[Cinci-NFB] National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, cincinnati Chapter, Meeting Minutes for January 2022

Tue Feb 8 18:19:42 UTC 2022

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio
Cincinnati Chapter
Meeting Minutes for January 2022

  1.  The January 2022 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter, was convened by President Gloria Robinson at approximately 1:35 P.M. on Saturday January 22, 2022. The meeting was held by telephone conference due to ongoing concerns related to the Covid-19 Pandemic. In attendance were: President Gloria Robinson, Christopher Sabine, Marianne Denning, Gary Warren, Emily Pennington, Chris Windham, Dave Perry, Lisa Hall, Tammy McRae, and Frank Bragassa. Emily Kiehl, President of the Ohio Association of Blind Students, also attended today's meeting as she is considering joining the Cincinnati Chapter.

  1.  Marianne Denning moved to accept the November Chapter minutes as emailed. Dave Perry seconded, and the motion passed.

  1.  Emily Pennington presented this month's Treasurer's Report. Christopher Sabine moved to approve the treasurer's Report. Dave Parry Seconded, and the motion passed.

  1.  Marianne Denning gave a legislative report. She expressed that Washington Seminar, which is scheduled for February 7-10, 2022, is being held as an all-virtual event this year due to the Pandemic, though eight members of the Ohio Delegation were originally set to attend in person. The bulk of her report consisted of a review of this year's four national legislative priorities, which are as follows:

     *   The Access Technology Affordability Act, introduced by the House of Representatives as H.R. 431 and the Senate as S. 212, will establish a $2000 tax credit for the purchase of assistive technology which could be used over a period of 3 years. The law will sunset after 5 years.

     *   The Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act, introduced in the House as H.R. 4853, will require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to promulgate standards for nonvisual accessibility for Class 2 and Class 3 medical devices with input from stakeholders with disabilities and representatives of manufacturers.

     *   The Twenty-First Century Web Sites and Applications Accessibility Act, not currently introduced in the House or Senate, will require the U.S. ACCESS Board, which issued accessibility standards for the Americans with Disabilities Act, to establish guidelines for accessibility of web sites and mobile applications that harmonize with existing regulations for government web sites and mobile applications already promulgated in 2017. The act will also authorize the Department of Justice and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to investigate complaints regarding the accessibility of web sites and mobile apps and commence civil action if necessary.

     *   The Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act, introduced in the House as H.R. 2373 and the Senate as S. 3238, will eliminate Section 14 ( c ) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, a law allowing employers of workshop facilities for people with disabilities, including the Blind, to pay their employees subminimum wages and establish a grant program to assist employers of covered employees to transition to competitive wages.

  1.  At the request of Christopher Sabine, Marianne Denning concluded her report with a summary of a social media campaign to promote the Ohio Accessible prescription labeling bill, Ohio House Bill 448. Todd Elsey, Treasurer of the Ohio Affiliate and Chair of the Affiliate's Legislative Committee, is spearheading this campaign to promote passage of this bill. Information on this campaign has been posted to the Ohio-Talk Listserv with a recent post to the Cincinnati Chapter Listserv and Facebook Page.

  1.  Marianne Denning gave a brief report concerning Accessible Pharmacy, a Philadelphia-based online pharmacy specializing in accessible prescriptions. Marianne's report concluded, and a discussion of available Covid-19 testing resources ensued.

  1.  Marianne Denning and President Gloria Robinson gave a brief report from the Senior Committee, which consisted of a review of the services available through the Independent Living Program of Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, which serves blind consumers ages 55 and older.

  1.  Christopher Sabine gave a brief report from the Membership Committee. He indicated that the Committee is still not holding regular meetings because of the Pandemic. However, he has reached out to Emily Kiehl, President of the Ohio association of Blind Students and University of Cincinnati Students, and she has agreed to join the Cincinnati Chapter at the February meeting. He also expressed that President Gloria Robinson is also having discussions with another member, but he has not opted to join due to other personal difficulties. President Gloria Robinson indicated that she is reaching out to Affiliate President Richard Payne and Dr. Carolyn Peters, Chair of the Affiliate's Membership Committee, to obtain a box of literature on the Federation to distribute at various locations in the community, including nursing homes, senior housing facilities, and churches. An animated discussion about engaging current and past members who no longer attend Chapter meetings, involving President Gloria Robinson, Marianne Denning, and Christopher Sabine, followed. It was agreed that each member will reach out to at least five people who are no longer active in the Chapter by the February meeting to determine why they are not attending meetings or engage them as new members.

  1.  Dave Perry and Gary Warren gave a Fundraising Committee report. Dave began the report by stating that the Committee is still waiting on the Amazon Smart Oven for the next Chapter raffle to arrive, and a spaghetti dinner is being discussed for some time in the Spring. Dave Perry continued his report by expressing that the Committee will institute a point system to facilitate the active participation of members in Chapter meetings, fundraisers, and other activities. Each member will receive a certain number of points for attending and taking part in Chapter meetings and assisting with fundraising events and other activities. Members' ability to receive financial assistance to attend State and National Conventions will depend on the number of points they earn each year. President Gloria Robinson emphasized that the points system will alleviate ongoing concerns of people only attending one or two meetings right before conventions to obtain financial assistance, leaving the work of the Chapter to only a handful of active members. It was agreed that the Fundraising and Membership Committees will jointly meet to design this points system. Marianne Denning moved that the Fundraising Committee complete the system and present it to the Chapter at the February meeting. Gary Warren made a friendly amendment that the system be completed and presented to the Chapter in March. After some vigorous discussion, Marianne Denning accepted Gary warren's friendly amendment. Dave Perry seconded the motion, and it passed. Following Dave and Gary's report, President Gloria Robinson indicated that she has received marketing brochures from Popcorn Palace, formerly Double Good Popcorn, to distribute to members for another fundraising campaign. Half the proceeds from popcorn sales will go to the Chapter.

  1.  The Transportation Committee Report consisted of a confirmation of the role of Chris Windham in the Committee and his experience as a daily rider of Metro.

  1.  Gloria Robinson and Marianne Denning gave a brief Outreach Committee Report. Gloria expressed that she is working with Rev. Damon Lynch from New Prospect Baptist Church and Pastor Mingo from Christ Temple to organize federation events at their respective churches. Marianne Denning asked all members conducting presentations related to Blindness or Blindness to inform the Committee, so it can keep track of all outreach efforts.

  1.  After a brief discussion concerning National Convention, Gloria expressed that she would like to schedule a guest presentation on Non-24 Sleep-Wake Disorder for the next Chapter meeting.
  2.  The January 2022 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter was adjourned at approximately 2:40 P.M. on Saturday January 22, 2022.

  1.  The February 2022 meeting of the National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Cincinnati Chapter, will take place on Saturday February 26, 2022, from 1:30 to 3:30 P.M. by telephone conference.

Respectfully Submitted,

Christopher Sabine

Secretary

National Federation of the Blind of Ohio

Cincinnati Chapter

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