A coalition of 16 governors has written to Attorney General Todd Blanche expressing concern about Trump administration actions regarding disability rights protections.
The governors, led by Connecticut's Ned Lamont, said the Department of Justice's recent legal opinion and policy changes threaten integration protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Supreme Court's Olmstead v. L.C. decision. On June 18, the DOJ issued a legal opinion questioning the longstanding legal framework for disability rights. On July 20, the DOJ declared it would no longer rely on its Olmstead guidance from June 22, 2011.
"Reversing the clock on long-held rights for people with disabilities is absolutely the wrong thing for this administration to be prioritizing," Governor Lamont said. "People with disabilities should not be unnecessarily segregated in institutions when they can appropriately receive services in their communities."
The governors said they are concerned that recent federal actions signal changes to programs serving people with disabilities and that the changes have created uncertainty for states and the disability services workforce. The governors wrote that people with disabilities and their families worry about being forced into institutional care after decades of advocacy for community-based services.
States have invested heavily in home and community-based services since the ADA was passed in 1990, the governors said. They said the principle of community integration is not partisan—the ADA was signed into law by President George H.W. Bush—and has advanced under both Republican and Democratic administrations.
"We stand united around the basic principle that Americans with disabilities are full members of our communities and should not be forced into segregation to receive the services and support they need," the governors wrote. "We stand ready to work with the Administration and Congress to strengthen community-based systems while preserving individual choice."