Yes, a lawsuit could eliminate Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protects people from discrimination based on a disability. A lawsuit by Texas and several other states could end it.

HOUSTON — Is there a lawsuit that seeks to eliminate a key protection for people with disabilities?

Social media posts have raised the alarm that a part of U.S. law code Section 504 could be at risk of being eliminated because of a federal lawsuit. So is there a lawsuit seeking to eliminate Section 504?

Our sources

We checked with our sources, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and a federal lawsuit that includes Texas and more than a dozen other states.

What we found

First, according to the HHS, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 protects qualified individuals from discrimination based on their disability. This protection is required for any organization that receives financial assistance from the federal government, impacting places like schools, hospitals, and more.

We then looked for and found the lawsuit Texas v. Becerra. That lawsuit, filed by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in September 2024 against the Biden administration, seeks to throw out the inclusion of gender dysphoria in Section 504 protections. Paxton and others argue the rule is an overreach by the federal government and raises concerns of accommodating the protection.

But on page 42 of the lawsuit under “demand for relief,” along with declaring the inclusion of gender dysphoria in Section 504 a violation, the lawsuit also includes declaring Section 504 unconstitutional.

So yes, it is true that there is a lawsuit involving Texas and 16 other states that could eliminate Section 504. And while the primary goal of the lawsuit targets a specific rule over gender identity, the lawsuit argues against Section 504’s constitutionality and gives judges the option to eliminate it.

The future of the lawsuit is uncertain as the defendant, the Department of Health and Human Services, is now under the new Trump administration.

According to the Texas Education Agency, during the 2023-24 school year, there were 400,152 students are protected under Section 504. Of those, 3,372 are both special education and Section 504.