Can Federal Contractors Still Ask About Disability Status?
Registration for this free webinar is currently open.
Date: September 16, 2026 (2:00 PM - 2:45 PM EDT)
Effective September 21, 2026, the Department of Labor's (DOL) new Section 503 regulations remove the requirement that federal contractors invite applicants and employees to voluntarily self-identify as individuals with disabilities. DOL stopped short of prohibiting the practice, directing contractors instead to exercise their own legal and business judgment about whether disability inquiries comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Additionally, longstanding Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidance still permits voluntary self-identification for affirmative action purposes.
This leaves contractors left to wonder what to do next. Join DCI experts as they walk through the options available to federal contractors and how to build a defensible path forward. In this webinar, we’ll cover:
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What changes on September 21, 2026, and what stays in place
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How to decide whether to continue, modify, or discontinue disability self-identification
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Why pre-offer, post-offer, and existing-employee inquiries call for different decisions
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Practical safeguards for contractors that keep collecting, including documented purpose, genuine voluntariness, and confidentiality firewalls
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How to document the decision your organization reaches
- How your decision impacts requirements still in effect
