PaRC members attended the National Rehabilitation Association Conference from March 12 - 14, 2006 in Alexandria, VA. After the conference, members delivered the position papers below that were developed by the PaRC to twenty-two Congressional Offices on the Hill.
It is the mission of The Pennsylvania Rehabilitation Council (PaRC) to inform and advise the state board of vocational rehabilitation and the Governor on the diverse issues affecting vocational rehabilitation in our state. In working to fulfill this mission, one message becomes clear: The Rehabilitation Act plays an important and necessary role in empowering individuals with disabilities to become independent and integrated into the workplace and community.
The Rehabilitation Act is unique because it recognizes that equality of opportunity, a fundamental right in our society, is necessary to empower individuals with disabilities to maximize employment, economic self-sufficiency, independence, and integration into society. It focuses upon empowering individuals to realize their potential through individual achievement. This is different from other benefits legislation which only considers an individual's status when conferring benefits in order to achieve equality of outcome.
The Act is important because it promotes success and not dependence. This overarching goal is achieved through a strong federal/state partnership which recognizes the need for national unity on disability policy and local autonomy in the development and implementation of a state's rehabilitation program. The Act as it exists provides states the freedom to administer programs which are responsive to the needs of its customers. The continuance of this excellent program depends on a dedicated funding stream from the federal government. In Pennsylvania, the OVR office in your congressional district is an excellent example of how this partnership can work to produce results. In 2005 alone, the federal, state and local taxes paid by competitively employed customers of OVR throughout Pennsylvania averaged approximately $53 million. This is the true measure of how the Act empowers individuals with disabilities to impact their communities in a positive way. Unlike most benefits legislation, the goal of the Rehabilitation Act is to help individuals become taxpayers and not tax users.
The Act cannot be reduced to job training legislation without destroying its essential character. It represents the keystone in the continuum of opportunity that is so important to the economic success of the estimated 600,000 individuals with disabilities in Pennsylvania. Any fundamental change will render meaningless the right to an appropriate education that the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) recognizes as the foundation for success in the workplace, and the right to compete in society free from discrimination as guaranteed under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The PaRC believes that the Rehabilitation Act must be strengthened to provide customers greater flexibility and control over the services and programs available to them from state rehabilitation programs.
The Rehabilitation Act Amendments of 1998 presently comprise Title IV of WIA, and were intended to link the public Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) program, through the '98 Amendments, to the One-Stop centers with the significant caveat that public VR would always maintain its dedicated funding stream.
The Pennsylvania Rehabilitation Council respectfully recommends that the Public VR Program be maintained in its original status as a freestanding statute which, we believe, will best serve individuals with disabilities for whom the Public VR Program was and remains intended. Partnership at the One-Stops should continue and hopefully, in time with the requisite physical and programmatic accommodations along with qualified personnel, be better able to serve individuals with disabilities.
The Pennsylvania Rehabilitation Council requests the continued funding of the Improving Access to Assistive Technology for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 2004, H.R. 4278 (AT Act of 2004).
The AT Act of 2004 provides States with grants to implement and maintain systems for individuals with disabilities to access assistive technology devices and services. The AT Act of 2004 also continues to provide grants to protection and advocacy organizations for assistive technology advocacy.
Assistive technology is vitally important for people with disabilities to live and work independently. Assistive technology devices are items or equipment that enables a person with a disability to increase, maintain, or improve daily functioning. Assistive technology devices can range from low-cost adaptations to highly-customized equipment. Assistive technology services include assessment, customization, repair, and training in the use of a device. From Braille writers to power wheelchairs, assistive technology gets people out of their homes and into the work place. More importantly, assistive technology makes people tax paying consumers who can help improve the economy.
The AT Act of 2004 supports resources in Pennsylvania, including Pennsylvania's Initiative on Assistive Technology (PIAT), which includes a lending library for AT; Pennsylvania Protection and Advocacy's (PP&A) AT advocacy program, which helps people with disabilities (including those in nursing facilities and other institutions) get the AT they need; and Pennsylvania's Assistive Technology Foundation (PATF), which provides low-interest loans and mini-grants to help people acquire assistive technology. These resources are essential to helping people with disabilities live in the community, and obtain and maintain employment.