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

Q6. Does the Amendments Act address the "major life activities" referred to in the Section 504 and Title II regulations?

A: Yes. The Amendments Act contains two nonexhaustive lists of major life activities. The first list expands the examples set forth in the ADA regulation at 28 C.F.R. § 35.104, and the second list provides examples of "major bodily functions" that are now considered major life activities under the law. The list of major life activities in the ADA now includes, but is not limited to:

• caring for oneself

• performing manual tasks

• seeing

• hearing

• eating

• sleeping

• walking

• standing

• lifting

• bending

• speaking

• breathing

• learning

• reading

• concentrating

• thinking

• communicating

• working ⁹

The list of major bodily functions that are now considered major life activities includes, but is not limited to: functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, and digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, endocrine, and reproductive functions. See Amendments Act § 4(a) (codified as amended at 42 U.S.C. § 12102).¹⁰

The examples of major life activities in the Section 504 regulatory provisions, at 34 C.F.R. § 104.3(j)(2)(ii), predate the Amendments Act, and are not exhaustive. Because the definition of disability in the ADA applies to Section 504, all the examples of major life activities listed in the Amendments Act also constitute major life activities under Section 504.