programs, buildings, entrance requirements, testing, academic standards • Courts have given great deference to educational institutions in defining their programs and setting entrance standards • IDEA (Ind. W. Disab. Education Act) also covers educational needs Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

8. ADA Coverage • Public accommodations (private sector) • Title III • 12 categories: lodging, restaurants, entertainment, transportation terminals, sports venues, etc. • Affirmative duty to remove architectural barriers when they are “readily achievable” Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

9. Title IV: Telecommunications • Telephone carriers must provide relay services • Title V: Miscellaneous • Exclusions: behavior or conditions related to sex and/or crimes • Person currently “engaging in illegal use of drugs” is not covered • Alcoholism may be a disability, but person not protected If unacceptable behavior attributed to alcohol. Cathy Chambless, Utah State University

10. A word about ADA enforcement • Title I claims – through administrative agency • State employment anti-discrimination agency • Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission • Titles II–V – through U.S. Dept of Justice • Individual advocacy is key Cathy Chambless, Utah State University