2016-17417: Amendment of Americans With Disabilities Act Title II and Title III Regulations To Implement ADA Amendments Act of 2008

Summary

The Department of Justice (Department) is issuing this final rule to amend its Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations in order to incorporate the statutory changes to the ADA set forth in the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (ADA Amendments Act or the Act), which took effect on January 1, 2009. In response to earlier Supreme Court decisions that significantly narrowed the application of the definition of "disability" under the ADA, Congress enacted the ADA Amendments Act to restore the understanding that the definition of "disability" shall be broadly construed and applied without extensive analysis. Congress intended that the primary object of attention in cases brought under the ADA should be whether covered entities have complied with their statutory obligations not to discriminate based on disability. In this final rule, the Department is adding new sections to its title II and title III ADA regulations to set forth the proper meaning and interpretation of the definition of "disability" and to make related changes required by the ADA Amendments Act in other sections of the regulations.

The agency’s own summary, as published.

What this changes

Amends 2 parts of the Code of Federal Regulations — the standing rules this notice rewrites.

• 28 CFR 35 Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in State and Local Government Services
• 28 CFR 36 Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability by Public Accommodations and in Commercial Facilities