Americans with Disabilities (ADA) Amendments Act of 2008
The ADA Amendments Act was passed unanimously on September 11, 2008 and is expected to be signed in by President Bush on September 25, 2008. According to the Committee on Education and Labor, the ADA Amendments Act:

• "Overturns the erroneous Supreme Court decisions that have eroded the protections for people with disabilities under the ADA, restoring original Congressional intent.
• Rejects strict interpretation of the definition of disability and makes it absolutely clear that the ADA is intended to provide broad coverage to protect anyone who faces discrimination on the basis of disability.
• Strikes a balance between employer and employee interests.
• Prohibits the consideration of mitigating measures such as medication, prosthetics, and assistive technology, in determining whether an individual has a disability.
• Covers people who experience discrimination based on a perception of impairment regardless of whether the individual experiences disability.
• Provides that reasonable accommodations are only required for individuals who can demonstrate they have an impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, or a record of such impairment. Accommodations need not be provided to an individual who is only "regarded as" having an impairment.
• Is supported by a broad coalition of civil rights groups, disability advocates, and employer trade organizations."

For more information, visit the Great Plains ADA Center website.

Summary of the ADA
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. It was signed into law by President George H. W. Bush in July, 1990. The ADA defines a disability as:

• a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of an individual;
• a record of such an impairment; or
• being regarded as having such impairment.

The full text of the ADA is available at www.ada.gov/pubs/ada.htm. In brief, the ADA consists of five sections, called Titles, that address discrimination in the areas of employment (Title I), state and local government (Title II), public accommodations (Title III) and telecommunications (Title IV). Title V addresses miscellaneous provisions.

Information at a glance:
ASL podcast at www.asl.disabilitylawlowdown.com
ADA and interpreters
ADA and tax incentives
Free on-line ADA basics course at www.adabasics.org

Resources
ADA Homepage
www.ada.gov

DBTAC-Great Plains ADA Center
100 Corporate Lake Drive
Columbia, Missouri 65203
(800) 949-4232 (toll-free for Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, Nebraska)
(573) 882-3600 Voice/TTY
E-mail: ada@missouri.edu
www.adaproject.org

Disability Rights Center (DRC)
635 Southwest Harrison Street, Suite 100
Topeka, Kansas 66603
(877) 776-1541 Voice
(785) 273-9661 Voice
(877) 335-3725 TTY
www.drckansas.org

Kansas Commission on Disability Concerns
1000 Southwest Jackson Street, Suite 100
Topeka, Kansas 66612
(800) 295-5235 Voice
(785) 296-1722 Voice
(877) 340-5874 TTY
(785) 296-5044 TTY
www.kcdcinfo.com

Midwest Center on Law and the Deaf
Post Office Box 804297
Chicago, Illinois 60680
(800) 894-3653 Voice
(800) 894-3654 TTY
E-mail: mcld@mcld.org
www.mcld.org