Keeping Up with the Americans With Disabilities Act

by Cindy Powell

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is the most comprehensive civil rights law protecting people with disabilities. On July 26, 1990 the ADA passed both Houses of Congress overwhelmingly: Senate, 91-6 and House, 377-28. Now, 18 years later, many people remain unfamiliar with The ADA.

Prior to the passage of the ADA, several civil rights laws provided limited protection for people with disabilities.

1968: Architectural Barriers Act was the first federal law addressing civil rights for people with disabilities. This law requires that buildings constructed by the federal government or with federal funding be accessible to people with disabilities. This law also resulted in the first set of standards for the removal of architectural barriers: The Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS).

1973: Rehabilitation Act was the first federal law to prohibit discrimination against people with disabilities. This law requires that federally funded programs be accessible to people with disabilities and that federal employers provide reasonable accommodations for their employees with disabilities. Much of the terminology in the Rehabilitation Act was used in the ADA.

1975: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) established the rights of students with disabilities to a free, appropriate public education in the most integrated setting possible. This law mandated that parents and schools work together to design individualized education plans (IEPs) for students with disabilities.

1986: Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA) was passed to ensure access to air travel by people with disabilities. The ACAA was passed in response to a Supreme Court decision that found that the Rehabilitation Act did not apply to air travel.

The ADA prohibits discrimination in:

* Title I: Employment
* Title II: State and local government
* Title III: Privately owned businesses
* Title IV: Telecommunications
* Title V: Miscellaneous Provisions

Since the ADA’s passage in 1990, people with disabilities have gained access to a wider variety of services, programs and activities across America . A 1996 poll of 1,330 individuals from 48 states conducted by the United Cerebral Palsy Association found that:

· 96 percent of the respondents said that the ADA has made a difference in the lives of people with disabilities;

· 81 percent said that the ADA had made a difference in their own lives;

· 57 percent stated the ADA has resulted in better access to buildings; and

· 46 percent reported greater inclusion of people with disabilities in the community.

However, 75 percent of respondents identified employment as the area where they have observed the least change. Over a decade later, in 2007, the employment rate of people with disabilities is approximately 30%, compared to 75-80% for people without disabilities. Title I, the employment section of the Americans Disability Act (ADA), will be featured in the next issue of Southside Business News.



Cindy has served people with disabilities and interpreted for the Deaf since February 1975. Cindy’s background includes the continuum from infants who are “at risk” for developmental delays to elderly persons with severe disabilities, in Colorado and Montana . Cindy has also instructed specialized sign language courses since 1979. For more Americans with Disabilities Act ( ADA ) information, please visit http://www.adainformation.org/.