Each spring, as the snow melts away and the cherry blossoms bloom, advocates from a variety of groups gather for their annual Hill Day. The Disability Policy Seminar (DPS) continues to be the premier opportunity for self-advocates, family members, and professionals to gather in Washington D.C. to sharpen their skills and meet with legislators in our nation’s capital. This year’s event was held on March 23 and 24, compartmentalizing the event into a streamlined, single day of seminars on Monday and hill visits on Tuesday. Around 900 individuals participated in this year’s event.
The 2026 program featured a new DPS Academy, which included plain language videos on topics important to the Intellectual and/or Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) including federal funding basics, Medicaid 101, and education. The event was hosted through partnership between The Arc, The Autism Society, The American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD), The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD), Caring Across Generations, Disability Belongs, The National Association of Direct Service Providers (NADSP), Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE), United Cerebral Palsy (ACP), and TASH.
Three areas of importance were identified by the partnership organizations: education, disability funding, and health care (see Fact Sheets Here). These priorities were articulated by panels and breakout sessions in which self-advocates, policymakers, and disability professionals shared their personal and professional experiences on the topic. Several speakers reminded participants that disability was a unique community, as relationships with the body and mind change throughout the life course and, unlike other marginalized identities, may naturally touch the lives of every single human being. The messaging was clear – Disability Rights are Human Rights! We must work to find common ground and work together across disability groups, after all 1 in 4 U.S. adults have some type of disability, making our community a very large minority group if we work collectively.
On Tuesday morning, DPS participants gathered for a rally on the Capital Grounds. We heard from several self-advocates from all over the country and were joined by various political figures including: Rep. Debbie Dingell, Sen. Maggie Hassan, Rep. Pete Sessions, and Sen. Ron Wyden. Sen. Hassan said, “we do hard things”, when addressing the crowd, not as a politician but as the parent of an adult son with a disability, Ben. For a moment, we were seen as who we are – a ferocious, hardworking, and dynamic community whose values and needs are often overlooked and underrecognized.
From state to state, the impact of ongoing sociopolitical divisiveness is being felt in different ways. Each state is working to absorb cuts to Medicaid due to H.R. 1 and each state is approaching the crisis differently. As a reminder, there are several provisions within the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act”. Work requirements, for example, are expected to begin in January of 2027, but the roll out of all provisions within the bill are projected to be complete in 2034.
You don’t need to visit Washington D.C. to make a difference, contact your legislators today!
Written by SLN’s Co-Chair of Policy & Advocacy, Tiffany Banks