The current administration’s declarations against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have inspired big business to fight against federal regulations aimed at protecting airline passengers who use wheelchairs from discrimination and damage to their mobility equipment.
Published in December 2024, the new regulations require airlines to respect the autonomy, independence, and privacy of their passengers with disabilities. Airlines must publish the dimensions of cargo doors so wheelchair users can make informed decisions about wheelchair stowage. Furthermore, mandates include annual hands-on training for personnel who engage with customers; the provision of boarding, deplaning, and connection assistance; and a rebuttable presumption that if a wheelchair is stowed in the baggage compartment and is returned damaged, the airline has violated the Air Carrier Access Act. In that case, airlines are required to pay for damage to wheelchairs and compensate wheelchair users for loss and delay. And, airlines are required to inform passengers with disabilities of their travel rights.
Now, five major airlines and their lobbying association, Airlines for America, have sued the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to have its newest set of Air Carrier Access Act regulations declared invalid. The first named plaintiff in the case is Airlines for America. The five other plaintiffs include Delta, American, United, JetBlue and Southwest, but the case will be referred to as Airlines for America v. Duffy (the new Secretary of Transportation) so that the large airlines can mask their advocacy against disability rights.
Prior to his confirmation, USDOT Secretary Sean Duffy pledged to support the rights of airline passengers with disabilities, but not necessarily the new regulation. I expect that dozens of disability organizations will want to file amicus briefs—that is, if the Secretary and current administration decide to defend the new regulation. Theoretically, at least so far, the administration could renounce the regulation and invalidate it, giving in to the airlines.
The Reagan Administration did exactly that for public transit shortly after he was elected. President Carter was requiring all new mass transit buses to be accessible pursuant to USDOT’s 1979 Section 504 regulation. Reagan pulled the accessibility requirement, replacing it with a rule that required transit operators to make “special efforts” for elderly and disabled passengers. This prompted litigation, advocacy, and disability community organizing, culminating in 1990 with the Americans with Disabilities Act mass transit accessibility requirements.
Even if the Secretary is supportive of our community, we are up against huge corporations, professional lobbyists, and an administration that has not been supportive of disability rights or civil rights, in general.
Whether motivated by greed, intolerance, misunderstanding, or bigotry, attacks on disability rights have come early and often during the first months of the new administration, coupled with devastating budget and staff cuts. The community’s advocacy must force a turnaround, much like it did after the Reagan Administration.
Opinions expressed are solely those of the writer(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Able News at The Viscardi Center and/or The Viscardi Center.