Congresswoman Simon Demands Protections for Workers with Disabilities

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, in a letter to the Department of Labor (DOL) Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) demanded answers regarding the DOL's continued failure to carry out enforcement responsibilities, including ensuring protections for workers with disabilities.

Within the Department of Labor, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) is responsible for enforcing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibits federal contractors from discriminating against workers with disabilities. In September 2025, Congresswoman Simon expressed concern about OFCCP's suspension of disability discrimination investigations and the agency's diminished capacity to enforce Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act following staff reductions and field office closures. Since that initial letter, additional concerns have emerged regarding whether OFCCP is carrying out its remaining enforcement responsibilities.

This follow-up letter seeks answers regarding OFCCP's current enforcement activities, complaint-processing timelines, and public reporting practices. It also reiterates the Congresswoman's request for transparency regarding the agency's efforts to protect workers with disabilities.

In the letter to the DOL, Congresswoman Simon wrote:

"These issues add to existing concerns noted in our September 3, 2025, letter. Our letter raised concerns that the agency suspended investigations and complaint processing for nearly six months, abandoned compliance reviews for more than 2,000 federal contractors, and stopped affirmative action plan monitoring via annual certification. We requested a response to our questions about the impact on workers by October 1, 2025, but have yet to receive a reply."

"We are deeply concerned that workers with disabilities working for federal contractors are being left without recourse as OFCCP's enforcement capacity continues to erode. Workers with disabilities waiting for accountability deserve better."

Congresswoman Simon requested answers to the following questions by July 31, 2026. You can read the full letter text here.

1. Please provide a copy of the OFCCP's reorganization plan.
2. What are the agency's plans to increase the percentage of complaints processed in the standard time frame?
3. Please explain how the OFCCP's reorganization plan is designed to help ensure that workers with disabilities employed by federal contractors have their rights enforced, including having their complaints processed in the standard time frame.
4. Please provide the total number of OFCCP investigators as of May 1, 2026.
5. Please provide a list of open OFCCP field offices as of May 1, 2026.
6. Please provide copies of the conciliation agreements the agency has entered into since January 2025.
7. Please explain why the agency has not posted conciliation agreements to its website in more than a year.
8. How many audits has the agency conducted from January 20, 2025 to May 1, 2026?

Congresswoman Simon is the first congenitally blind member to serve in Congress and a leader in the disability policy space. In October 2025, Representatives Simon, McBath and DeSaulnier ledtheir colleagues in a letter to the Department of Education and the Office of Management and Budget condemning layoffs in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Congresswoman Simon has also introduced a number of bills in the disability policy space including: the Disability and Age in Jury Service Nondiscrimination Act, the See the Board Act, and the Same Day Paratransit Innovation Act.

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