The following resources from the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights (OCWR) and other legislative branch organizations are provided to help employees and members of the public with disabilities understand and exercise their rights to accessibility in the legislative branch of the federal government, and to help employing offices meet their responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) as applied by the Congressional Accountability Act (CAA). For an overview of the OCWR’s enforcement of the ADA in the legislative branch, please visit the page on Access to Services for People with Disabilities.
- If you encounter barriers to access in the legislative branch, you may report accessibility concerns by filing a request for ADA inspection or a charge of discrimination.
- The United States Capitol Police, which handles security in Capitol Complex facilities, provides information on the security screening process for visitors with disabilities.
- Employing offices can improve access for employees and visitors with disabilities by downloading our guidance document, Tips for Improving Office Accessibility, viewing the ADA Inspection Tutorial, or contacting us for a consultation at ADAaccess@ocwr.gov.
- The OCWR’s ADA Biennial Reports present the results of our biennial inspections for barriers to access in legislative branch facilities.
- The OCWR Office of the General Counsel has conducted several presentations related to the ADA as part of the Brown Bag Lunch Series. For more information, please go to the General Counsel’s Brown Bag Presentations.
- The Office of Congressional Accessibility Services (OCAS) provides a variety of services for individuals with disabilities, both staff and visitors, including adaptive tours of the Capitol Building, wheelchair loans, and interpreting services for hearing-impaired individuals. The OCAS website also contains useful resources including a map of accessible entrances to Capitol Hill facilities, important phone numbers, and other information.
- Covered legislative branch facilities must comply with the ADA whether or not they are open to the general public. For more information, see Guidance on ADA Inspections.
For complete information on the rights, procedures, and remedies established by the CAA, please refer to the Congressional Accountability Act and the Procedural Rules of the OCWR pages.
Although the OCWR does not yet have final substantive regulations implementing the ADA in the legislative branch, the Board of Directors has adopted pending ADA public access regulations that are awaiting congressional approval. With limited exception, the Board adopted nearly all of the corresponding Department of Justice regulations for the public access sections of the ADA that apply to the legislative branch. Under section 411 of the CAA, the applicable Department of Justice regulations would still apply in any ADA public access hearings or appeals under the CAA.