Federal Disability Data: Creating a Structure in the 1990s to Further the Goals of the ADA

Landmark legislation has the power to change people's lives for many years to come. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law on July 26, 1990, is landmark legislation for Americans with disabilities. The four goals of the ADA — equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self-sufficiency — are broad in scope and bold in nature. The purpose of this paper — presented at the National Council on Disability Conference — is to examine how federal disability data in the 1990s can be structured to be useful in policy debates that will further the goals of the ADA. [15 PDF pages]