• What is the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990?
• It is a national law that protects individuals from discrimination based on their disability.
• It differs from Section 504 as it extends protection to the following sectors:
• Private sector employment
• Transportation
• State and local government activities and programs
• Privately operated business that are open to the public
• Telecommunications
• Who Is Protected from Discrimination? Individuals with Disabilities defined as:
• Persons with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.
• A person who has a record of such an impairment.
• People who are regarded as having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities are also covered.
• Major life activities include: caring for one's self, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, working, performing manual tasks, and learning.
• The law is composed of five titles that prohibit discrimination against disabled persons
• Title I prohibits employers, including cities and towns, from discriminating against qualified job applicants and workers who are or who become disabled. The law covers all aspects of employment including the application process and hiring, training, compensation, advancement, and any other employment term, condition, or privilege.
• Title II prohibits state and local governments from discriminating against disabled persons in their programs and activities. Title II also sets forth the applicable structural accessibility requirements for public entities.
• Title III prohibits private enterprises who provide public accommodations and services (e.g., hotels, restaurants, and transit systems) from denying goods, services and programs to people based on their disabilities. Title III also sets forth the applicable structural accessibility requirements for private entities.
• Title IV makes available telecommunications devices and services for the hearing and speech impaired. These regulations spell out certain mandatory minimum standards telephone companies must maintain to be in compliance with the ADA.
• Title V includes some miscellaneous provisions that relate to the construction and application of the ADA, including alternative dispute resolution.

Key Legislation
| IDEA | Section 504 | ADA | Section 508

Related Assistive Devices
| Low Vision and Blindness | Deafness and Hard of Hearing | Physical Disabilities and Hardware Alternatives |