Increasing the Opportunity for Individuals With Disabilities To Be Employed in the Federal Government

This executive order directs federal agencies to increase hiring of individuals with disabilities, setting a goal of 100,000 hires over 5 years through expanded outreach and reasonable accommodations. Agencies must submit implementation plans to the Office of Personnel Management within 60 days.

Federal Register Open PDF 65 FR 46563

Impact dates

Jul 25, 2005
100,000 hiring goal deadline (5 years from signing)
Sep 24, 2000
Agency plans due to OPM

Key directives

Federal agencies shall use available hiring authorities to employ individuals with disabilities
Federal agencies shall expand outreach efforts using traditional and nontraditional methods
Federal agencies shall increase efforts to accommodate individuals with disabilities
Federal government will hire 100,000 qualified individuals with disabilities over 5 years
Each federal agency shall prepare and submit plan to OPM within 60 days
OPM shall develop guidance on EO provisions
Agencies not required to create new positions or change qualification standards

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

EO takes effect upon signing
agencies must begin plan preparation

Near term (90d)

agency plans due to OPM by September 24, 2000
OPM to develop guidance on EO provisions

Long term

5-year hiring goal of 100,000 qualified individuals with disabilities (through 2005)
ongoing outreach and accommodation efforts

Risks & tensions

No enforcement mechanism or consequences for missing 100,000 hiring goal
Section 4 explicitly bars judicial review, limiting accountability
Vague 'increase efforts' language without quantitative benchmarks for individual agencies
Exemption from creating new positions or changing standards may limit actual impact
Relies on voluntary agency compliance and existing hiring authorities