Q: Why does the business/organization have to pay for the interpreter? Many Oklahoma businesses have not been paying for this service.

A: In 1990, President Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), requiring businesses to provide accommodations to persons with disabilities. One such accommodation is interpreters for the deaf. Before the signing of the ADA, Oklahoma’s Dept. of Rehabilitation Services (DRS) set up a program to pay for critical needs, such as doctor’s appointments, financial situations, & attorney visits, using tax money. As a vendor for DRS, SLRS, Inc., has been providing interpreters and charging the state for the service. Now, with the enormous state budget cuts, the DRS program paying for these services has been completely cut.

The responsibility falls back to the businesses and organizations, which are responsible to provide and pay for sign language interpreters as mandated by the ADA. The Department of Justice has made it possible for persons with disabilities to sue non-compliant businesses, at no cost to the disabled. Additionally, many attorneys who practice constitutional law enthusiastically take on ADA cases because they are easily won. The reason? Case law shows Judges held businesses accountable, whether or not they were knowledgeable about the ADA. It is in your best interest to learn more! Businesses that choose not to accept the deaf, based solely on the reason the deaf person will require an accommodation, is a violation of the ADA.

Here are some resources:

OK Dept. of Rehabilitation, 800-833-8973
U.S. Department of Justice, or 202-307-2236
American Medical Association’s Position Paper on the ADA