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The Protection and Advocacy Agency for People with Disabilities in Texas
Too often people with disabilities face obstacles of discrimination, ignorance and negative stereotypes about what they can or can’t do. Disability Rights Texas (DRTx) helps people with disabilities understand and exercise their legal rights so they can break through these barriers and fully participate in all aspects of life.
Advancing Your Legal Rights
Because of news reports of widespread abuse and neglect at state institutions in the 1970s, Congress passed numerous laws to protect people with disabilities from discrimination. These laws included the creation of a national network of protection and advocacy organizations to secure and advance the rights of individuals with disabilities.
DRTx is the federally designated legal protection and advocacy agency for people with disabilities in Texas. Our attorneys and advocates advance rights by:
- Providing direct legal assistance to people with disabilities whose rights are threatened or violated
- Protecting the rights of individuals and groups of people with disabilities through the courts and justice system
- Informing lawmakers about how policies impact people with disabilities
- Educating people with disabilities about their rights
- Referring to appropriate programs and services
Focusing on What Impacts You Most
We gather feedback from the community on a regular basis to ensure we are focusing on the issues impacting them the most. The disability rights issues we currently work on include:
- Accessibility
- Community Living
- Disaster Resilience
- Education
- Employment
- Guardianship removal/alternatives
- Healthcare
- Housing
- Institutional rights and civil liberties
- Transportation
- Voting Rights
Advocating for You
DRTx protects and advances the rights of people with a broad range of disabilities, such as:
- Adult onset disabilities
- Autism
- Chronic health conditions
- Developmental disabilities
- Intellectual disabilities
- Learning disabilities
- Mental illnesses
- Mobility disabilities
- Sensory disabilities, such as blindness or deafness
- Traumatic brain injuries
Do You Need Help?
- Apply online 24/7: Intake.DRTx.org
- By phone Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.:
- Statewide Intake Phone Line: 1 (800) 252-9108
- Sign Language Video Phone: 1 (866) 362-2851
- Purple 3 Video Phone: 1 (512) 271-9391
- For resources to help you understand your rights, visit us online at: www.DRTx.org.
When you call our statewide intake line, you can talk directly with a member of our staff, who will ask you several questions about yourself and the problem you are facing. Or you can complete our online intake form at any time.
DRTx is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization funded by U.S. government grants, the Texas Access to Justice Foundation, charitable foundations, private law firms, and individual donors. Because of our funders, we are able to offer nearly all of our services for free to our clients.
Main and Regional Office Locations
- Headquarters/Central Texas – Austin: (512) 454-4816
- East Texas – Houston: (713) 974-7691
- El Paso: (915) 542-0585
- North Texas – Dallas-Fort Worth: (214) 630-0916
- South Texas – San Antonio: (210) 737-0499
- West Texas – Lubbock: (806) 765-7794
Connect with DRTx
- X (Twitter): @DisRightsTx
- Facebook: @DisabilityRightsTX
- YouTube: @DisabilityRightsTX
- Instagram: @DisabilityRightsTex
- Website: www.DRTx.org
Updated: November 14, 2025
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