In recent years, the U.S. Supreme Court has developed a new federalism policy that has eviscerated the powers of the U.S. Congress in favor of states' rights. This article addresses the implications of the Supreme Court's new federalism policy for the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967 as amended. It focuses on two recent High Court decisions, Kimel v. Florida Board of Regents and Garrett v. the University of Alabama, which greatly reduced the scope of both the ADA and the ADEA. In light of these decisions, alternative actions for enforcing antidiscrimination laws are provided.
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College Savings Bank v. Florida Prepaid Postsecondary Education Expense Board, 527 U.S. 666 (1999).
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Driesse v. Florida Board of Regents, 26 F. Supp. 2d 1328, 1332-34 (M.D. Fla. 1998).
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Fitzpatrick v. Bitzer, 427 U.S. 445 (1976).
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18.
Goshtasby v. Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, 141 F.3d 761, 765-66 (7th Cir. 1998)
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21.
Illinois State University v. Varner, 528 U.S. 1110 (2000), vacating Varner v. Illinois State University, 150 F.3d 706 (7th Cir. 1998); on remand, Varner v. Illinois State University, 226 F.3d 927 (2000).
22.
In re Employment Discrimination Litigation Against the State of Alabama, 198 F.3d 1305 (11th Cir. 1999).
23.
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Kilvitis v. County of Luzerne, 52 F. Supp. 2d 403, 408-409 (M.D. Pa. 1999).
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Kimel v. Florida Board of Regents, 528 U.S. 62 (2000).
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34.
Printz v. United States, 521 U.S. 898 (1997).
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49.
Wathen v. General Electric Company, 115 F.3d 400, 405 (6th Cir. 1997).
50.
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51.
Will v. Michigan Department of State Police, 491 U.S. 58 (1989).
52.
Wise, C.R. (2001). The Supreme Court's new constitutional federalism: Implications for public administration. Public Administration Review, 61, 343-358.
