[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 772 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 772
Recognizing the importance of independent living and economic self-
sufficiency for individuals with disabilities made possible by the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and calling for further action
to strengthen and expand opportunities for individuals with
disabilities to participate in work and community life.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 25, 2024
Mr. Casey (for himself, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Lujan, Mr. Markey, Mr. Padilla,
Mr. Reed, Mr. Whitehouse, Ms. Smith, Mr. Welch, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr.
Hickenlooper, Mr. Fetterman, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Wyden,
Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Booker, Ms. Butler, Ms. Cantwell, Mr. Coons, Ms.
Duckworth, Mr. Durbin, Mrs. Gillibrand, Ms. Hassan, Mr. King, Mr.
Murphy, Mrs. Murray, Mr. Sanders, Mr. Warnock, Ms. Warren, Mr. Merkley,
Ms. Klobuchar, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Peters, Mr. Brown, and Mr. Bennet)
submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee
on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Recognizing the importance of independent living and economic self-
sufficiency for individuals with disabilities made possible by the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and calling for further action
to strengthen and expand opportunities for individuals with
disabilities to participate in work and community life.
Whereas, in enacting the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
12101 et seq.), Congress recognized that ``historically, society has
tended to isolate and segregate individuals with disabilities, and,
despite some improvements, such forms of discrimination against
individuals with disabilities continue to be a serious and pervasive
social problem'';
Whereas the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 recognizes the rights of
individuals with disabilities to fully participate in their communities
through independent living, equality of opportunity, and economic self-
sufficiency;
Whereas, 34 years after the date of the enactment of the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 and 25 years after the date of the decision of
the Supreme Court of the United States in Olmstead v. L.C., 527 U.S. 581
(1999), individuals with disabilities are faced with systemic ableism in
the labor market, are pushed into poverty by lower rates of employment,
and have higher costs of living associated with their disabilities;
Whereas, 34 years after the date of the enactment of the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990--
(1) nearly a quarter of the population of individuals with disabilities
live below the poverty line;
(2) individuals with disabilities continue to face high rates of
unemployment and barriers to accessible workplaces;
(3) women with disabilities continue to regularly face barriers to
reproductive healthcare, including inaccessible and inequitable services;
(4) some telecommunication, electronic, and information technologies
continue to be developed without the goal of making those technologies
fully accessible for all individuals of the United States; and
(5) many businesses, public and private organizations, transportation
systems, and services remain inaccessible to many individuals with
disabilities;
Whereas the continuation of segregated institutional settings has hindered the
inclusion of individuals with disabilities in communities, schools, and
workplaces, undermining the promise of the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990;
Whereas individuals with disabilities, especially those of color, have been
disparately impacted by the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic,
and the number of individuals with disabilities has increased due to
Long COVID;
Whereas individuals with disabilities are more at risk for loss of life, loss of
independence, or violation of civil rights than the general population
during disaster, response, and recovery;
Whereas individuals of color with disabilities experience disproportionately
greater barriers to high quality and accessible healthcare, education,
housing, and competitive integrated employment opportunities, infringing
on their right to fully participate in their communities under the
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990;
Whereas the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 represents the floor, and
not the ceiling, of efforts needed to dismantle barriers to full
participation, equal opportunity, independent living, and economic self-
sufficiency; and
Whereas fulfilling the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990
requires individuals, families, communities, and government to work
together to guarantee that individuals with disabilities have the
opportunity to thrive in their communities and in their lives: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) recognizes the importance of independent living, equal
opportunity, full participation, and economic self-sufficiency
for individuals with disabilities made possible by the
enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42
U.S.C. 12101 et seq.);
(2) encourages the people of the United States to celebrate
the advancement of inclusion and equality of opportunity made
possible by the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990;
(3) pledges to continue to work on a bipartisan basis to
identify and address the remaining barriers that undermine the
national goals of equality of opportunity, independent living,
economic self-sufficiency, and full participation for
individuals with disabilities, including by focusing on
individuals with disabilities who remain segregated in
institutions;
(4) pledges to work with States to improve access to home-
and community-based services for individuals with disabilities,
with a focus on increasing access to employment;
(5) calls on the Department of Labor to develop policies
and practices and to provide technical assistance that enables
individuals with disabilities to become economically self-
sufficient;
(6) calls on the Office of Disability Employment Policy of
the Department of Labor to coordinate with employers and all
levels of government to develop and influence policies and
practices that increase the number and quality of employment
opportunities for individuals with disabilities;
(7) calls on the Federal Communications Commission to
provide information, resources, and technical assistance to
enable individuals with disabilities to have full and equitable
access to communications and telecommunications services and
technologies;
(8) calls on the Department of Health and Human Services to
provide information, resources, and technical assistance
related to home- and community-based services and to enable
individuals with disabilities to live independently;
(9) calls on the Department of Housing and Urban
Development to provide accessible and inclusive homes and
communities that increase the options available for accessible,
inclusive, and equitable housing for individuals with
disabilities;
(10) calls on the Department of Transportation to create
accessible transit and airports and increase the hiring,
promotion, and retention of individuals with disabilities in
the transportation workforce; and
(11) calls on the Federal Emergency Management Agency to
continue to implement a whole community approach and to
increase inclusivity and accessibility in emergency
preparedness.
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