T. 8-20-96 

                                                   AUG 29 1996


The Honorable Patty Murray
United States Senator
2988 Jackson Federal Building
915 Second Avenue
Seattle, Washington 98174

Dear Senator Murray:

        This is in response to your inquiry on behalf of your
constituent, Mr. XX                , who requests information
regarding the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).
Please excuse the delay in responding.

        Specifically, Mr. XX       requests a listing of disabilities
covered by the ADA and other similar civil rights laws. However,
the ADA does not provide an exhaustive list of disabilities.
Rather, the regulation implementing title III of the ADA defines
a disability as "a physical or mental impairment that
substantially limits one or more of the major life activities ...;
a record of such an impairment; or being regarded as having such
an impairment." 28 C.F.R S 36.104. For your convenience, I have
enclosed a copy of that regulation.

        With regard to States and their programs, States are not
required to grant special status to people with disabilities.
However, if a State chooses to do so via a particular program or
service, it is not required to use definitions or criteria
established by Federal civil rights laws.

        If Mr. XX        has any questions or needs additional
information regarding the requirements of the ADA, he may contact
the Department's ADA information line at 800-514-0301 (voice) or
800-514-0383 (TDD).

cc: Records, Chrono, Wodatch, Mercado, McDowney, FOIA
n:\udd\mercado\letters\congress\murray.elh

01-04332

                           - 2 -

        I hope this information is useful to you in responding to
your constituent.

                                        Sincerely,

                                     Deval L. Patrick
                                Assistant Attorney General
                                  Civil Rights Division

Enclosure

01-04333