In a press release from Thursday, March 24, 2011, the EEOC announced the approval of the final regulations for the ADA Amendments Act. The final regulations were published on Friday, March 25, 2011, in the Federal Register. The release of the long-awaited regulations did not raise the same level of fanfare as the iPad 2. Nor did it provoke as much as excitement as that exhibited by Steve Martin in the 1979 comedy “The Jerk” where he wildly exclaimed: “The new phone book is here! The new phone book is here!” But the ADAAA regulations have finally arrived, and the regulations are important and provide employers and attorneys with guidance on the ADAAA. The ADAAA was enacted on September 25, 2008, and became effective January 1, 2009. The Act directed the EEOC to amend the prior regulations to reflect the changes made by the ADAAA. After much analysis and comment, the final regulations have been approved. The new regulations can be found here.
