On Monday, June 2, Claire Stanley, the Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs for ACB, attended a budget oversight hearing for the District of Columbia’s Committee on Transportation and the Environment. The City Council’s committee is discussing the 2026 budget. ACB and other blind advocacy groups previously spoke at a Council hearing to talk about the potential opportunities that can come from the introduction of autonomous vehicles in the District and other cities across the country.

ACB is fortunate to interact with numerous advocacy coalitions to remain aware of advocacy occurring in Washington, D.C. at the federal level. Claire Stanley, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, often attends housing-related meetings to remain aware of what is happening in the fair housing space. Presently, fair housing groups are advocating to Congress to include appropriate language in the 2026 Congressional budget to ensure access to fair housing. This includes access for people with disabilities.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Scott Thornhill

Executive Director

202-467-5081

sthornhill@acb.org

American Council of the Blind Endorses Legislation to Improve Early Childhood Vision Services

ACB was made aware of a letter submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) this month by the American Council on Education and signed by other higher education associations. The letter asked OMB to delay or provide additional information regarding numerous regulations that were established in the last administration but that have not been fully implemented yet. This list included the Title II ADA regulations that cover website accessibility.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:

Scott Thornhill

Executive Director

202-467-5081

sthornhill@acb.org

ACB Opens Registration for the 2025 Conference and Convention

In late April, oral arguments were heard before the Supreme Court for the Labcorp lawsuit that ACB has been involved in for multiple years now. Many members have asked where they can find a link to the oral argument recording. A link is pasted below. ACB will report out as soon as we learn anything about the Court’s decision.

Under the new administration, President Trump is working to carry out numerous deregulatory actions. On May 14, a request for information (RFI) was published in the Federal Register inquiring about what regulations under the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) should be eliminated.

ACB is fortunate to have the privilege to meet with Amtrak leadership on a quarterly basis to talk about accommodations for passengers with disabilities. ACB has been part of a small group of disability advocacy groups who have done this for many, many years now. Additionally, once a year, that same disability advocacy cohort gets to meet in person with the full Amtrak Board of Directors. On Thursday, May 22, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs Claire Stanley attended that annual meeting in Washington, D.C.

The advocacy department is sharing below a press release. Congresswoman Simon provided a video clip for ACB's DC Leadership Conference this past March. ACB will follow this bill closely.

Congresswomen Simon and Hayes Introduce Legislation to Ensure Every Student Can Access Free Mobile Vision Services

The advocacy team continues to receive questions about the status of the National Library Service (NLS) and other library services. With so many changes taking place, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs Claire Stanley understands the anxiety surrounding funding cuts and other changes. To better understand the current state of such services, Claire reached out to a friend and colleague at NLS. Below is an explanation from him on the current state of things.