On July 20, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice issued a Federal Register notice saying it will no longer rely on its long-standing Olmstead guidance when enforcing the integration mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
- The notice, from Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, states DOJ “will not rely upon the Olmstead guidance in its enforcement of Title II” of the ADA, calling the 2011 Q&A document (last updated 2020) legally non-binding.
- It follows a June 2026 Office of Legal Counsel memo arguing neither the ADA nor Section 504 requires states to serve people with disabilities in the most integrated setting, a position that runs counter to decades of court rulings built on the 1999 Olmstead v. L.C. Supreme Court decision.
- DOJ says it plans to “revisit” the guidance in light of the 2024 Loper Bright Supreme Court ruling on agency guidance; disability rights advocates warn the move creates confusion and could embolden states to scale back community-based services.
Why it matters: This doesn’t change the underlying law, but it signals the federal government may step back from enforcing disabled Americans’ right to live and receive services in their own communities rather than institutions — a right advocates have relied on for more than two decades.
Source: Federal Register →
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