- The Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA, outlaws any type of discrimination toward disabled people in employment, access to public places, transportation and telecommunications. The act defines a disabled person in part as one with "a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities."
- In employment scenarios, the ADA prohibits taking disability into account in hiring, promotion, salary, social activities and other privileges of employment. The ADA requires employers to make reasonable accommodations for the disabled and bans asking certain questions relating to the disability in the pre-employment interview process.
- The Fair Housing Act was amended in 1988 to include the rights of disabled tenants. The Civil Rights Division enforces the act in relation to the disabled by "insuring that zoning and other regulations concerning land use are not employed to hinder the residential choices of these individuals, including unnecessarily restricting communal, or congregate, residential arrangements, such as group homes."
- The Air Carrier Access Act extends equal rights to disabled people for domestic and foreign air travel. The Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act ensures that disabled have access to a polling location or that an alternative method for voting is available.
- The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act ensures that all eligible children have access to "free appropriate public education in the least-restrictive environment available to their individual needs."
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