Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Secretary 45 CFR Part 84 RIN 0945-AA27 AGENCY: Office for Civil Rights (OCR), Office of the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services. ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. SUMMARY: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS or Department) issues this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to revise 45 CFR 84.4(g) in the regulation implementing section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (section 504) as it applies to recipients of HHS funding (entitled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance,” 89 FR 40066 (“2024 Final Rule”)), published on May 9, 2024. This rule clarifies that the Department interprets the statutory exclusion of “gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments” from the definitions of “individual with a disability” and “disability” set forth at 29 U.S.C. 705(9) & (20)(F)(i), 42 U.S.C. 12211(b) , to encompass “gender dysphoria not resulting from a physical impairment” for purposes of part 84. This clarification is necessary to resolve ambiguity introduced in the preamble to the 2024 Final Rule and to ensure compliance with the best reading of the plain language of the governing statute. DATES: Comments: Submit comments on or before January 20, 2026. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments to this proposed rule, identified by RIN Numb…