My name is Meverllyn J. Vaughn and I am writing this petition on behalf of the United States Americans with Disabilities who are licensed citizen drivers.

My personal journey began more than 35 years ago after meeting Robert Smith in Los Angeles, California at the USPS Airport department who was deaf, and in turn, demanded that I learn his language for proper communication. After two years, I dedicated myself to assisting the deaf and hard-of-hearing community. Serving this community has truly been an eye-opening experience as I have witnessed an unfortunate disparity. There is a glaring difference between the level of communication received by the average citizen and that the deaf community receives. This gap is especially noticeable during State, County, City, Law Enforcement, School Board, Fire Department and Union meetings, where the deaf and hard-of-hearing community often find themselves left in the dark due to a lack of adequate sign language interpreters.

 There are 61 million Americans living with a disability that impacts their major life activities with mobility being the most common, affecting 1 in 7 adults. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, there are approximately 37 million deaf and hard-of-hearing people living in the United States. It is estimated that 1 in 10 live with some degree of hearing loss (myself being one of them) and over 2.2 million are considered deaf. The highest deaf/hard-of-hearing population is located in South Dakota at approximately 9.7%. Following suit are New Mexico at 6.8%, Alaska at 6.7%, and Wyoming at 6.5%. There are approximately 187 deaf churches in the United States, with the largest communities being Martha’s Vineyard, Austin Texas, Los Angeles California, and Rochester New York; having the highest density of deaf people living in one area. On July 26, 1990, The American Disability Act prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in several areas; including employment, transportation, public accommodations, and communication, as well as ensures access to state and local government programs and services.

Now, we need to expand those protections to another category, that being encounters with Law Enforcement. Disabled motorists, especially those who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, are at greater risk for a routine traffic stop going awry. When Law Enforcement initially pulls over a driver during a traffic stop, they have no idea if/how the driver is disabled. They may only have one arm, a mobility or physical condition (and therefore cannot exit a vehicle if requested) and or deaf and hard-of-hearing.
As driving is a privilege, each driver is required to keep a valid driver’s license on their person, update their license upon renewal, keep your vehicle registration up to date every year, pay auto insurance premiums, obey the driving rules of the road and respect other drivers who share the road with you. You must also maintain your vehicle to ensure that it is in safe, operating condition on the road so you may prevent an accident. It is imperative that you keep all needed documents on hand in your vehicle, updated registration, updated insurance card, a copy of your driver license (if you forget your wallet) also, a list of names in case an emergency.

According to the American Community Survey (ACS), approximately 3.6% of the population, or over 11 million people in the United States, who consider themselves to be deaf or hard-of-hearing (National Deaf Center). In addition the Hearing Loss Association of America estimates that 48 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss.
This can serve as a challenge for Law Enforcement who, by all accounts are here to protect and serve their respective communities, may find themselves in a delicate situation that may unintentionally escalate. Law Enforcement may have various reasons for stopping a motorist, even if from a civilian perspective might appear to be lacking. These can include violations such as a broken taillight, expired tags/registration, some other vehicle code violation, speeding, what appears to be reckless/negligent driving and so on.

These are a few of many reasons Law Enforcement may request that a driver pull over. If the driver is deaf or hard-of-hearing and/or have mobility issues, problems can arise that range from inconveniencing the driver to an escalated confrontation between the driver and Law Enforcement.  However, if the Department of Motor Vehicles would code these drivers’ license plates, this could ease the pain of the disabled drivers, Law Enforcement and the communities that they serve, ensuring a proper response to this particular situation. 

For example: a “CODE 04” registered to a particular license plate/driver’s license could indicate that this driver is deaf or hard-of-hearing. Law Enforcement will then be aware that there will be a barrier in communication and extra measures will be needed.  Each Law Enforcement officer should be required to carry pen, paper, and have a mini dispatch list of Sign Language Interpreters and/or a list of common Sign Language visual phrases. You may gain this information by contacting the Registry of Interpreter for the Deaf.  (https://rid.org In addition you may contact your local Purple Communication Services for the Deaf. (https://purplevrs.com  If services are not dispatched immediately, officers should use pen and paper until the interpreter arrives either in-person or via remote conferencing. The same principle and coding can be applied for other disabilities as well, such using a “CODE 09” to indicate a mobility issue, “CODE 14” for speech impediment, and so on. 

The change must start with the State Department of Motor Vehicles during the initial process for first-time drivers and for license renewal. Throughout the United States, the recent COVID-19 pandemic altered all of our lives, living conditions and employment.  We all felt the affects through low provisions of everyday necessities, loss of employment, civil unrest, and an abundance of death and loss. As you may have seen, there were many Sign Language national television news stations with round-the-clock updates with CDC teams communicating daily for the deaf and hard-of-hearing communities.  The same accommodations should be made for these communities in all areas of everyday life that we take for granted, especially with potential encounters with Law Enforcement.
I am petitioning for all the deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens throughout the United States of American and other disabilities as a strong supporter of the American Disability Act.
Former President George H. Bush signed the ADA in 1990, and it states that the all persons with disabilities are to be provided with reasonable accommodation. Let’s accommodate those citizens with disabilities, giving them the dignity we are all afforded and deserve.

Along with mandatory refresher training courses, I would like to add the follow:

⦁ Sensitive Training
⦁ Deaf Awareness Training
⦁ Pocket booklet with signs
⦁ Deaf community to attend townhall meetings
⦁ Daily Briefings concerning citizens
⦁ Display Board in all breakrooms
⦁ Provisions for deaf/hard-of-hearing drivers to have access to ID, vehicle registration and insurance holders/binders in vehicles for easy access for both drivers and Law Enforcement