[Colorado-Talk] Proposed Resolutions of the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado, October 2020 to be Considered by the Members in Convention

[Dan Burke]

Greetings all -

It all starts tomorrow - NFBCO 2020!

Because our convention is virtual this year, we're sending these 8
proposed resolutions out to all in advance for your consideration.
They are pasted below and attached. Our President Scott LaBarre wanted
everyone to have the best chance to read and process these prior to
our Resolution Committee meeting. This virtual animal is different,
and we all want to be sure we understand these and can ask any
questions that we might have. Again, note that these are only proposed
resolutions at this time, though we have included the date they would
be considered by the general membership as the 31st Day of October.
Each of these proposed resolutions must first be considered by the
Resolutions Committee as appointed by Scott before being recommended
to the floor of the convention. That committee meeting takes place
Friday morning at 9:00, and all are certainly welcome to Zoom in then!

Thanks to Scott, Curtis Chong and Brent Batron and all those who
submitted resolutions this year.

Let's have a great convention!
Dan

Resolution 2020-01
Regarding Improvements to the Accessible Online Ballot Marking System
in Colorado

WHEREAS, since SB19-202, a bill introduced by Senator Jessie Danielson
and championed by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado,
was signed into law by Gov. Polis in 2019 registered voters in
Colorado with a disability as defined by the Americans with
Disabilities Act (ADA) have been able to use the access technology
with which they are familiar to privately and independently mark the
printed mail ballot using a computer, smartphone, or tablet; an
Internet connection; and a printer; and

WHEREAS, Colorado's new accessible online ballot marking system
provides an equivalent voting option to Colorado’s vote-by-mail system
for voters with disabilities in Colorado who are otherwise not able to
mark the printed mail ballot without assistance or who, for reasons of
health or difficulty obtaining transportation, are not able to travel
to a voter service and polling center; and

WHEREAS, Colorado's accessible online ballot marking system requires
the voter with a disability to print the marked ballot and a ballot
application, to sign the ballot application (which has already been
filled out), and to deliver the two documents—by mail or in person—to
his/her county clerk or an authorized voter service and polling
center; and

WHEREAS, the ubiquitous nature of the Internet, combined with the
availability of electronic content delivery systems, have reduced the
use of printers in our society—so much so that the average person is
unlikely to own a printer, let alone having ready access to one; and

WHEREAS, voters with disabilities who do not own or have ready access
to a printer are prevented from using Colorado's accessible online
ballot marking system; and

WHEREAS, registered Colorado voters who serve in the military or who
live overseas (so-called UOCAVA voters) have the opportunity to submit
their voted ballots using fax, email, or a secure web portal; and

WHEREAS, as good as the accessible online ballot marking system is in
Colorado, the requirement for a voter with a disability to own or have
ready access to a printer deprives many voters of the benefits that
this new system has to offer: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado, in
convention assembled this 31st day of October, 2020, that this
organization call upon the Colorado General Assembly, the Governor of
Colorado, and the Colorado Secretary of State to work with the
National Federation of the Blind of Colorado and other interested
parties to make it possible for registered Colorado voters with
disabilities to submit their voted ballots and ballot applications
electronically using a system that is secure, convenient, and fully
accessible.

Resolution 2020-02
Regarding nonvisual access to Colorado’s TXT2Cure system


WHEREAS, in a press release dated October 7, 2020, Secretary of State
Jena Griswold announced that TXT2Cure, a service which enables voters
to fix signature discrepancies on their ballot (a process known as
curing the ballot) with their smart phones, would be used in
conjunction with the November 3, 2020 general election; and

WHEREAS, according to the press release, with TXT2Cure, if voters are
notified of a ballot signature discrepancy, they can text “Colorado”
to 2VOTE (28638) and click on the link that is sent back as a reply;
voters then enter their voter ID number printed on the rejection
notice they receive from their county election office, affirm they
returned a ballot for the election, sign the affidavit on their phone,
take a photo of an acceptable form of ID, and select “Submit” to
transmit this information to their county clerk; and

WHEREAS, had the office of the Secretary of State consulted with the
National Federation of the Blind of Colorado during the early phases
of TXT2Cure development, the following information would have been
conveyed:

1.	Writing one’s signature on a smart phone touch screen is a
nonstarter today with screen reading software; a new approach must be
created;

2.	Photographing an identification card or anything else nonvisually
with a smart phone requires enough information to be conveyed to the
screen reading software to help the nonvisual user to properly
position the camera; this requires additional information from
mainstream software that it is not yet designed to provide; and

WHEREAS, while it is true that TXT2Cure is a new way to help voters
resolve signature issues with their ballots and does not take away the
more tried and true methods of ballot curing already available, the
release of a new ballot curing system which, at the outset, is not
accessible to blind voters, can hardly be viewed as an affirmation of
Secretary Griswold’s publicly-expressed commitment to “safe, secure,
and accessible elections”; and

WHEREAS, the failure to incorporate accessibility into the early
development phases of TXT2Cure exemplifies an all too familiar and
unnecessary pattern in which accessibility is bolted on after
something has been developed—oftentimes with a good deal of grumbling
and resistance; and

WHEREAS, when accessibility is included in new systems at the start of
the design process, the result is lower cost and less retrofitting;
and

WHEREAS, this latest problem with TXT2Cure is surprising and
disappointing in light of the positive working relationship that has
developed over the past year-and-a-half between the office of the
Secretary of State and the National Federation of the Blind of
Colorado: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
convention assembled this 31st day of October, 2020 that this
organization express its great concern with the decisions made by the
office of Colorado’s Secretary of State, Jena Griswold, which led to
the release and dissemination of a system (TXT2Cure) which, in
violation of state and federal law, is not accessible to blind voters;
and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization express its
disappointment with Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold for the
failure of her office to work proactively with the National Federation
of the Blind of Colorado to anticipate (if not resolve) nonvisual
access issues around the TXT2Cure system; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization request that Colorado
Secretary of State Jena Griswold and her office work closely with the
National Federation of the Blind of Colorado to develop and implement
innovative strategies to ensure that current and future software
deployed on behalf of Colorado voters is fully accessible to everyone
on the day of its release.

Resolution 2020-03
Regarding the Restoration of Transit Service After Service Reductions
Due To COVID-19
		
WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous upheavals in our
state, our country, and around the world; and in many cases it will
take several years before a full recovery from some of its negative
effects will occur; and

WHEREAS, because of the pandemic,  mass transit providers across the
state of Colorado have experienced significant losses in revenue,
forcing them to drastically cut service and eliminate some fixed
routes altogether; and

WHEREAS, it has been estimated that more than 70% of the blind
population is either unemployed or underemployed, and for the blind
community as a whole, public transportation is often the only
affordable means for travelling to work, getting to school, and
visiting with family or friends; and

WHEREAS, although ride sharing services such as Uber or Lyft may be
available to blind people in metropolitan areas, they are either too
expensive for some people or simply not available—as is the case in
rural parts of the state: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
convention assembled this 31st day of October, that this organization
declare unequivocally that while service reductions forced upon
transportation providers by the COVID-19 pandemic in light of current
funding shortfalls might be understandable in the present moment, they
should by no means become permanent; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization work with the Colorado
General Assembly and Colorado’s congressional delegation to ensure
that Colorado’s various transit agencies have sufficient funding to
enable them to restore or exceed the level of service provided prior
to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Resolution 2020-04
Regarding Access to COVID-19 Testing

WHEREAS the COVID-19 pandemic has been recognized as the cause of
death of more than 215,000 Americans and more than 2,000 Coloradoans;
and

WHEREAS the U.S. Centers for Disease Control has published guidelines
calling for anyone with known exposure to COVID-19 to seek testing to
help track the disease's spread and possibly alert them to the need to
quarantine; and

WHEREAS the City and County of Denver is the only municipality in the
state with a mobile testing solution for transit dependent people that
will come to homes; and

WHEREAS outside of Denver a transit dependent person must visit a
testing site, meaning they would need to take rideshares, public
transit or taxis to get testing; and

WHEREAS quarantine orders from local health departments for possible
exposure explicitly bar people with suspected exposure from taking
public transit, rideshares or taxis; and

WHEREAS the terms of service for most rideshare operators now say
riders could lose their access to the services if they ride while
aware of a possible COVID infection, possibly taking away a crucial
tool of independence for the blind; and

WHEREAS most testing locations do not allow for pedestrians to get tested; and

WHEREAS even locations offering tests to walk-ups can choose to not
allow symptomatic individuals to enter buildings for testing,
requiring patients to undergo testing outdoors without any privacy
during the procedure; and

WHEREAS many of Colorado's blind must choose among options that
include violating health department orders, sacrificing privacy,
possibly losing future   access to public transit, rideshares or taxis
or asking a friend or family member to risk exposure by driving a
possibly infected individual for testing, therefore

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
Convention assembled this 31st day of October, 2020, that this
organization call upon state officials and local health departments to
develop testing systems and services that provide the state's more
than 1 million transit dependent people, including the blind, with
prompt, equitable and safe access to COVID-19 testing that complies
with CDC guidelines; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commends the City and
County of Denver for proactively developing a mobile testing solution
for the transit dependent; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization commits to work with
other stakeholders, including groups advocating for the
transit-dependent and those with disabilities, to push for the
creation of these services and develop proposals that include funding
mechanisms, partnerships and other ways to structure and fund
effective testing systems.

Resolution 2020-05
Regarding the importance of universal access to educational management
systems and remote learning systems used by parents and students who
are blind

WHEREAS, the COVID-19 pandemic has forced a radical disruption of K-12
education, displacing hundreds of thousands of children who, under
normal circumstances, would be attending in-person classes in public
and private schools throughout Colorado and the nation; and

WHEREAS, the sudden change in circumstances forced upon everyone by
the pandemic has compelled educators to quickly design and implement
new systems for remote learning; and

WHEREAS, the ability to use these systems nonvisually was not a
primary concern at the time they were rolled out in March of 2020; and

WHEREAS, blind parents across Colorado are reporting that the remote
learning systems used to teach their children and the tools for
communicating with parents are often difficult or impossible to use
nonvisually; and

WHEREAS, the nonvisual access issues experienced by blind parents and
blind children may be unintentional, but they are nevertheless
significant; for example, if a blind parent is not able to read a
homework assignment, it is hard to imagine how the blind parent can
help the child to complete the assignment; and by the same token, if
the blind child is not able to read a homework assignment using
nonvisual access technology, it is unreasonable to expect the child to
do his/her homework; and

WHEREAS, nonvisually-accessible remote learning systems and
communication strategies do exist and have already been shown to be
viable strategies for remote learning and communication, not to
mention being a legal requirement; and

WHEREAS, the transition to greater use of digital curriculum, learning
management systems, and communication tools was already underway
before the pandemic, and the use of these applications will likely
remain an integral part of the education system going forward: Now,
therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of  Colorado in
convention assembled this 31st day of October, 2020, that this
organization call upon the Colorado State Board of Education to
develop a policy mandating school districts to make full accessibility
a requirement when selecting educational technology and implementing
websites and web-based applications; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon every school
district in the state of Colorado  to replace inaccessible remote
learning and communication systems with systems that are fully
accessible; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization offer its expertise to
schools and families to help educators and administrators to make
decisions that ensure accessibility, and

  BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization monitor complaints
about nonvisual access issues in K-12 education and respond
appropriately to ensure that the rights  and interests of blind
parents and blind children are properly considered.


Resolution 2020-06
REGARDING THE COLORADO DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT’S ABJECT
FAILURE TO APPROPRIATELY COLLABORATE WITH BLIND OPERATORS AS REQUIRED
BY LAW CAUSING INJURIOUS HARM TO A STATE OF COLORADO OPPORTUNITY
PROGRAM AND IRREPARABLE HARM TO COLORADO’S BLIND CITIZENS

WHEREAS, in 1936 Congress passed the Randolph-Sheppard Act which
created a program to foster entrepreneurship for the blind on
government property; and

WHEREAS, the program is managed in Colorado by the Colorado Department
of Labor and Employment (CDLE) under designation from the United
States Department of Education Rehabilitation Services Administration;
and

WHEREAS, in Colorado the program is known as the Business Enterprise
Program (BEP) for the blind and housed in the Division of Vocational
Rehabilitation (DVR) within CDLE; and

WHEREAS, Business Enterprise Programs for the blind authorized by the
Randolph-Sheppard Act and companion state statutes have historically
been the most successful employment program for the blind; and

WHEREAS, in 2016 DVR was transferred in whole from the State
Department of Human Services to CDLE; and

WHEREAS, in 2016 the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado
worked closely with the General Assembly and CDLE to pass HB16-1048
sponsored by then-Representative Dianne Primavera, a law that was
designed to usher in a new era of expansion for the program, however,
after a much-ballyhooed listening tour and series of strategic
planning meetings between CDLE management and other state departments
who would become beneficiaries of the new statute, absolutely no new
business opportunities have been procured for the program by CDLE; and

WHEREAS, the onset of the global pandemic has resulted in closure of
the majority of the Program’s blind operated businesses as well as a
dramatic loss of income to those who are still managing to operate;
and

WHEREAS, this crisis has also revealed a deep chasm of systemic
mismanagement particularly with regard to appropriate transparent
accounting controls; and

WHEREAS, during this crisis upper management seems to have prevented
highly-qualified frontline business consulting staff from making even
minor day to day  decisions, bringing direct harm to blind operators
and the customers they serve, while at the same time lowering the
morale of staff; and

WHEREAS, Title 34 – Part 395.14(b)(1) explicitly states that the
agency MUST, “Actively participate with the State licensing agency in
major administrative decisions and policy and program development
decisions affecting the overall administration of the State's vending
facility program”; and

WHEREAS, even with a lack of appropriate budgetary oversight including
the denial of active participation by blind operators, CDLE has moved
forward with unusual speed in an effort to hire a new program manager
against the will of blind operators; and

WHEREAS, the elected committee of blind operators have been allowed
only minimal, tangential, token involvement in the decision process
and design of hiring protocol and procedures resulting in finalists
who, in the opinion of the elected committee, do not possess the
appropriate experience, skills, and understanding to carry out
management of such a complex and demanding program; and

WHEREAS, even the job description itself is not adequate to ensure a
pool of qualified candidates, including candidates who may happen to
be blind or have other disabilities; and

WHEREAS, the Colorado Business Enterprise Program has often been
regarded as one of the finest in the Nation; and

WHEREAS, this recent egregious pattern of behavior on the part of the
Colorado Department of Labor and Employment must not be allowed to
persist: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
convention assembled this 31st day of October, 2020, that this
organization roundly and strongly condemn and deplore the actions of
the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment for intentionally
ignoring the hopes, dreams, wishes, capacities, experiences, desires,
and needs of Colorado’s blind operators; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we demand that the department take
immediate steps to rectify this blatant violation of both the spirit
and letter of the Randolph-Sheppard Act; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we demand unequivocally that the Director
of the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment take an immediate
and personal management and operational interest in the Business
Enterprise Program working in collaboration with leaders of the
Elected Committee of Operators, leaders of the National Federation of
the Blind of Colorado, and frontline Business Enterprise Program staff
to bring about essential program reforms including appropriate
transparent fiscal oversight, marketing and collaboration with other
state departments to expand the program as envisioned by the General
Assembly in 2016 and other initiatives to stabilize and grow the
program; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we insist that CDLE immediately abandon
the current flawed Program Manager search and selection process and
that CDLE commence a new transparent hiring process, including the
development of an appropriate job description.

Resolution 2020-07
REGARDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AN OFFICE WITHIN THE COLORADO
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION TO ENSURE ACCESS TO STATE AND LOCAL
TRANSPORTATION BY PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

WHEREAS, Colorado citizens with disabilities have the same need to
compete, participate, recreate, and engage in all manner of the
activities of life on equal terms with every other citizen; and

WHEREAS, arguably one of the greatest impediments to engaging in
activities of life and citizenship confronting Coloradans with
disabilities is a persistent lack of accessible affordable
transportation; and

WHEREAS, a new Colorado economy, advances in technology, the pandemic,
and other factors are bringing significant changes in the way
transportation systems are being researched, developed, and deployed
under the coordination of the Colorado Department of Transportation
along with local authorities and both for-profit and non-profit
entities: Now, therefore,

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
convention assembled this thirty first day of October, 2020, that this
organization calls upon the Colorado Department of Transportation and
the General Assembly to take such action as necessary to establish an
Accessible Transportation and Mobility Office within the Colorado
Department of Transportation to ensure that research, planning,
licensing and/or implementation of short- and long-range
transportations systems will substantially improve the accessibility
of those systems for Coloradans with disabilities as well as their
availability to those Coloradans with disabilities living in rural or
remote parts of the state.

RESOLUTION 2020-08
Regarding Equal Access to the Web Act

WHEREAS, equal access to websites, mobile apps, and other information
technology is imperative to living in today's world implicating every
area of daily life  including, education, shopping, employment,
entertainment, public health and safety information, and much, much
more; and

WHEREAS, assistive technology used by the blind such as text to speech
technology allows the blind to gain access to information as
efficiently, comfortably and easily as the sighted; and

WHEREAS, however, most websites, mobile apps, and other information
technology are either entirely inaccessible using assistive technology
or possess significant access barriers; and

WHEREAS, existing civil rights laws such as the Americans with
Disabilities Act broadly mandate equally effective communication with
those who are disabled, but generally, there are no clear regulations
and laws  regarding how websites, mobile apps, and other information
technology  can comply with these civil rights laws; and

WHEREAS, global standards such as the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web
Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and the regulations
promulgated pursuant to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act exist
and inform owners and operators of websites, mobile apps, and other
information technology how to provide their information in an
accessible manner;  and

WHEREAS, to ensure equal access for those who are blind, it is
necessary to adopt such standards into law: now, therefore

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Colorado in
Convention assembled this 31st Day Of October, 2020, that we urge the
Colorado General Assembly to pass into law an Equal Access to the Web,
Mobile Apps, and Other Information Technology Act which would
incorporate into law the most recent WCAG and Section 508 standards;
and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we insist that any web accessibility Act
include the full measure of relief and remedies available under law
including but not limited to all economic and non-economic damages,
injunctive relief, and attorney fees and costs.



-- 
Dan Burke

National Federation of the Blind of Colorado Legislative Coordinator

President, NFB of Denver

"Blindness is not what holds you back.  You can live the life you want!"

My Cell:  406.546.8546
Twitter:  @DallDonal
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