COMMUNITY OUTREACH

FY 98 GOAL

To build collaborative relationships with disability advocacy and advisory groups.

STATUS:

The Committee chose to address this goal by increasing the distribution of the Annual Report and developing a brochure about the Rehabilitation Council. Members expanded the Annual Report distribution list to include most college and university libraries as well as county/municipal library systems. As a result, at least one report is available to citizens in every county in the Commonwealth. The brochure was developed for use at the Public Forums held by the Disability Agenda Committee. Over 400 brochures have been distributed to date.

It also oversaw staff management of the web site, www.parac.org. The numbers of visitors and pages viewed has increased each quarter since coming on-line in November, 1997.

As the year progressed, the Committee lost momentum due to illness and attrition. It was the Committee most severely affected by the lack of new Council appointments and eventually was unable to continue its work.

DISABILITY AGENDA COMMMITTEE

FY 98 GOAL:

Expand the RAC's interactions and influence upon the Governor's Disability Agenda through collaborative efforts with all stakeholders.

In 1997 Governor Ridge published his Disability Agenda, which charged every office and department in the Executive Branch to develop policies and procedures to improve customer service to persons with disabilities. The Rehabilitation Council recognizes that employability is affected by numerous factors outside the scope of the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and established the Disability Agenda Committee to interact with the Governor's Policy Team around implementation of the Agenda.

In December, 1997 the Committee worked with the Policy Team to provide an opportunity for persons with disabilities to confer with department Secretaries about ways to improve service. Over 200 hundred persons, and nearly all Department Secretaries, attended the conference. It was the first such meeting of its kind in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. During the breakout sessions, participants were able to meet in small groups and provide first hand input about policy issues in everything from education to hunting.

As a follow-up to the Conference, the Committee held Public Forums in Philadelphia, Johnstown, Scranton, and Erie. It also accepted written commentary throughout the summer. From the commentary, the Council developed several recommendations for the Governor, OVR and itself. A summary of the forums in included.

LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE:

FY 98 GOAL:

To educate, advocate with, and influence state and federal legislators on disability issues, policies, and legislation.

Reauthorization of the Rehabilitation Act and the impact of the Workforce Investment Partnership Act continued to be the main focus of the Committee's federal efforts. Members utilized contacts developed during its trip to Washington D.C. in 1997 to reiterate the Council's position and to track the Bill's progress.

On the state level, members concentrated on HB 1800, related to workforce development and HB 1236, a transportation bill designed to increase low cost transportation options for persons with disabilities. The Rehabilitation Council was able to provide oral and written testimony regarding HB 1800. Subsequent revisions reflected this input. Members also offered comment on HB 2620 related to improving how police officers respond to person with disabilities.

SATISFACTION AND PLANNING COMMITTEE:

To actively participate in OVR Strategic Planning and Policy work groups.

Through this Committee the Rehabilitation Council worked closely with OVR on development of this year's State and Strategic Plan. It has also participated on workgroups addressing Memos of Understanding with other state Departments and implementation of a state funds only service for persons affected by the Order of Selection.

Planning and implementation of a statistically valid study of OVR customer satisfaction also fell to this Committee. Following a competitive RFP process, the Committee selected a vendor which specializes in satisfaction surveys and coordinated the study through OVR's data base of open and closed cases. Over 6,000 OVR customers received surveys. The vendor achieved a 51% response rate across OVR customer categories, with a 95% degree of confidence. Results of the survey are currently under review. The Council expects to present recommendations to the OVR Board in FY 99.