NCD Bulletin
A Monthly Publication of the National Council on Disability (NCD)

Marca Bristo, Chairperson
May 1999

The Bulletin, which is free of charge, and at NCD’s award-winning Web site (http://www.ncd.gov), brings you the latest issues and news affecting people with disabilities. To subscribe or unsubscribe to the NCD listserv, send a blank e-mail to add-bulletin@list.ncd.gov or remove-bulletin@list.ncd.gov. No need to write anything in the subject line or body. Please send your editorial comments to Bulletin editor Mark S. Quigley (mquigley@ncd.gov).

Disability Civil Rights Update

Senators John Ashcroft (R-MO) and Bill Frist (R-TN) successfully offered an amendment to the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) that was attached to the juvenile justice bill (S. 254) when it passed the Senate in May. If it becomes law, this amendment would allow schools to cease all educational services to a student with a disability who takes a gun or firearm to school or to a school function, thereby undoing the discipline provisions in the 1997 reauthorization of IDEA. The right to a free and appropriate education would be severely restricted. Before S. 254 was sent to the House for action, Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and others successfully attached an amendment that would ensure that students who are removed for violent behavior receive services to address that behavior.

NCD representatives met with Congressman William O. Lipinski (D-IL), ranking member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation, to discuss NCD's study, Enforcing the Civil Rights of Air Travelers with Disabilities. A similar meeting was held with the legislative assistant to Congressman John J. Duncan, Jr. (R-TN), chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation. Currently, S. 82 and H.R. 1000 are scheduled for floor action on June 17 and June 14, respectively. Both versions of the bill contain some of the changes to the Air Carrier Access Act recommended by NCD. Congress hopes to complete a conference on this legislation before the August recess.

On May 24, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Cleveland v. Policy Management Systems Corp. (No. 97-1008) stating that an employee with a disability who has applied for Social Security Disability Insurance benefits is not thereby precluded from being a "qualified individual" under the Americans with Disabilities Act and therefore can sue for job discrimination. In delivering the Court's opinion, Justice Steven Breyer wrote that "there are too many situations in which a Social Security benefits claim and an ADA claim can comfortably exist side by side."

On May 12, more than 4,000 people rallied on Capitol Hill and the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court to show their support for disability rights and opposition to Olmstead v. L. C. threat to community living. The rally, which was organized by ADAPT and supported by more than 200 disability organizations, featured speakers such as former attorney general Richard Thornburgh and Senator Tom Harkin. The Olmstead decision and several others are expected in June.

Legislative Update

The Regulatory Improvement Act of 1999 (S. 746), which requires a cost-benefit analysis for all new federal regulations costing more than $500 million, was passed on May 20 by the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs. If S.746 had been in effect when the regulations to implement ADA were developed, the Department of Justice and other agencies would have had to conduct a prescriptive cost-benefit analysis. They would have had to identify a single regulatory option as the most cost-effective (for employers and businesses), that is, as showing the greatest "benefits." Currently, S. 746 contains no exemption for civil rights laws as did the Unfunded Mandates Relief Act of 1995.

According to published reports, the U.S. Senate reached agreement on major elements of the Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999, but a final vote was postponed until the Senate returns from its Memorial Day recess. The bill would allow people with disabilities to return to work without losing their Medicare or Medicaid health insurance benefits. The House version of this bill awaits action from the Committee on Ways and Means, where members must decide how to pay for the bill's provisions.

Over-the-Road Bus Update

On April 1, the Department of Transportation (DOT) published a notice of request for comments on its final rule on accessibility of over-the-road buses that requires bus companies to document lack of service to people with disabilities. The comment period ended on June 1. The final rule has four different record-keeping and reporting requirements. The first deals with 48-hour advance notice and compensation. The second has to do with equivalent service and compensation. The third deals with reporting information on ridership on accessible fixed-route buses. The fourth has to do with reporting information on the purchase and lease of accessible and inaccessible new and used buses. The purpose of the information collection requirements is to provide data that DOT can use in its regulatory review and to assist DOT in its oversight of compliance by bus companies. NCD's comments can be found on its award-winning Web site (http://www.ncd.gov).

Youth Leadership Conference Update

An important goal of the upcoming National Leadership Conference for Youth with Disabilities is to encourage interaction between future young leaders and adults with disabilities who are willing to serve as mentors. We need many more mentors who are willing to share their experience and support these young participants either during or after the conference or both. The conference will take place June 22-26 at the Hilton Alexandria Mark Center. If you are a person with a disability and are interested in mentoring a future leader, please contact Joann Baltimore, CESSI, Inc., at joannb@cessi.net or 703-448-6155 to request a mentor information and interest survey packet. After you complete the forms and return them to Joann, you will be contacted to discuss mentoring opportunities. Thanks for taking this chance to make a difference.