Whereas, in 1950, parents and friends of children with intellectual disabilities founded what is now known as The Arc;

Whereas a primary motivation of these families was to keep their children at home where they could live as part of the family because they did not want to send their children to live in institutions, and as their children grew older, these families worked to ensure their inclusion in the community and later expanded The Arc’s mission to advance the rights and services of adults with disabilities;

Whereas, in 1971, parents associated with The Arc of Pennsylvania sued the State and won the right of their children to receive a free, appropriate, public education, and this Federal court case, PARC v. Pennsylvania, inspired Congress in 1975 to enact the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, Public Law 94–142, now known as the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), that extended equal educational opportunity to the Nation’s children with disabilities;

Whereas, since its inception, The Arc has strongly advocated for the rights and protection of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and this advocacy included exposing abuses in institutional care and pushing for their closure, securing social insurance for adults disabled in childhood, stopping harmful research done on disabled human subjects, and increasing societal awareness of the dangers of alcohol consumption during pregnancy;

Whereas, today, The Arc includes nearly 600 State and local chapters across 47 States;

Whereas The Arc has been instrumental in advocating for the passage of numerous critical legislation for people with disabilities, including the Supplemental Security Income program which provides income support for many people with disabilities, the Baby Doe amendments to the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, the Developmental Disabilities and Bill of Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, coverage of health care and long-term supports and services in the Federal and State Medicaid program, and legislation to support the development of robust home and community-based services to replace isolating institutions;

Whereas The Arc has been a leader at the State and national level in landmark litigation to promote and protect the rights of individuals with disabilities and their families regarding public education, deinstitutionalization, and the right to home and community supports, housing, right to medical treatment without discrimination based on disability, and other civil rights and key public services;

Whereas The Arc is a strong partner with local, State, and Federal governments, foundations, corporations, other advocacy organizations, service providers, and other sectors to advocate, provide, or connect individuals to education, employment, caregiving, and aging services; and

Whereas, in 2025, The Arc will celebrate 75 years of advancing the mission envisioned by its founders, to promote and protect the civil and human rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities: Now, therefore, be it