[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 143 (Thursday, July 29, 2021)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 40761-40762]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-16303]


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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 143 / Thursday, July 29, 2021 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 40761]]


                Proclamation 10236 of July 26, 2021

                
Anniversary of the Americans With Disabilities 
                Act, 2021

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Thirty-one years ago, on July 26, 1990, our Nation 
                moved closer to the fulfillment of its foundational 
                promise when we passed the Americans with Disabilities 
                Act (ADA). This landmark law affirms and protects the 
                fundamental rights of people with disabilities--the 
                right to equal opportunity, economic self-sufficiency, 
                independent living, and equitable participation in 
                every aspect of American life. For more than three 
                decades, the ADA has made our communities, our economy, 
                and our country stronger and more vibrant. It has 
                helped to uphold the dignity of the estimated 61 
                million Americans who live with a disability--in short, 
                it is a triumph of American civil rights.

                I was enormously proud to co-sponsor the ADA, the 
                passage of which was a testament not only to fearless 
                advocacy, but to bipartisan progress. A Democratic bill 
                signed by a Republican President, the ADA was made 
                possible thanks in no small part to the passion and 
                persistence of Senators Tom Harkin and Ted Kennedy and 
                Congressmen Major Owens and Tony Coelho. I will never 
                forget the moment just after the ADA's passage, when 
                Senator Harkin delivered a speech in American Sign 
                Language from the Senate floor--a tribute to his older 
                brother, Frank, who was deaf. That moment was an 
                emotional reminder for all of us of just how personal 
                and powerful the passage of the ADA would be for 
                millions of American families.

                Despite the extraordinary progress we have made over 
                the past 31 years, the fight for equitable access and 
                inclusion is far from over. The COVID-19 pandemic has 
                compounded the longstanding inequities and biases that 
                exist for people with disabilities; persistent 
                discrimination and the inability to access services 
                continues to threaten the health and well-being of far 
                too many Americans. Throughout the pandemic, people 
                with disabilities have faced heightened risks--
                particularly those who lack access to caregiver or 
                support services, those who live in community homes, 
                and the disproportionate share of people with 
                disabilities employed in industries that suffered due 
                to the pandemic. Children and students living with 
                disabilities have also faced an especially challenging 
                year, forced to navigate and adapt to online learning 
                as the virus upended their usual school routines.

                As we work to finish the job of defeating COVID-19, my 
                Administration is committed to building on the legacy 
                of the ADA. The American Rescue Plan is providing 
                funding to expand access to home- and community-based 
                services under Medicaid, which will allow more people 
                with disabilities to live safely and independently in 
                their homes. My Build Back Better agenda would build on 
                this by making significant investments in home- and 
                community-based services for people with disabilities 
                and older Americans. It will also spur the creation of 
                quality jobs with good pay, good benefits, and the 
                ability to organize and collectively bargain for 
                caregivers.

                My Administration is also committed to advancing the 
                rights of people with disabilities in the workplace to 
                support economic self-sufficiency. I have proposed 
                eliminating outdated provisions in the Fair Labor 
                Standards Act that allow employers to pay workers with 
                disabilities less than the

[[Page 40762]]

                minimum wage. My proposal includes funding this 
                transition with $2 billion to expand access to 
                competitive, integrated employment opportunities for 
                workers with disabilities. In addition, I am committed 
                to making the Federal Government a model employer--
                including for people with disabilities--to set the gold 
                standard for how best to support inclusion and provide 
                appropriate accommodations. To that end, I recently 
                signed an Executive Order to advance diversity, equity, 
                inclusion, and accessibility in the Federal Workforce--
                a pledge to lead by example to promote economic 
                stability and good paying jobs for Americans with 
                disabilities.

                Before I became President, I promised that every policy 
                my Administration pursued--from rebuilding our middle 
                class, to fighting climate change, to achieving 
                universal health coverage--would be created with the 
                full inclusion and dignity of Americans with 
                disabilities in mind. I am proud to say that since my 
                first day in office, my Administration has delivered on 
                that promise. As we celebrate the monumental legacy of 
                the ADA, we recommit ourselves today to upholding and 
                strengthening its protections--and continuing to 
                advance equity, dignity, access, and inclusion together 
                with the disability community as we build our Nation 
                back better.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of 
                the United States of America, by virtue of the 
                authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws 
                of the United States, do hereby proclaim July 26, 2021, 
                the Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. 
                I encourage Americans across our Nation to celebrate 
                the 31st year of this civil rights law and the many 
                contributions of individuals with disabilities.

                IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                twenty-sixth day of July, in the year of our Lord two 
                thousand twenty-one, and of the Independence of the 
                United States of America the two hundred and forty-
                sixth.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 2021-16303
Filed 7-28-21; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3295-F1-P