Language in Section 504 lawsuit raising concerns in the disability community

OMAHA, Neb. (KMTV) — Nebraska is 1 of 17 states that has signed on to a lawsuit involving Section 504, which offers protections to individuals with disabilities in a variety of settings.

The lawsuit is targeting a Biden Administration rule that 'gender dysphoria' may be a protected disability in the Rehabilitation Act, but the language in the lawsuit has families with disabilities and advocates concerned about what this could mean for protections going forward.

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"Disabilities don't stop, they have always been there, they are always going to be there," said Shonda Knop.

For Shonda Knop, this lawsuit is personal. Her son, Jacoby, now a senior in Fremont Public Schools was born with spina bifida.

"My son is a gift to me every single day and he teaches me that you wake up every single day and you can fight that battle and be successful and still be happy and wonderful and go to bed and do it again the next day," Knop said.

But she says his success would not be possible without the protections and accommodations he's had growing up.

In a statement Friday on X, Attorney General Mike Hilgers addressed citizen's concerns saying he “wants to assure them that he understands the importance of Section 504 to them and their families, and the office's goal is to reverse this rule while keeping Section 504 otherwise intact.”

While the statement is welcomed by advocates like Edison McDonald, executive director of The Arc of Nebraska, they are pointing to the specific wording in the lawsuit.

"The case filing explicitly says in section D to Declare Section 504, 29 U.S.C. § 794, unconstitutional," McDonald said.

Reporter Molly Hudson reached out to Hilgers’ office Thursday to talk about Nebraska’s involvement in the lawsuit. She received this statement that points to a joint status report filed Wednesday.

Which says:

-- Plaintiffs clarify that they have never moved—and do not plan to move—the Court to declare or enjoin Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, 29 U.S.C. § 794, as unconstitutional on its face. --

Hilgers said in a statement, that he will "reevaluate Nebraska’s involvement or take other appropriate action if the legal protection and funding provided by Section 504 becomes threatened.”

For families like Shonda’s, the uncertainty of what this could mean if it goes into effect is unimaginable.

"This is huge, because as he gets ready to go to college, if these go away, then what," Knop said.

Shonda says right now Jacoby is set to graduate and go to Southwest Minnesota State University to play wheelchair basketball.

A future made possible by all the support over the years.