Enactment of the ADA

In 1986, the National Council on Disability issued, "Toward Independence," recommending that a comprehensive law requiring equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities be enacted. The Council drafted the first version of the ADA which was introduced in 1988 during the 100th Congress. The Task Force on Rights and Empowerment of Americans with Disabilities, under the energetic chairmanship of Justin Dart, Jr., built support nationally, holding hearings in every state.

A second version of the Act was introduced in May 1989 and after further amendments passed by the Senate on September 7, 1989. Five separate House Committees held hearings before the House of Representatives passed its version of the bill on May 22, 1990. Following two conferences between the House and Senate to resolve their differences on the bill, the ADA in its final form passed both Houses in mid-July. The ADA passed both Houses of Congress by overwhelming majorities and had key sponsors and supporters from both parties. The ADA is extremely complex, and the deliberations within Congress and between Congress and the Administration were detailed and not without controversy. The Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund led a very effective negotiating team on behalf of the disability community.
 
On the morning of July 26, 1990, on the south lawn of the White House, with 3000 disability rights advocates, members of Congress and the Administration looking on, President George Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act into law. It was the largest such signing ceremony in history. President Bush described the ADA as:
 
"the world's first comprehensive declaration of the equality of people with disabilities, and evidence of America's leadership internationally in the cause of human rights. With today's signing of the landmark Americans with Disabilities Act, every man woman and child with a disability can now pass through once closed doors, into a bright new era of equality, independence and freedom."
 
Reference: Wodatch J. (1990). The ADA: What it says. Worklife, 3, 3
 
The President traced the ADA's roots in American history back through the Civil Rights Act of 1964, to the Declaration of Independence, stating that
"We are keeping faith with the spirit of our ... forefathers who wrote ... 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.' This Act is powerful in its simplicity. It will ensure that people with disabilities are given the basic guarantees ... (of) freedom of choice, control of their lives, the opportunity to blend fully and equally into the ... mosaic of the American mainstream."
 
During the Clinton Administration, the President and the Attorney General have reaffirmed the commitment of the Executive Branch to energetic implementation of the ADA.
 
In its deliberations on the ADA, Congress cited a figure of 43 million Americans having one or more physical or mental disabilities. This estimate has been revised to 53 million based on recent census data. These numbers are broad estimates. It is clear, however, that the number of people who have disabilities in the American population is large and is growing significantly with the "graying of America." The incidence of disability rises sharply as individuals reach their sixth and seventh decade of life. The life expectancy of an infant born in America today is approximately 75 years, and by the time that infant reaches the age of 75 that horizon of longevity may well have been pushed back. Advances in medical practice such as the development of trauma care centers and treatment of life threatening diseases tend to increase rather than decrease incidence of disability among younger persons.