Colleges are carefully watching the political wrangling concerning the ADA and what it means to already stretched budgets and resources. While most colleges already go above and beyond the ‘letter of the law’ in regards to accessibility, mandating certain levels of compliance can end up causing a poor return on investment with colleges spending more money to administrate the program than the actual output provided to benefit the intended recipients. Red tape is almost never good. Stay tuned.

Although it has been stalled in Congress for several months, legislation that would broaden coverage under the Americans With Disabilities Act has recently been on the radar of some college officials and the associations that represent them. Their concern: that expanding the definition of a disability could overwhelm offices that work to accommodate such students on university campuses.

Several higher-education associations have met recently about the bill, both with one another and with key Congressional staff members. Though the bill faces opposition from the Bush administration, its key sponsor hopes to get a modified form to the floor by this summer.
Most universities voluntarily go beyond the letter of the law in accommodating students on their campuses. But broadening the definition of a disability could add even more demand for campus offices that already work with hundreds, if not thousands, of students.

“There is a concern that having too many more students coming forward looking for accommodations would cause the resources of the disability offices to be extremely stretched,” said Ada Meloy, general counsel for the American Council on Education.