PaRC members attended the National Rehabilitation Association Conference from March 11 - 13, 2007 in Alexandria, VA. After the conference, members delivered the position papers below that were developed by the PaRC to twenty-four 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. In order for this unique program to continue to have a positive impact upon the lives of Pennsylvanian's with disabilities, it is essential that a dedicated funding stream from the federal government continue. In Pennsylvania, the OVR office in your congressional district is an excellent example of how this partnership can work to produce results. In 2006 alone, the federal, state and local taxes paid by competitively employed customers of OVR throughout Pennsylvania averaged approximately $55,644.191.00. This is the true measure of how the Act empowers individuals with disabilities to become contributing and productive members of their community. 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 a 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 (SRC) Legislative Committee supports the following recommendations made by the Pennsylvania Client Assistance Program (CAP), to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended (included as Title IV of the Workforce Investment Act).
29 U.S.C. § 722 (c)(2)(A) shall be amended as follows:
(2) Notification
(A) Rights and Assistance
The procedures shall provide that an individual who is referred for vocational rehabilitation services, an applicant or an eligible individual, or as appropriate, the referral, applicant, or eligible individual's representative shall be notified of---
(B) Timing
Such notification shall be provided in writing-
(i) at the time an individual is referred for vocational rehabilitation services provided under this title by any individual or agency, including self-referral;
(ii) at the time an individual applies for vocational rehabilitation services provided under this title;
(iii) at the time the individualized plan for employment for the individual is developed; and
(iv) upon denial, reduction, suspension or cessation of any vocational rehabilitation service for the individual.
(3) Evidence and Representation
The procedures required under this subsection shall, at a minimum-
(A) Advise the referral, applicant or eligible individual in writing of the procedures established by the State for mediation of, and review through an impartial due process hearing of, determinations made by personnel of the designated State unit that affect the provision of vocational rehabilitation services to referrals, applicants or eligible individuals. This must include, at a minimum, notification of any state established timeframe in which a request for mediation or review must be filed, and notification that failure to file within any established timeframe may result in dismissal of the request.
(5) Hearings
[inserting the following sentences after the first sentence of subsection (5)(B)]
All hearing officers and staff shall receive training on the Rehabilitation Act, its implementing regulations, and applicable written policies and procedures of both the Rehabilitation Services Administration and the designated State unit. This training shall be provided in a manner consistent with state imposed statutory requirements for the training of Administrative Law Judges and/or Administrative Hearing Officers.
(a) From funds appropriated under subsection (h), the Secretary shall, in accordance with this section. . . .In providing assistance and advocacy under this subsection with respect to services under this title, a client assistance program may provide the assistance and advocacy with respect to services that are directly related to facilitating the employment of the individual. This may include assistance and advocacy during referral for vocational rehabilitation services, application for vocational rehabilitation services, development and implementation of an Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE), receipt of vocational rehabilitation services, and during employment following achievement of the employment outcome, regardless of whether the individual continues to have an open case with the designated State unit. This may also include providing legal representation to individuals in matters arising under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, and other applicable state laws, which are related to the provision of vocational rehabilitation services and/or efforts to gain, regain or maintain employment.
(e)(1)(A) [insert at the end of this section]
Each fiscal year, the Client Assistance Program shall receive a funding increase which, at a minimum, is consistent with the federal Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA).