Bye bye 504 plan

Utah is one of 17 states included as a plaintiff in Texas v. Becerra, a lawsuit opposing changes to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 made in May 2024 under the Biden administration. The changes, known as the Final Rule, included adding the term "gender dysphoria" to the definition of a disability protected under Section 504.

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 grants protections to those with disabilities from being discriminated against by institutions or programs that receive federal financial assistance, such as schools, hospitals and government programs. All public schools and many private schools are required to provide 504 plans to students with disabilities. These plans can include a variety of accommodations such as extra time on assignments and tests, modified textbooks or learning materials, or a specific seat in the classroom.

While the lawsuit seeks to declare the Final Rule as unlawful, the legal document also includes language that many are interpreting as an intention to get rid of Section 504 as a whole. In the list of complaints, Count 3 states, "Section 504 is unconstitutional," followed by a separate count that claims the Final Rule specifically is unconstitutional. Furthermore, under the document's demands for relief, it requests that the court "declare Section 504, 29 U.S.C. § 794, unconstitutional" and that the court "issue permanent injunctive relief against defendants enjoining them from enforcing Section 504."

The T is on the verge of destroying insanely important legislation for the disabled