The Department of Justice removed 11 rules for US-based companies to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The ADA was signed into law on July 26, 1990. It helps ensure that disabled Americans have access to the same opportunities as nondisabled Americans.
Among the rules removed were ones that addressed COVID-19, masking, and accessibility. The ADA.gov website has already been updated to reflect the removal of the regulations. Several pages were removed from the ADA’s archive website, including one explaining how retail companies must have accessible features and another on customer service procedures for hotel guests with disabilities.
The Justice Department removed five of seven questions from a webpage titled “COVID-19 and the Americans with Disabilities Act” that was available earlier this month. The removed sections contain questions concerning whether the Justice Department grants exemptions for mask requirements and tools to assist employers in explaining an employee with a disability’s rights during the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Justice Department described the guidelines as “unnecessary and outdated” in a press release. “Avoiding confusion and reducing the time spent understanding compliance may allow businesses to deliver price relief to consumers”, it stated. The Justice Department said it will spotlight tax breaks that will assist companies in covering the costs of making accessibility modifications for customers and employees.
The government cited an executive order from January 20, 2025 as the cause for eliminating the ADA guidelines. In his executive order, Donald Trump indirectly blamed government regulation for inflation. According to the White House, the Biden administration “made necessary goods and services scarce through a crushing regulatory burden and radical policies designed to weaken American production.” The White House stated in the executive order that the Biden administration’s unprecedented regulatory oppression had cost the average American household over $50,000.
At the time, the directive did not specify which rules the Trump administration would eliminate, but it did ask agencies to assess business restrictions. “Putting money back into the pockets of business owners helps everyone by allowing those businesses to pass on cost savings to consumers and bolster the economy,” said acting US Assistant Attorney General Mac Warner in a statement.
This is not the first time Republicans have attempted to weaken the ADA in order to make things easier for businesses. In 2017, Republicans in Congress presented legislation that would have made it more difficult for Americans with disabilities to file lawsuits against companies and employers. The bill, which was called the ADA Education and Reform Act of 2017, would have chipped away at the the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
The Americans with Disabilities Act was a landmark piece of legislation. The removal of disability-related rules from government websites is a major step backward. Disabled Americans have never stopped fighting for our rights, because we can’t.
Sources:
Aratani, Lauren. “Justice Department Removes Disability Guidelines for US Businesses.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 19 Mar. 2025, http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/19/justice-department-disability-business-guidelines.
Roppolo, Michael. “July Is Disability Pride Month. Here’s What You Should Know.” CBS News, CBS Interactive, 22 July 2024, http://www.cbsnews.com/news/july-disability-pride-month-what-to-know/.
Schultz, Eliza, et al. “The Quiet Attack on the Ada Making Its Way through Congress.” Center for American Progress, Center for American Progress, 22 Sept. 2017, http://www.americanprogress.org/article/quiet-attack-ada-making-way-congress/.