Urge Governor Paterson to sign the Title II bill into law!

Action: A.10676 (Paulin) / S.7482 (Huntley), which would add Title II language from the ADA into NYS Human Rights Law, has been delivered to the Governor's desk for signature. He has until July 30th to sign it. An identical bill passed both the Assembly and the Senate last year and was vetoed by Governor Paterson. The Governor's office needs to hear from us NOW!

Call the Governor's office at 518-474-8390 and leave the following message:

"I'm calling to urge Governor Paterson to sign A.10676 / S.7482 into law, which would incorporate the provisions of Title II of the American Disabilities Act into state law



Statewide Systems Advocacy Network (SSAN)
ACTION ALERT
July 21, 2010


Issue: Urge Governor Paterson to sign the Title II bill into law!

Action: A.10676 (Paulin) / S.7482 (Huntley), which would add Title II language from the ADA into NYS Human Rights Law, has been delivered to the Governor's desk for signature. He has until July 30th to sign it. An identical bill passed both the Assembly and the Senate last year and was vetoed by Governor Paterson. The Governor's office needs to hear from us NOW!

Call the Governor's office at 518-474-8390 and leave the following message:

"I'm calling to urge Governor Paterson to sign A.10676 / S.7482 into law, which would incorporate the provisions of Title II of the American Disabilities Act into state law and strengthen protections for people with disabilities against discrimination in New York State. It would be particularly symbolic to do so in honor of the 20th anniversary of the ADA this Monday."

Additional talking points:
• 32 other states have adopted Title II into state law. It has not cost them money or resulted in an increase in lawsuits.

• The state has already adopted Title I (1997) and Title III (2007) in state law. The expected flood of complaints to Division of Human Rights after these bills passed never materialized, so no stretch of their resources occurred as a result. It would be particularly symbolic to now adopt Title II into state law with the 20th anniversary of ADA being next Monday.

• This is already federal law that the state must comply with. It's nothing new, confers no new responsibilities on the state, and will not cost anything.

• If the state is in compliance (which technically they should have been since the Regulations for Section 504 were released in 1977, as Title II essentially reiterates 504), they have no need to fear lawsuits.

Background: The New York State Human Rights Law includes some, but not all, of the ADA's protections for people with disabilities. This causes needless confusion for government officials in attempting to comply with both laws. A.10676 (Paulin)/S.7482 (Huntley) adds ADA Title II language to state statute, clarifying the obligations of government officials and strengthening the civil rights protections for people with disabilities. This bill imposes no new or additional requirements upon local governments or businesses.