DOJ/DOE Joint Publication: Frequently Asked Questions on Effective Communication for Students with Hearing, Vision, or Speech Disabilities in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504)
Section 504 prohibits disability discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities by recipients of Federal financial assistance.11 Because all school districts receive funds from ED, Section 504 applies to all the operations of all public school districts, including all public schools within those school districts. All public charter schools and magnet schools are subject to Section 504 regardless of whether they are, for example, a school within a school district that receives ED funds or are recipients themselves. Under Section 504, as under Title II, a disability is (1) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity; (2) a record of such an impairment; or (3) being regarded as having such an impairment.12
Public school students with disabilities are covered by Section 504 regardless of their eligibility for special education and related services under the IDEA. OCR is responsible for issuing regulations implementing Section 504 for recipients of financial assistance from ED, which are found at 34 C.F.R. pt. 104. These regulations require, among other things, that public school students with disabilities have an equal opportunity to participate in school and that they receive FAPE consisting of regular or special education and related aids and services designed to meet their individual educational needs as adequately as the needs of nondisabled students are met.13 OCR enforces Section 504 and its regulations in public elementary and secondary schools; this includes enforcing the Section 504 rights of IDEA‐eligible students.
In the remainder of this document, Section 504 is not separately discussed. As a general rule, violations of Section 504 also constitute violations of Title II; therefore, discussing the Section 504 protections separately would not provide additional guidance to public schools, all of which are subject to both laws. Moreover, in determining whether a recipient’s communication with an individual with a disability complies with ED’s Section 504 general nondiscrimination provisions, where applicable, OCR generally would not find a violation if a recipient complied with the requirements embodied in Title II’s effective communication regulation.14
Similarly, the vast majority of students with hearing, vision, or speech disabilities are IDEA‐ eligible, and one way of meeting a school’s Section 504 FAPE requirements is to comply with the IDEA FAPE requirements.15 To address the Section 504 FAPE requirements would therefore not provide additional guidance to public schools in the most common situations.
12 29 U.S.C. § 705(9)(B), (20)(B). The ADA Amendments Act of 2008 amended the definition of disability that applies to Section 504. For a discussion of OCR’s interpretation of the changes to the definition, please see the January 19, 2012, Dear Colleague Letter and Frequently Asked Questions document (FAQ) entitled “Questions and Answers on the ADA Amendments Act of 2008 for Students with Disabilities Attending Public Elementary and Secondary Schools,” issued by the United States Department of Education’s (ED’s) Office for Civil Rights, available on ED’s website at http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/letters/colleague‐201109.html (Dear Colleague Letter) and http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/dcl‐504faq‐201109.html (FAQ).
13 34 C.F.R. pt. 104, Subparts A and D.
14 34 C.F.R. § 104.4. In situations where the Section 504 general nondiscrimination provisions apply, OCR generally would look to the effective communication standards in the Department’s Section 504 regulation for Federally conducted programs, 34 C.F.R. § 105.40. These standards are similar to those found in the Title II effective communication regulation.
15 34 C.F.R. §§ 104.33(b)(2), 104.35(d), 104.36.
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