Federal Court Responses to State and Local Claims of “Undue Burden” in Complying with The Americans with Disabilities Act

Abstract

Are federal courts sympathetic to local and state officials' cost concerns, particularly when it comes to meeting the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act? This is the fundamental query taken up by this analysis. After examining twenty-eight federal ADA cases where state and local officials have gone to court claiming that complying with this civil rights measure would be unduly burdensome, this study comes up with mixed findings. In some cases, the courts have been sensitive to cost concerns but, in others, they have not. Despite these inconclusive findings, this study does cast some light on what state and local officials must do if they expectfederal courts to be sensitive to their concerns.