Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 was signed into law to prevent discrimination against and ensure equal opportunity for people with disabilities. The law was amended in 2008 to address legal questions which arose regarding who was covered under the Act.
The ADA is divided into sections that address equal opportunity in employment, public services, public accommodations, services operated by private entities, communications devices and miscellaneous provisions regarding construction, retaliation and coercion, attorney’s fees, federal wilderness areas, illegal use of drugs and other issues.
In June 2013, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission released four revised documents in its Disability Discrimination: The Question and Answer Series on protections against disability discrimination in employment for people with cancer, diabetes, epilepsy and intellectual disabilities.
FAAST, Inc., in partnership with the Advocacy Center for Persons with Disabilities, Inc. and through support from the Florida Department of Education, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, has researched and developed a comprehensive Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Site Survey Instrument. The 102-page instrument provides general resource and self-help information to assist ADA site survey teams with conducting site surveys of facilities. It consists of a cover page and disclaimer, a summary, suggestions for an ADA survey toolkit and 28 forms that are specific to various public use areas and elements of facilities.The ADA site survey also includes up-to-date resource information on the ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG) and the Florida Accessibility Code for Building Construction including hyperlinked references in the online forms to applicable ADAAG guidelines and Florida codes.
*The Site Survey Instrument is not a substitute for legal advice.
Resources
ADA.govThis website from the Civil Rights Division of the United States Department of Justice provides information and technical assistance on the Americans with Disabilities Act including publications, videos and who to contact with questions.
The ADA National Network Disability Law Handbook (2013) (pdf version)
The ADA National Network describes its Disability Law Handbook with the following disclaimer on the Web page above: "This handbook is a broad overview of rights and obligations under federal disability laws. Individual state laws may impose more stringent obligations. This handbook is intended to inform rather than to advise and the information provided is of a general nature. You should consult an attorney for advice about your particular situation."
Disability Discrimination
This web page from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission addresses employment discrimination against persons with disabilities. In June 2013, the Commission revised four documents in its Questions and Answers Series on protections for people with cancer, diabetes, epilepsy and intellectual disabilities: