Original, relevant, and timely content of interest to ASL and sign language interpreting students and practitioners, including introductory information about deafness and American Deaf Culture.
. Topics WELCOME  + About Us  + BLOG  + Contact Us  + Jobs  DAILY!  + Subscribe  LEGAL  + Cite this Site  + Copyright  + Marks  + Privacy  + Terms of Use INTERPRETING  + Anecdotes  + Bi-Cultural Mediation  + Cloze Skill  + Compression  + Demand Control   + Development  + Dictionaries   + Dynamic Equivalence  + Education  + Employment  + Ethics  + Expansion  + FAQ  + Fingerspelling  + Glossary  + Health  + History  + How to Become  + Humor  + Laws  + Mentoring  + Models:      - Processing      - Service  + Practice   + Qualified?  + Settings  + Sign Negotiation  + Silent Socials  + Technology  + Tips  + Vocabulary  ASK A TERP  + ASL Students Ask  + Children Ask  + CoWorkers Ask  + Deaf Ask  + Employers Ask  + HH Ask  + Hearing Ask  + Law Enforcement Asks  + Neighbors Ask  + New Terps Ask  + Parents Ask  + Relatives Ask  + Schoolmates Ask  + Store Clerks Ask  + Teachers Ask   + Who'd We Miss? LANGUAGE  + Linguistics     - Codes     - Form & Function     - Meaning     - Mode     - Pidgin     - Prosody     - Vocabulary   + ASL     - Alphabet     - Classifiers       - Dictionaries      - Fingerspelling     - Grammar     - History     - Idioms     - Practice     - Variation     - Visualization  + English     - Grammar     - Idioms DEAFNESS  + Causes  + Community  + Culture  + Education  + Laws  + Technology MORE  + Agency Finder  + Books  + Dictionaries  + Educators  + Feeds  + Glossary   + Humor    + Jobs  + Links  + Movies  + News    + Quotes  + Shop  + Subscribe  + Videos & DVDs  + Worship  TRANSLATE THIS PAGE		| Bookmark This Page Until recently (and we do mean recently), there were no federal laws to guide us on how to behave toward or manage personal or business affairs with people who might not be classified by the majority as typical.  Thank goodness we now have several such federal laws, and the states have begun to chime in, as well. Some of the laws that directly concern sign language interpreters are presented here.  They're not simply nice to know.  Knowing them and the ability to cite them as needed will help you pass national and state interpreter evaluations.  In other words: Start studying. . Legal Rights Guide for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People Gallaudet University Press (2000) This book should be on the quick-reference shelf of every professional and in every home where hearing loss defines much that happens in one's life. Definitely replace your last edition with this one. . 1965   PL 89-333  Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) Marked the beginning of payment to sign language interpreters; Identified sign language interpreting as a service provided to deaf clients of VR.   1973  LINK   PL 93-112  Rehabilitation Act ....Section 501: federal gov't employment practices ....Section 503: federal contractors ....Section 504: recipients of federal assistance ....Section 508: federal agencies electronic and IT access Provides for accessibility (includes interpreting services); Applies to places receiving federal funds, directly or indirectly; Defines the word "handicapped."   1990   PL 94-142  Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) ....1973 Originally titled: Education for All Handicapped Children Act Does not apply to private schools that do not receive federal funds; When appropriate, interpreter service; Permanent law; will not expire; FAPE (Free and Appropriate Education), including support services; IEP (Individual Education Plan); LRE (Least Restrictive Environment).   1990  LINK   PL 101-336  American's With Disabilities Act (ADA) ....2008 AMENDED (Effective: January 1, 2009) Equal access now extends from gov't to the private sector; Provides for accommodations (includes interpreting services). NOTE: "Enforcement and Undue Hardship"  LINK About the ADA Amendment Act (ADAAA)   1996  LINK   PL 104-104  Telecommunications Act Mandated captioning.   2001  LINK   PL 107-110  No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) Accountability at the state-level.   A New Civil Right: Telecommunications Equality (2006) In this highly original work, Author Karen Peltz Strauss reveals how the paternalism of the hearing-oriented telecommunications industries slowed support for technology for deaf users. Throughout this comprehensive account, she emphasizes the grassroots efforts behind all of the eventual successes. A New Civil Right recounts each advance in turn, such as the pursuit of special customer premises equipment (SCPE) from telephone companies; the Telecommunications Act of 1982 and the Telecommunications Accessibility Enhancement Act of 1988 and the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act, which required nationwide relay telephone services for deaf and hard of hearing users. . 2008   Florida Educational Equity Act             FS Title XLVIII Chapter 1000.05 Part I No discrimination against students or employees due to disability. 2008   Child Protection              FS Title V Chapter 39 Part II Mandates reporting by school personnel of abuse or suspected abuse. 2008   Vocational Rehabilitation             FS Title XXX Chapter 413 Equal access at theme parks, hotels, common carriers, resorts, etc. 2008   Evidence Code             FS Title VII Chapter 90.6063 Police cannot use written communication notes if an interpreter was not present. 2008   Public Business: Miscellaneous Provisions             FS Title XIX Chapter 286.26 During conduction of public business, accessibility provided for deaf persons .. USA United States of America Link National Association of the Deaf (NAD) Link U.S. Federal Disability-Related Law . AL Alabama - Office on Deafness: Telephone (v) 800 441 7607 . AK Alaska Link Council on Disabilities and Special Education . AZ Arizona Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . AR Arkansas - Office of the Deaf and Hearing Impaired: Telephone (tty/v) 501 686 9433 . CA California Link Office of Deaf Access . CO Colorado Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . CT Connecticutt Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . DE Delaware Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . DC District of Columbia Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . FL Florida Link Laws and Statutes . GA Georgia Link Laws and Statutes . HI Hawaii Link Council for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . ID Idaho Link Council for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . IL Illinois Link State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing Link State Disability Statutes Links Link Education-Related Obligations and Rights . IN Indiana Link Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . IO Iowa Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . KS Kansas Link Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . KY Kentucky Link Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . LA Louisiana Link Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . ME Maine Link Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MD Maryland Link Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MA Massachusetts Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MI Michigan Link Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MN Minnesota Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MS Mississippi Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MO Missouri Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . MT Montana Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . NE Nebraska Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . NV Nevada Link .State Commission Deaf and Hard of Hearing . . . . . . . NM New Mexico Link Commission for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons . . . . . . RI Rhode Island Link Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . . . . . . . . . . . WA Washington Link Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Link K-12 Laws and Regulations . WV West Virginia Link Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing . . . . .   Handbook to Service the Deaf (2004) These acts and executive order provide for equal protection under the law so that individuals with disabilities receive fair and equitable treatment in relation to employment opportunities and access to community services. .. . .   This page was edited: 09/15/2009 This page has been visited times since: June 15, 2009. TerpTopics is s trademark and service mark of TerpTopics, LLC. © 2008; 2009. All rights reserved. TerpTopics™ is an independent entity; as such does not claim or attempt to claim, represent, or imply by any means whatsoever that it is associated with any other entity that may or may not offer services, goods, or information of interest to interpreter, Deaf, or student communities.  The opinions expressed here those of TerpTopics unless otherwise stated.  Please keep in mind that, while every effort is made to present correct, appropriate, and reasonable information that is based on our experience, anecdotal experiences of others, or developed during the general course of study and professional development, we do not represent TerpTopics as having cornered the market on wisdom (heck, no!) or experience; one reason why links to several other good and reliable resources are made available throughout this site, and we hope that earnest seekers of knowledge will take advantage of them.		Did someone say self-indulgence? YUP! Click here now! ;) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   . . . . .   So many books; so little time ... Why waste it? Click here now. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .   .   Discover films of interest to ASL or interpreting students here. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Did someone say self-indulgence? YUP! Click here now! ;) . . . . . . . .   So many books; so little time ... Why waste it? Click here now. . . . .   Discover films of interest to ASL or interpreting students here.