<html><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html charset=utf-8"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1;"><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">All,</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> Please see the below message from President Riccobono’s “Presidents Notebook.</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> As members of the Federation one of the things we do better than anyone is move a legislative policy.</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;" class=""><font face="Calibri, sans-serif" class=""><span style="font-size: 11pt;" class=""> The below is one of major </span><span style="font-size: 15px;" class="">importance</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;" class=""> to us as blind people, and to others as Americans with disabilities.</span></font></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;" class=""><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> Please do take a moment to act on the below.</span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;" class=""><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""> Thank you so very much!</span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in;" class=""><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">"</span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Legislative Alert:<br class="">H.R. 620, the ADA Education and Reform Act, will be voted on in committee (referred to as markup) over the next week or two. If passed, this legislation will dramatically weaken the ADA, hindering education, employment, and community participation for all people with disabilities. The bill prevents people with disabilities from filing a lawsuit regarding an ADA violation until the person first notifies the violator. The violator then has 60 days to respond and then has another 120 days to remedy the problem, for a total delay of 180 days.<br class=""><br class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Does it make sense to wait 180 days for accessible instructional material? By then, the class will be over. How about waiting 180 days for an accessible job application? By then the job will be filled. How about waiting 180 days at the doctor’s office for an accessible check-in kiosk? Furthermore, this legislation will do nothing to stop so-called frivolous lawsuits, which will still be valid under state law. Businesses do not need more time to comply with the ADA—they have had twenty-seven years already.<o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">Please call your representative and urge them to oppose H.R. 620, the ADA Education and Reform Act. And if your representative has not cosponsored one of our other three bills, also urge them to do so. Congress will be back in session for the next two weeks but please try to make your calls and send your emails by Friday, June 22. A short summary of each bill is included below. I have also included a list of all the current cosponsors. The best way to contact your member of Congress is to call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask for the office in question. Emailing your member of Congress is also a good idea. If you do so, please copy <a href="mailto:JPare@nfb.org" style="color: purple;" class="">JPare@nfb.org</a>. <br class=""><br class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt 0.25in; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class="">It is critical that we shut down H.R. 620. In addition, we are hoping to significantly raise the number of cosponsors on all of our bills before convention but we cannot do it without everyone working together. Your calls and emails make a big difference. <br class=""><br class=""><o:p class=""></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><o:p class=""> </o:p></div><h2 style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" class=""><br class=""></h2></div><br class=""><br class=""><div class="">
<div style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;" class=""><div class=""><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Darian Smith</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">President, National Federation of the Blind Community Service Division</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Web: <a href="http://www.nfbcommunityservice.org" class="">www.nfbcommunityservice.org</a></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Twitter: @NFB_CSD,@goldengateace</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Facebook: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/CommunityServiceDivision" class="">www.facebook.com/CommunityServiceDivision</a>"</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; color: rgb(71, 135, 255); -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><span style="text-decoration: underline;" class="">E-mail: <a href="mailto:president@nfbcommunityservice.org" class="">president@nfbcommunityservice.org</a></span></div><p style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> </p><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">(415)215-9809</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""><span style="font-size: 16px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;" class=""> </span></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); min-height: 14px;" class=""><br class=""></div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">blindness is not what holds you back.</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> “We need your service, right now, at this moment - our moment - in history. I'm not going to tell you what your role should be; that's for you to discover. But I am going to ask you to play your part; ask you to stand up; ask you to put your foot firmly into the current of history” — Barack Obama </div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class=""> Help drive change for the blind .</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">Donate your car to the National Federation of the Blind today!</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; color: rgb(87, 86, 214); -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(87, 86, 214);" class="">For more information, please visit: <a href="http://www.carshelpingtheblind.org/" class=""><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(71, 135, 255);" class="">www.carshelpingtheblind.org</span></a> or call 1-855-659-9314</div><div style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; margin: 0px; font-size: 18px; font-family: Times; -webkit-text-stroke-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);" class="">“</div></div></div>
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