5 free society is justifiably famous, and costs the United States billions of dollars in unnecessary expenses re sulting from dependency and nonproductivity. (b) PURPOSE.-It is the purpose of this Act (1) to provide a clear and comprehensive national mandate for the elimination of discrimination against individuals with disabilities; (2) to provide clear, strong, consistent, enforceable standards addressing discrimination against individuals with disabilities; (3) to ensure that the Federal Government plays a central role in enforcing the standards established in this Act on behalf of individuals with disabilities; and (4) to invoke the sweep of congressional authority, including its power to enforce the fourteenth amendment and to regulate commerce, in order to address the major areas of discrimination faced day-to-day by people with disabilities. 19 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 20 As used in this Act: (1) AUXILIARY AIDS AND SERVICES.-The term "auxiliary aids and services" includes (A) qualified interpreters or other effective methods of making aurally delivered materials available to individuals with hearing impairments; 08 933 PP 6 (B) qualified readers, taped texts, or other effective methods of making visually delivered ma terials available to individuals with visual impair ments; (C) acquisition or modification of equipment or devices; and (D) other similar services and actions. (2) DISABILITY.-The term "disability" means, with respect to an individual (A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individual; ment. (B) a record of such an impairment; or (C) being regarded as having such an impair (3) STATE.-The term "State" means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Virgin Islands, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. TITLE I-EMPLOYMENT 7 1 (1) COMMISSION.—The term "Commission" means the Equal Employment Opportunity Commis sion established by section 705 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-4). (2) COVERED ENTITY.-The term "covered entity” means an employer, employment agency, labor organization, or joint labor-management committee. (3) EMPLOYEE.-The term "employee" means an individual employed by an employer. (4) EMPLOYER.— (A) The term "employer" means a person engaged in an industry affecting commerce who has 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the cur rent or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such person, except that, for two years following the effective date of this title, an employer means a person engaged in an industry affecting com merce who has 25 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding year, and any agent of such person. (B) EXCEPTIONS.-The term "employer" does not include 08 933 PP 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 8 (i) the United States, a corporation wholly owned by the government of the United States, or an Indian tribe; or (ii) a bona fide private membership club (other than a labor organization) that is exempt from taxation under section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. (5) ILLEGAL DRUG.-The term "illegal drug" means a controlled substance, as defined in schedules I through V of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812), the possession or distribution of which is unlawful under such Act. The term "illegal drug" does not mean the use of a controlled substance pursuant to a valid prescription or other uses authorized by this Act. (6) PERSON, ETC.-The terms "person", "labor organization", "employment agency", "commerce", and "industry affecting commerce", shall have the same meaning given such terms in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e). (7) QUALIFIED INDIVIDUAL WITH A DISABILITY.-The term "qualified individual with a disability" means an individual with a disability who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the 08 933 PP essential functions of the employment position that such individual holds or desires. (8) REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION.-The term “reasonable accommodation" may include— (A) making existing facilities used by employees readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities; and (B) job restructuring, part-time or modified work schedules, reassignment to a vacant position, acquisition or modification of equipment or devices, appropriate adjustment or modifications of examinations, training materials or policies, the provision of qualified readers or interpreters, and other similar accommodations for individuals with whether an accommodation would impose an undue hardship on a covered entity, factors to be considered include (i) the overall size of the business of a covered entity with respect to the number of |