Cite as: 531 U. S. 356 (2001)
Breyer, J., dissenting
ciently tailored to address unconstitutional discrimination, ante, at 372-373.
Section 5, however, grants Congress the "power to enforce, by appropriate legislation," the Fourteenth Amendment's equal protection guarantee. U. S. Const., Amdt. 14, § 5. As the Court recognizes, state discrimination in employment against persons with disabilities might " 'run afoul of the Equal Protection Clause' " where there is no " 'rational relationship between the disparity of treatment and some legitimate governmental purpose.' " Ante, at 367 (quoting Heller v. Doe, 509 U. S. 312, 320 (1993)). See also Cleburne v. Cleburne Living Center, Inc., supra, at 440 (stating that the Court will sustain a classification if it is "rationally related to a legitimate state interest"). In my view, Congress reasonably could have concluded that the remedy before us constitutes an "appropriate" way to enforce this basic equal protection requirement. And that is all the Constitution requires.
I
The Court says that its primary problem with this statutory provision is one of legislative evidence. It says that "Congress assembled only . . . minimal evidence of unconstitutional state discrimination in employment." Ante, at 370. In fact, Congress compiled a vast legislative record documenting " 'massive, society-wide discrimination' " against persons with disabilities. S. Rep. No. 101-116, pp. 8-9 (1989) (quoting testimony of Justin Dart, chairperson of the Task Force on the Rights and Empowerment of Americans with Disabilities). In addition to the information presented at 13 congressional hearings (see Appendix A, infra), and its own prior experience gathered over 40 years during which it contemplated and enacted considerable similar legislation (see Appendix B, infra), Congress created a special task force to assess the need for comprehensive legislation. That task force held hearings in every State, attended by more than 30,000 people, including thousands who had experienced discrimination first hand. See From ADA to Em-
377
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