*Pages 1--1 from Microsoft Word - 25768.doc* STATEMENT OF COMMISSIONER JONATHAN S. ADELSTEIN APPROVING Re: In the Matter of Amendment of Part 1, Subpart N of the Commission’s Rules Concerning Non- Discrimination on the Basis of Disability in the Commission’s Programs and Activities I would like to commend the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau for its successful efforts in bringing yet another item to the Commission floor. After reading the handbook, I must say that it is both very thorough and informative. While a staff member in the United States Senate, I worked to help pass the Americans with Disabilities Act and devoted a great amount of attention to the Social Security Disability Insurance program. These types of issues ring very true to me. We, as a Commission, need to ensure that we have a uniform and comprehensive approach to ensuring accessibility to all Commission events in order to meet the Rehabilitation Act Section 504 requirements. As a federal entity, this is our mandate. I agree that in order to maintain that uniform approach, we need to periodically review the Commission’s current policies and practices every three years in order to take into account any relevant technological advances. Again, I want to thank you for your time on this very important issue. 1