Pelosi: 'On 17th Anniversary of Landmark Achievement, It Is Time for America to Renew Its Commitment to the ADA'

'Seventeen years ago, this nation committed to removing barriers that had too long denied Americans with disabilities full and equal access to all aspects of American society.  On July 26, 1990, the first President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), helping to sweep away years of discrimination and transforming society's attitudes toward people with disabilities.  The ADA broke new ground for civil rights, but it is deeply and firmly rooted in a fundamental American ideal: that we are all equal in the eyes of the law.

'On the 17th anniversary of this landmark achievement, it is time for America to renew its commitment to the ADA.  When Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act, we intended for its protections to be interpreted broadly and to provide vital guarantees against discrimination in employment, public accommodations, and other areas.  To realize the full promise of the ADA, Congress must act to restore the law's broad protections, which have been wrongly stripped away by recent court decisions.

'I am proud that Majority Leader Hoyer and Congressman James Sensenbrenner have joined together to introduce bipartisan legislation, the Americans with Disabilities Restoration Act, which will reinstate the full power and protections Congress originally intended the ADA to provide.

'Congress must remain committed to expanding opportunities for, and preventing discrimination against, individuals with disabilities.  Only then will we live up to the ideals of equality and opportunity that are both our heritage and our hope.'