[Ohio-Talk] how would ADA be weakened by covid19 legislation?

Tue Aug 4 00:31:32 UTC 2020

Good evening!  Below is the actual text of the relevant sections of the
Senat Bill:  The way I interpret this is it would work to weaken the
protections of the ADA by placing another layer of excuses a business or
government entity could use to not comply with the law.  Rather than make a
workplace safe to work in for workers with disabilities to be in during
COVID-19, these provisions would seem to ensure that businesses and
government entities could turn the ADA against us by saying it isn't safe
because of COVID-19 to grant reasonable modifications/accommodations under
the ADA

I hope this helps, and here it is:

Todd Elzye

"SEC. 181. LIMITATION ON VIOLATIONS UNDER SPECIFIC LAWS.

(a) In General.—

(1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term “covered Federal employment
law” means any of the following:

(A) The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (29 U.S.C. 651
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=29&section=651> et seq.)
(including any standard included in a State plan approved under section 18
of such Act (29 U.S.C. 667
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=29&section=667>)).

(B) The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 201
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=29&section=201> et seq.).

(C) The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (29 U.S.C. 621
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=29&section=621> et seq.).

(D) The Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (29 U.S.C. 2101
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=29&section=2101> et
seq.).

(E) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=2000e> et
seq.).

(F) Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (42
U.S.C. 2000ff
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=2000ff> et
seq.).

(G) Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12111
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=12111> et
seq.).

(2) LIMITATION.—Notwithstanding any provision of a covered Federal
employment law, in any action, proceeding, or investigation resulting from
or related to an actual, alleged, feared, or potential for exposure to
coronavirus, or a change in working conditions caused by a law, rule,
declaration, or order related to coronavirus, an employer shall not be
subject to any enforcement proceeding or liability under any provision of a
covered Federal employment law if the employer—

(A) was relying on and generally following applicable government standards
and guidance;

(B) knew of the obligation under the relevant provision; and

(C) attempted to satisfy any such obligation by—

(i) exploring options to comply with such obligations and with the
applicable government standards and guidance (such as through the use of
virtual training or remote communication strategies);

(ii) implementing interim alternative protections or procedures; or

(iii) following guidance issued by the relevant agency with jurisdiction
with respect to any exemptions from such obligation.

(b) Public Accommodation Laws.—

(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection—

(A) the term “auxiliary aids and services” has the meaning given the term
in section 4 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12103
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=12103>);

(B) the term “covered public accommodation law” means—

(i) title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
12181 <http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=12181> et
seq.); or

(ii) title II of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=2000a> et
seq.);

(C) the term “place of public accommodation” means—

(i) a place of public accommodation, as defined in section 201 of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=2000a>); or

(ii) a public accommodation, as defined in section 301 of the Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12181
<http://uscode.house.gov/quicksearch/get.plx?title=42&section=12181>); and

(D) the term “public health emergency period” means a period designated a
public health emergency period by a Federal, State, or local government
authority.

(2) ACTIONS AND MEASURES DURING A PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.—

(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law or regulation,
during any public health emergency period, no person who owns, leases (or
leases to), or operates a place of public accommodation shall be liable
under, or found in violation of, any covered public accommodation law for
any action or measure taken regarding coronavirus and that place of public
accommodation, if such person—

(i) has determined that the significant risk of substantial harm to public
health or the health of employees cannot be reduced or eliminated by
reasonably modifying policies, practices, or procedures, or the provision
of an auxiliary aid or service; or

(ii) has offered such a reasonable modification or auxiliary aid or service
but such offer has been rejected by the individual protected by the covered
law.

(B) REQUIRED WAIVER PROHIBITED.—For purposes of this subsection, no person
who owns, leases (or leases to), or operates a place of public
accommodation shall be required to waive any measure, requirement, or
recommendation that has been adopted in accordance with a requirement or
recommendation issued by the Federal Government or any State or local
government with regard to coronavirus, in order to offer such a reasonable
modification or auxiliary aids and services."

On Mon, Aug 3, 2020 at 7:58 PM Cheryl Fischer via Ohio-Talk <
ohio-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:

> If I'm understanding you correctly, we should push for employees with
> disabilities who lose their jobs and potential employees with disabilities
> who can't find work to receive an additional $600 per week from the Federal
> Government. Lol
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Ohio-Talk <ohio-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Eric Duffy
> via Ohio-Talk
> Sent: Monday, August 3, 2020 6:17 PM
> To: NFB of Ohio Announcement and Discussion List <ohio-talk at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Eric Duffy <peduffy63 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [Ohio-Talk] how would ADA be weakened by covid19 legislation?
>
> In the proposed legislation employers would be exempt from title 1 until
> 2023 or 2024. Title three also comes into play, but without doing more
> research, that’s all I can tell you right now.
>
> Eric
>
> > On Aug 3, 2020, at 7:25 PM, Cheryl Fischer via Ohio-Talk <
> ohio-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> >
> > Does anyone know how the rights of disabled people would be harmed by
> > current proposed legislation? The legislative alert just said that the
> > ADA would be impacted.
> >
> >
> >
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