(a) For decades, courts and juries have awarded damages for emotional distress for violations of federal civil rights statutes passed pursuant to Congress's authority under the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution (Article I, Section 8, Clause 1). (b) The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Cummings v. Premier Rehab Keller, P.L.L.C., 142 S.Ct. 1562 (2022) prohibits damages for emotional distress for violations of the Spending Clause statutes at issue there, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, unless they expressly provide for such damages. The decision will likely impair the availability of emotional distress damages under other federal civil rights statutes as well. (c) As a result of the Cummings decision, an individual whose civil rights have been violated will be left without the full range of remedies once available, and perpetrators of discrimination will no longer be required to make their victims whole. (d) To promote the general welfare, deter unlawful conduct, encourage victims of discrimination to vindicate their rights, and ensure access to the courts, the General Assembly finds it proper to establish a statutory minimum of $4,000 for any violation of this Act.
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