[Mn-abs] Fwd: [NFBMN-News] Fact Sheet

Wed Feb 1 01:24:30 UTC 2012

Hi all!

These are the issues for the NFB of MN Day at the Capitol tomorrow.  Please take the time to educate yourself on these issues so you can speak intelligently about them.

Hope to see you at the capitol tomorrow!

Jordan Richardson
mnabs president

Sent from my iPod

Begin forwarded message:

> From: "Jennifer Dunnam" <jennifer.dunnam1829 at gmail.com>
> Date: 31 January 2012 19:02:04 CST
> To: <nfbmn-news at googlegroups.com>
> Subject: [NFBMN-News] Fact Sheet
> Reply-To: nfbmn-news at googlegroups.com
> 
> Dear Minnesota Federationists,
> 
> Here is the text of the fact sheet for our day at the capitol.
> 
> LEGISLATIVE MEMORANDUM 
> 
> TO:  Members of the 2012 Minnesota Legislature
> FROM:  The National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota (NFBM)
> RE:  Legislative Agenda for the 2012 session
> DATE:  February 1, 2012
> 
> Legislative Priorities for the 2012 session:
> 
> 1. Prevent the repeal of the Blind Persons' Literacy Act
> 
> 2. Maintain funding for public transportation 
> 
> 3. Stop Waste of Funds by Limiting Installation of Accessible Pedestrian
> Signals
> 
> About The NFB of Minnesota
> 
> The following information is provided by the members of the National
> Federation of the Blind of Minnesota (NFBM), the state's oldest, largest,
> and most active membership organization of blind and interested sighted
> people, who have come together since 1920 to formulate much-needed social
> change.  With chapters throughout the state, we deliver a message of
> encouragement and hope that blindness need not hold us back.  We assist
> blind students by providing suc-cessful blind role models and scholarships.
> We work with individuals who lose their vision later in life to show them
> that they can live independently, preventing the unnecessary expenditure
> related to assisted care and nursing homes.  We believe that state services
> to blind persons should be provided by a state agency that is identifiable
> and autonomous.  Such an agency can provide services that are specialized
> and thereby more efficient, and it is more accountable to blind persons and
> to Minnesota's tax payers.  Our goal is to promote policies that will bring
> blind people into full participation in our communities.  We know that we
> can lead full, normal lives if we have the training in the skills of
> blindness, and if we have the opportunity to put the training to use.  You
> can help us get the opportunity we need.
> 
> We want to share with you a positive approach to the legislative needs of
> blind individuals.  We ask that you consider the following information and
> lend your support.
> 
> Prevent the Repeal of the Blind Persons' Literacy Act
> 
> In 1987, the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota and the Minnesota
> Legislature worked together to make our state the first in the nation to
> enact legislation ensuring the right of children who are legally blind to be
> taught Braille. The Blind Persons' Literacy Rights act was passed in order
> to counteract the effects of harmful misconceptions about Braille and other
> problems in the education system that denied many blind children the
> opportunity to become literate. Subsequently, similar legislation was
> adopted in thirty-two other states.  These laws have certainly not solved
> all of the problems, but they do provide important protections for the
> education of blind children. Although language supporting Braille as the
> presumed reading medium for blind children has been added to federal law,
> ambiguity in the related federal regulations has made the thirty-three state
> laws more important than ever to achieve literacy for blind 
> students.
> 
> During the 2011 legislative session, S.F. 1291 and H.F. 1642 were
> introduced, seeking to reduce special education rules and regulations by
> repealing numerous provisions which exceed minimum federal requirements.
> One important provi-sion targeted for elimination in this proposed
> legislation is the Blind Persons' Literacy Rights act, Minnesota Statutes
> 125A.06.  Despite the presence of some federal requirements regarding
> Braille instruction, elimination of the clear re-quirements as set forth in
> current Minnesota law would be detrimental to the education of blind
> children and would nega-tively affect outcomes.  To undo the efforts of a
> quarter century simply as a side effect of making state requirements the
> same as those of the federal government would be a huge step in the wrong
> direction.  We make no bones about it-if Minnesota Statues 125A.06 is
> repealed, a greater number of blind schoolchildren will become functionally
> illiterate.
> 
> Invented in the early 1820's, the tactile reading and writing system of
> Braille remains as relevant today as does print, and it provides information
> about spelling, punctuation, format, and other aspects of written material
> that cannot readily be conveyed through audio formats.  Just as today's
> technology has simplified and enhanced access to the printed word, advances
> in technology have made Braille more available than it ever was in the past.
> Refreshable Braille displays can be attached to computers and mobile devices
> to present the contents of the screens in Braille; computer software and
> Braille embossers can quickly generate Braille on paper; hundreds of
> thousands of Braille books are now available through internet-based
> services. 
> 
> Research has shown that blind persons are more likely to be employed if they
> can read Braille effectively.  In fact, statis-tics show that 90% of the
> employed blind people in this country can read braille. Because there is
> currently a 70% rate of unemployment rate among working-aged blind adults in
> this country, it is critically important for blind children to re-ceive
> Braille instruction. 
> 
> The Minnesota Legislature should not repeal the Blind Persons' Literacy
> Rights Act, Minnesota Statutes 125a.06 (adopted 1987, amended 1991).
> Further, the impact of each of the other targeted repeals in S.F. 1291 and
> H.F. 1642 should be carefully considered to prevent erosion of educational
> opportunities for blind children and others with disabili-ties.
> 
> Maintain Funding for Public Transportation 
> 
> For people who are blind and many others who utilize mass transit to get to
> our jobs and other life activities, public transportation is more than just
> a convenient option-it is frequently our only option.  Public transportation
> provides a means for those who cannot drive cars to contribute to the growth
> of the economy by maintaining employment and doing business in our
> communities.  During these times of budget cuts, funding of public
> transportation in metro areas and throughout the state must be maintained as
> a priority. Please support the highest levels of funding to maintain and
> im-prove public transportation in Minnesota.
> 
> Stop Waste of Funds by Limiting Installation of Accessible Pedestrian
> Signals
> 
> Accessible Pedestrian Signals (APS) are electronic devices intended to alert
> the blind pedestrian in an audible or vibro-tactile manner when the walk
> sign is activated.  The National Federation of the Blind, with more than
> 50,000 members throughout the country, has passed numerous resolutions
> indicating our opposition to the wholesale installation of APS. We
> acknowledge that the particularly complex design of a few intersections and
> signals may pose particular challenges and could benefit from the
> installation of APS.  However, the usefulness of APS at a given intersection
> is related to the features of the intersection itself, as well as the design
> of the APS that is installed.  Other methods of making the inter-section
> more pedestrian-friendly should be considered first, and APS should only be
> deployed in situations where other modifications such as altering the timing
> of the signal are not adequate.  
> 
> For more than ten years, the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota
> has worked with city, county, and state trans-portation officials to develop
> standards for the installation of APS, requiring that they be installed only
> in those intersec-tions which are difficult or potentially hazardous for
> blind persons to navigate because of their complexity, unusual shape, or
> degree of computer control.  The Minnesota Department of Transportation
> (MNDOT) and many city and county jurisdictions have opted instead to follow
> the guidelines issued by the federal Public Rights of Way Access Advi-sory
> Committee, which advise installation of APS in all newly constructed or
> updated intersections, even though these guidelines are still under
> development and are not regulations. It has come to our attention that, in
> adherence to these guidelines, APS are being installed at a rapid rate
> throughout the state, including many locations where blind persons or other
> pedestrians are extremely unlikely to travel. It is our opinion that the
> wholesale installation of APS at every inter-section is a waste of federal,
> state, county, and city money at the same time that those bodies are facing
> budget shortfalls and cutting necessary services which really could benefit
> blind people.  According to figures recently cited by MNDOT, based on costs
> from the 2011 construction season, MNDOT spends $15,000 on APS hardware for
> one intersection with four crossings, and that figure does not include the
> costs for redesigning an intersection to accommodate APS. 
> 
> Whether to install APS should be an intersection-by-intersection decision
> and should be made based on where the need is greatest-as determined with
> consideration of all relevant factors and with input from interested parties
> including local organizations of the blind, traffic engineers,  and cane
> travel/mobility instructors.  
> 
> Please join our effort to stop this wasteful and potentially harmful
> expenditure of tax dollars by requiring MNDOT to return to evaluating
> appropriateness of APS on an intersection-by-intersection basis and
> consulting with the local blind communities.
> 
> For further information on these legislative priorities, or should questions
> arise on any matters affecting blind people anywhere in Minnesota, contact
> Jennifer Dunnam by phone at (612) 203-2738 or e-mail
> jennifer.dunnam1829 at gmail.com 
> 
> -- 
> This is the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota's News and information Listserve.
> Our Web site is http://www.nfbmn.org
> 
> To join Minnesota-Talk, the Minnesota-related discussion list, go to
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/minnesota-talk_nfbnet.org