ACLU Comment Opposing Department of Energy Direct Final Rule Removing Requirements for Disability Access

WASHINGTON — The American Civil Liberties Union has submitted a public comment in opposition to the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) proposed direct final rules that attempt to undermine a long-established system that requires DOE buildings to be accessible to people with disabilities. More than 20,000 comments have been submitted against the rule. “The Department of Energy’s decision to pursue a direct final rule to implement radical changes that affect people with disabilities defies logic, federal disability protections, and every standard rulemaking practice from the past several decades,” said Zoe Brennan-Krohn, director of the ACLU Disability Rights Program. “These rules raise real concerns that the Trump administration is testing the waters, waiting to see if people will take note of these far-reaching changes before trying to implement them in other agencies and departments. We won’t let these attempts go unnoticed.” The direct final rule proposes to eliminate a critical, nearly half-century-old system ensuring physical access to facilities receiving DOE funds. This system plays an essential role in the implementation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which protects disabled people from discrimination and includes “elimination of architectural barriers” as one of its central aims. The proposals were issued as a “direct final rule,” which is limited to routine and noncontroversial changes to existing federal regulations. However, as the ACLU’s comment notes, “the proposed rescissions are unlawful,” and “cannot be adopted through ordinary rulemaking” because they “contradict foundational regulatory provisions implementing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.” Specifically, the “direct final rule” would rescind the requirement that new and altered buildings receiving assistance from DOE be accessible, eviscerating a “careful compromise” between requiring accessibility for newly constructed buildings while also allowing flexibility for existing facilities. That compromise, reached nearly 50 years ago, upholds the promises of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and has since been adopted by more than 80 different agencies. The ACLU’s comment also states that the DOE’s wholesale elimination of this system, and its failure to explain its abandonment of these longstanding civil rights regulations, render its decision arbitrary and capricious, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The direct final rule is neither routine nor non-controversial, and comments in opposition should force the government to withdraw the rule, the comment highlights. The ACLU’s comment is here: https://www.aclu.org/documents/aclu-comment-opposing-department-of-energy-direct-final-rule-removing-requirements-for-disability-access