DRNC’s 2026 Advocacy Targets

What are Targets

People with disabilities have a great need for legal assistance. Disability Rights North Carolina (DRNC) receives far more requests for legal assistance than we have the resources to accept. We are far short of sufficient funding to hire the staff needed to address every disability-related legal matter in North Carolina. We understand how disappointing it is when people with disabilities contact us for help, and we are unable to assist. To make the most of our limited resources, DRNC works with the disability community to identify the legal problems that are the most pressing, widespread, or that no one else is equipped to handle. By being strategic about how we use our funding and staff, we hope to make the biggest impact possible for the most people. Many people will never even know how they have been helped by DRNC’s work but their lives will improve.

DRNC’s Advocacy Targets are the result of our continuous collaboration with the disability community. They are published to share the issues we are focused on resolving or improving based on the requests for help and community input we receive. This is the most efficient way to respond to the tremendous demand on our resources and to inform the public where we are focusing our work.

DRNC’s core advocacy activities are listed at the end of this document. We also invite public comment on how we carry out this ongoing work.

DRNC also seeks private grants to increase our advocacy for disabled people. This work is deﬁned in project proposals and is not subject to public comment.

DRNC’s DRAFT advocacy targets for Fiscal Year 2026 are as follows:

Advocate for students with disabilities to receive free appropriate public education (FAPE)

Students with disabilities face discrimination through school exclusion more than other students. DRNC helps make sure students with disabilities are not excluded from school, whether based on disciplinary, medical, or other reasons, and are receiving a free appropriate public education (FAPE) in the student’s least restrictive environment (LRE) that meets their individualized needs. *

We address these issues by

Assisting students with disabilities serving a lengthy homebound placement or modiﬁed school schedule who can be served in a less restrictive setting if the school provides an appropriate placement, supports, and services
Assisting students with disabilities serving a long-term suspension, multiple short-term suspensions, repeated or long-term in-school suspensions, informal send homes, expulsion, or alternative school placement in violation of legal disciplinary safeguards
Assisting students with disabilities with an active juvenile court referral or at-risk of juvenile court involvement
Monitoring and advocating for students in NC’s youth development centers (YDCs) and juvenile detention centers (JDCs) who are not receiving appropriate special education services

*Because the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) does not cover private schools, DRNC does not assist with problems in private schools.

Advocate for people with disabilities to have opportunities to obtain and maintain integrated jobs that pay at least minimum wage

People with disabilities face discrimination when ﬁnding work, keeping their jobs, or getting better jobs. We help make sure people are given fair chances to work. For example, within our resources and priorities, DRNC has

Assisted people facing workplace discrimination, including if they were not hired, denied a reasonable accommodation, terminated, or received unequal work benefits because of their disability
Assisted people having problems with disability employment support programs, like vocational rehabilitation or employment networks
Assisted people who lack information about how work may impact their Social Security beneﬁts

DRNC does not help people become eligible for Social Security, but we can help if people already receive benefits and are having work-related problems. DRNC can only provide representation to a small percentage of people who contact us about workplace discrimination and prioritizes issues that impact the broader disability community.

Advocate for people with disabilities to have opportunities to benefit from community places, programs, and services

People with disabilities face discrimination when visiting local businesses or trying to access public services. We help make sure people are given fair chances to live and participate in their communities by helping make sure businesses, medical providers, colleges, cities, and government programs are accessible. For example, within our resources and priorities, we have

Assisted people who cannot use public transportation because bus stops are inaccessible
Assisted people who need classroom or courtroom accommodations
Assisted people who cannot use their service animals in public places
Assisted people who need sign language interpreters or braille materials
Assisted people who cannot use prescribed medications to treat opioid use disorders

DRNC is only able to provide representation to a small percentage of people who contact us about discrimination in public places and prioritizes issues that impact the broader disability community.

Reduce unnecessary institutionalization of individuals with disabilities and improve access to home and community-based services and supports (HCBS)

The current health services system in North Carolina tends to favor putting people with disabilities in institutions instead of supporting them to live in their own homes and communities, in violation of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Olmstead decision. This means that some people who could live successfully in the community are stuck in institutions. These situations are the focus of DRNC’s ongoing cases known as Samantha R. and Timothy B. that address the lack of community options for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) and foster children with behavioral health disabilities.

Some people living in the community are at risk of being forced into institutions due to insufficient resources and problems with how services are provided. People should not have to go into unwanted, costly hospitals or institutions to get the services they need. Institutions are typically more expensive and produce worse outcomes for people than when they are supported in the community. DRNC works to help people with disabilities live in the community with the services and supports they need to succeed, to achieve better outcomes at less cost to taxpayers. We do not help people get Medicaid, but we help disabled Medicaid beneficiaries get the services and supports they need to live safely in the community.

DRNC helps secure appropriate home and community-based services (HCBS) for

Adults and children with disabilities who are denied the services they are entitled to receive
Disabled people stuck in institutions who can and want to live in the community
Children and youth facing the risk of institutionalization due to a lack of services in the community

Protect the housing rights of people with disabilities

People with disabilities often face discrimination when it comes to ﬁnding and keeping a place to live. They are often denied the modifications or accommodations they need to use and enjoy their homes like everyone else. Some disabled people are harassed or treated unfairly because of their disability.

Many disabled people lack information about their rights under the Fair Housing Act, and North Carolina has among the highest eviction rates in the country. DRNC works to ensure that people with disabilities are not evicted in violation of their legal rights. We do not help people find housing but can sometimes help identify supported housing programs that assist with housing.

DRNC helps maintain housing stability by assisting

People whose housing providers have denied them reasonable accommodations or modiﬁcations
People and their households at risk of losing their housing due to disability, related discrimination or failures to accommodate their disability-related needs
People who have been denied access to housing based on their disabilities

Examples of DRNC’s housing work include

Helping tenants keep their assistance animals despite threats of eviction for violating “no pet” policies
Helping tenants with mobility disabilities secure reserved parking spaces near their units
Helping tenants get changes to their lease rules when needed to accommodate their disabilities

Advocate for a safe, equitable and just criminal legal system for people with disabilities

People with disabilities face many challenges in the criminal legal system. They are more likely to have injurious interactions with law enforcement, more likely to be incarcerated, and face significant difficulties when rejoining their communities after incarceration. Disabled people are often kept in solitary conﬁnement without treatment, languish in jails because of inadequate resources and care, or face delays or outright denials of medications and other accommodations while incarcerated. Upon release, people with disabilities struggle to find adequate care, adjust to life outside of prison, and satisfy the terms of their post-release supervision.

To address these issues, DRNC

Advocates for adequate medical care, mental health care, accessibility, and proper accommodations in prison and jail facilities
Monitors prison and jail facilities across the state to ensure safe conditions for people with disabilities
Tracks and reports on conditions, overcrowding, and deaths in prison and jail facilities through the acquisition and analysis of public records
Engages in statewide advocacy to address problems that threaten the rights and dignity of incarcerated people with disabilities
Advocates for appropriate post-incarceration transition (re-entry) for disabled people
Educates attorneys, court officials, and other stakeholders to highlight and overcome the barriers people with disabilities face when interacting with criminal legal system in North Carolina

Limitations

DRNC does not represent individuals in civil litigation, including litigation for the purpose of obtaining damages and wrongful death litigation
DRNC does not advocate for individual accommodations in a carceral facility unless the client has already exhausted the facility’s accommodation or grievance procedure and has received unsatisfactory results

Advocate for people with disabilities to control their own lives

People with disabilities too often have their rights taken away through incompetency and commitment proceedings. “Incompetency proceeding” means a clerk or judge will decide if a person needs a guardian to make important life decisions. Within our resources and priorities, DRNC helps people retain or recover the right to control their own lives, for example, to retain their right to make medical decisions, marry and spend time with whomever they want, and live where they want to live. We do not help people pursue guardianships.

“Involuntary commitment proceeding” means a judge will decide if a person with a disability is a danger and needs to be hospitalized against their will. It begins with a custody order, a medical exam and transportation to a 24-hour facility for additional medical examination. There are not enough affordable, quality community services for people with mental health and substance use disabilities, which results in more and more people getting committed to hospitals against their will. Please see DRNC’s publicly available report highlighting issues with involuntary commitment and making recommendations for change.

Within our resources and priorities, DRNC assists people who

Would have voluntarily agreed to a medical examination and treatment if offered
Were held against their will at an emergency department
Were held against their will at a 24-hour facility for days after the judge ordered them to be released

DRNC does not provide representation during involuntary commitments because people have a right to appointed counsel after they are transported to a 24-hour facility.

Core Advocacy Activities (DRNC’s work outside the advocacy targets )

Monitoring and Investigations

DRNC has the authority and responsibility to monitor places where people with disabilities live or receive services to find and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse. We conduct investigations to ensure disabled people are not harmed or neglected. This work is vital to our mission.

Sometimes we focus on speciﬁc issues, like making sure schools support students with disabilities properly and do not use inappropriate restraint and seclusion or looking into how children are cared for in psychiatric residential treatment facilities (PRTFs). By shifting our focus based on community complaints, reports, and changing laws or policies, DRNC can address current problems, prevent new ones, and improve disability services.

With our available resources, DRNC will

Visit different types of facilities, speak with residents/students and staff, and determine if these places are safe and following legal standards
Investigate deaths and complaints of abuse, neglect, or rights violations in facilities
Find individuals who can and want to live in the community with support and help them transition safely to the community with the right services
Advocate for reforms to improve quality of care and protect the rights of disabled people in facilities

Outreach

DRNC’s outreach work involves connecting with disabled people, organizations, communities, and other interested groups. We aim to raise awareness about our services, educate people about disability rights, and help individuals access the resources and support they need to live independently in the communities they choose.

We focus on reaching all 100 counties in North Carolina, especially areas where people may not have easy access to services. DRNC’s outreach efforts gather input from disabled people across the state to guide our advocacy work and priorities.

DRNC also reaches out to and assists people with disabilities who have been affected by natural disasters or public health emergencies.

Information, Referral, and Self-Advocacy Support

Another key part of DRNC’s work is providing information and support for self-advocacy among people with disabilities. We provide information and referral services, help direct disabled people to community resources, conduct outreach and education, and offer self-advocacy materials to help people learn about and enforce disability rights.

Voting Rights

People with disabilities still vote at lower rates than those without disabilities. This happens because of structural and procedural barriers, and because policymakers, election boards, political parties, funders, voter engagement advocates, and volunteers often overlook the needs of disabled voters.

DRNC works to improve voting rights by making sure groups working on voter engagement and mobilization consider the needs of voters with disabilities and make their efforts accessible. We work to remove obstacles to voting, identify and address barriers at polling sites, and offer non-partisan information about voting to people with disabilities.

Public Policy Advocacy

DRNC works to ensure that the perspectives of people with disabilities are considered in North Carolina’s laws, rules, policies, and procedures. We engage in public policy advocacy with funds from individual donors to support our work.

Representative Payee Reviews

DRNC conducts reviews to ensure that disabled people who have a representative payee managing their Social Security benefits are not abused, neglected, or exploited. Our representative payee reviews include

An interview with the individual or organizational representative payee
A review of the representative payee’s financial records for a beneficiary, or a sampling of multiple beneficiaries served
A home visit and interview for each beneficiary included in the review
An interview with legal guardians and third parties when applicable