Questions and Answers on the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 for Students with Disabilities Attending Public Elementary and Secondary Schools

Q15: Does the Amendments Act require the Department to revise or create new Section 504 regulations to implement the Amendments Act?

A: No. The Amendments Act does not require the Department to revise its existing Section 504 regulation or to create new regulatory provisions. Although the legislative history of the Amendments Act suggests that some members of Congress believed that a new or revised Section 504 regulation may be appropriate, nothing in the Section 504 statute or current regulation contradicts the Amendments Act.¹⁶ As noted in Q2 above, the Amendments Act includes a conforming amendment to ensure that the definitions of disability under Section 504 and the ADA are interpreted identically. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has stated that it will be working with federal agencies, including the Department, to revise their Section 504 regulations to expressly reflect the changes made by the Amendments Act and to provide guidance on their application. OCR continues to assess whether additional guidance or further publications are needed.