In late December, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted to approve final regulations intended to implement the provisions of the ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA). Under federal law, the rules must be sent to the Office of Management and Budget for review. Although OMB has up to 90 days to complete its review, the EEOC requested expedited consideration of the final regulations.

ADAAA expands the definition of protected disabled persons under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Many employers contended that the EEOC's proposed ADAAA rules went beyond this mandate, containing requirements inconsistent with the statute. For example, the proposed regulations included a list of conditions that the EEOC would consider to be per se disabilities despite the requirement in the law that such determinations be made on a case-by-case basis.

In voting to adopt the final rules, the EEOC did not disclose any changes. The final rules should be released by the end of March.