When Texas, and the attorneys general of 16 other states, sued the United States in September 2024 regarding the newest set of regulations issued by the federal government implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Joe Biden was President. If he was re-elected, Americans with disabilities would have expected a vigorous defense of the regulation.
Texas v. Becerra, however, is a case that challenges not only the new 504 Regulations, but the constitutionality of Section 504, that is, the statute, itself.
The suit was brought by Texas because the Biden Administration included “gender dysphoria” in the definition of disability under Section 504. The complaint contends that the Biden Administration’s inclusion of gender dysphoria in the new definition was an overreach by the executive branch of government and the new rules should be set aside. But then, somewhat bizarrely, the complaint attacks the 52-year-old law itself.
Seventeen states have attacked Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act as “…coercive, untethered to the federal interest in disability, and unfairly retroactive.” These states not only want the regulation declared invalid, they also want the law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability by recipients of federal funds declared unconstitutional. The case is continuing to develop.
Section 504 provides that recipients of federal funds (schools, local governments, libraries, hospitals, etc.) can’t discriminate on the basis of disability and must make reasonable accommodation to the known disabilities of qualified individuals.
Former Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra is the defendant in the case, but he has been replaced by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Famous for his anti-vaccine efforts, Kennedy has also pledged to support the current administration’s position on transgender care and rights. That is, he’ll oppose both. It is unlikely that he will speak out to save Section 504 despite his family’s long history of support for people with disabilities.
Congressional conservatives have a history of discriminating against the LGBTQ community in connection with laws related to disability. When the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was being drafted, North Carolina Senator Jesse Helms—famous for his opposition to civil rights statutes—made sure the definition of disability would exclude anything do to with homosexuality or gender identity-related disorders. At the time, AIDS was ravaging the nation and conservatives—who unsuccessfully tried to amend the ADA to exclude those with HIV or AIDS from the anti-discrimination requirements of the ADA—triumphed in part because gay people did not consider themselves to be people with disabilities and didn’t oppose the Helms amendment.
Decades later, discrimination abounds. The President recently blamed the tragic helicopter/plane crash at Washington National Airport on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) without any evidence. During a news conference immediately after the tragedy, he actually read from an FAA document (published during his last term and unchanged by Biden’s FAA) encouraging qualified people with disabilities to apply for jobs, as if it proved that the agency’s diversity efforts caused the crash.
Is the Trump Administration likely to help people with disabilities or the 17 states suing the government to take away 50 plus years of disability rights? I think we all have an opinion.
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.