Judge Says Paper Money Violates The Law

According to CNN, a federal judge in New York has ruled that the Treasury Department is breaking the law with the paper money it issues in the United States. The Rehabilitation Act guarantees "meaningful access", but since the paper money used by the United States has the same size and feel regardless of the denomination, "meaningful access" has been denied to blind and visually-impaired people.

Judge James Robertson wrote in his ruling, "It can no longer be successfully argued that a blind person has 'meaningful access' to currency if she cannot accurately identify paper money without assistance."

Judge Robertson ordered the Treasury Department to devise a method for blind people to tell the different bills apart, and has given them 30 days to begin working on the solution. The judge does not believe this will pose an undue burden for the government.

The suit was brought against the Treasury Department by the American Council of the Blind, and the ACB has offered several different solutions, including embossing, punching holes in the bills, or making the different denominations different sizes.

I believe the judge is absolutely right in his decision. There is no credible reason for this inequity to exist. To not be able to tell a one-dollar bill from a twenty or a hundred puts the blind at a serious disadvantage in our society.

The solutions are simple, and the government should choose one and end the discrimination. Frankly, I'm surprised it took the courts this long to see what is obvious to many.

But the Bush administration is a stranger to obvious truths, and I expect they will appeal the decision rather than solve the problem, no matter how simple the solution would be.

I hope the higher courts have as much common sense as Judge Robertson.