by Jenann Elias

A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Treasury Department is violating the law by discriminating against blind people. Judge James Robertson said the Treasury Department is failing to issue currency that can easily be distinguished by the blind and visually impaired. Out of more than 180 countries that use paper currency, the United States is the only one that prints bills identical in size and color for all denominations. 

In a ruling on a suit by the American Council of the Blind, Robertson said, "It can no longer be successfully argued that a blind person has 'meaningful access' to currency if she cannot accurately identify money without assistance." He said that the current look and feel of paper money violates the Rehabilitation Act, which provides protection to Americans with disabilities.  

Robertson noted that visually impaired individuals are "always at risk of being cheated" because they cannot easily differentiate the value of bills. Jeffrey A. Lovitky, attorney for the plaintiffs in the suit, said, "It's unfair that blind people should have to rely on the good faith of people they have never met in knowing whether they've been given the correct change."  

While Robertson did not give a recommendation for a possible fix, the American Council for the Blind has submitted many ideas including embossing, punching small holes in the bills, or using different sizes for different denominations. Government attorneys argued that changing the way money feels would be costly, since many of the modifications limit the bill's durability. Estimates ranged from $75 million to upgrade equipment and $9 million annual expenses for punching holes in bills to $178 million in one-time charges, and $50 million annual expenses for printing bills of varying sizes. 

Robertson said the Treasury has spent $4.2 billion on printing in the past decade. He stated that if the department added a raised number on the bills over this span, the increased cost would have risen by less than 5 percent. He ruled that finding a solution would not be an "undue burden" on the Treasury.  

Robertson ruled that the Treasury Department begin work on a solution within 30 days. The Treasury has only 10 days to lodge an appeal to the ruling.

Source from MSNBC:  http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15948986/from/ET/
Source from CNN.com:  http://money.cnn.com/2006/11/28/markets/treasury_ruling/index.htm?cnn=yes