[NFB-Idaho] Fwd: Press Release on DoD Case Filing

[Colleen McFadden]

Begin forwarded message:

*From:* Barbara Badger <barbara.badger60 at gmail.com>
*Date:* February 9, 2026 at 5:22:23 PM MST
*To:* Barbara Badger <barbara.badger60 at gmail.com>
*Subject:* *Press Release on DoD Case Filing*


National Federation of the Blind and Blind Entrepreneurs File Federal
Lawsuit Challenging Army-Wide Waiver of Randolph-Sheppard Act

*Washington, DC (January 30, 2026)*: The National Federation of the Blind,
the National Association of Blind Merchants, and several blind
entrepreneurs today filed a federal lawsuit challenging a decision by the
United States Department of Education that purports to eliminate the
Randolph-Sheppard Act priority for blind vendors to operate dining
facilities on United States Army installations nationwide.

The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the District
of Maryland,
<https://nfb.org/sites/nfb.org/files/2026-01/Taylor%20et%20al.%20v.%20Department%20of%20Education%20et%20al.%20(ACE).pdf>
asks
the court to set aside a December 23, 2025, action by the Secretary of
Education approving what the Department described as a “limitation” on the
Randolph-Sheppard Act as applied to Army dining facility contracts.
Plaintiffs contend that the decision exceeds the Secretary’s statutory
authority, violates required procedures, and is arbitrary and capricious.

The Randolph-Sheppard Act, passed in 1936 and strengthened by Congress in
1974, requires federal agencies to give priority to blind vendors in the
operation of vending facilities, including cafeterias, on federal property.
For more than thirty years, blind vendors have successfully operated Army
dining facilities across the country, often winning awards from the
military itself.

"The Randolph-Sheppard Act does not authorize the Secretary of Education to
waive the law for an entire federal agency," said Mark Riccobono, President
of the National Federation of the Blind. "Congress created and later
enhanced this program to expand economic opportunity for blind
entrepreneurs. The Department of Education cannot erase the work of
America’s lawmakers through a sweeping administrative finding based on
anecdote, speculation, or policy disagreement, and should not exclude blind
people from shaping the future direction of the program. The National
Federation of the Blind stands with the blind business owners who are
providing outstanding and award-winning service to members of our nation’s
armed forces every day, and we are determined to reverse this unlawful,
unwarranted, and unjust action."

The Department of Education’s action marks the first time the Secretary has
approved any limitation under the Randolph-Sheppard Act and the first time
such a limitation has been applied on a nationwide, categorical basis. The
lawsuit says that the Act authorizes only narrowly tailored limitations on
the placement or operation of specific facilities, not a wholesale
elimination of the priority established by Congress.

In announcing the Army-wide waiver, the Department cited generalized claims
regarding cost, delay, and performance. However, the Department did not
publish any supporting documentation for those claims, despite an express
statutory requirement to do so. According to the lawsuit, the decision
rests on vague and anecdotal assertions that are contradicted by decades of
successful performance by blind vendors operating Army dining facilities.

If allowed to stand, the Department’s action would jeopardize the
livelihoods of blind vendors currently serving on Army installations,
displace hundreds of employees, and undermine state programs that rely on
revenue generated through Randolph-Sheppard contracts to support blind
entrepreneurs nationwide.

The lawsuit follows a previously issued statement by the National
Federation of the Blind
<https://nfb.org/about-us/press-room/statement-federal-notice-limiting-randolph-sheppard-priority-department-army>
expressing
grave concern about the Department of Education’s decision and its
implications for blind vendors and the integrity of the Randolph-Sheppard
program. The plaintiffs are represented by the Baltimore law firm Brown,
Goldstein & Levy.