May 16, 2016
The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is disappointed to see that the Obama Administration issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on May 5 to implement its badly conceived and damaging proposal to report Social Security disability beneficiaries who have a representative payee to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). As mentioned in AAPD’s statement in January, this proposal will do nothing to prevent gun violence and will hurt people with disabilities by:
- Perpetuating stigma against and stereotypes of people with psychiatric disabilities despite evidence that they are no more likely to commit violent acts than people without psychiatric disabilities;
- Creating a dangerous precedent of restricting the civil rights of people with disabilities, as pointed out by the Autistic Self Advocacy Network;
- Diverting government resources from processing applications for vital income support benefits, as the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law points out in its statement opposing this proposal; and
- Preventing individuals from getting needed treatment, or applying for Social Security disability benefits or a representative payee.
To prevent implementation of this harmful proposal, AAPD supports and urges swift consideration and passage of HR 3516, The Social Security Disability Beneficiary 2nd Amendment Rights Protection Act. As a disability rights organization, AAPD is not commenting on Second Amendment rights by supporting this bill. We are opposing the Administration’s proposed rule because it will hurt people with disabilities without actually making anyone any safer.
Please sign-on as an organization or individual to show your support for HR 3516 and your opposition to the Obama Administration’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to report Social Security disability beneficiaries who have a representative payee to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).