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<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>We must remain vigilent in KY. This action is
so detremental to people who are blind, their families and certainly displays
the general negative attitude about people who are blind-we just really don't
matter... Therefore, we must be vigilent, vocal and visible communicating
with the decision makers. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Best, Pamela</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=cathyj@iglou.com href="mailto:cathyj@iglou.com">Cathy</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=nfbk@nfbnet.org
href="mailto:nfbk@nfbnet.org">NFB of Kentucky Internet Mailing List</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 29, 2012 10:59
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [Nfbk] FW: National Federation
of the Blind of Michigan Calls forReversal of Executive Order on Commission
for the Blind</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578205703-01032012><FONT color=#0000ff size=2 face=Arial>It's
a sad day in Michigan. Don't ever think we are immune to such actions in our
Kentucky Office for the Blind.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578205703-01032012><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=578205703-01032012><FONT color=#0000ff size=2
face=Arial>Cathy</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr class=OutlookMessageHeader align=left><FONT size=2
face=Tahoma>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B> Freeh, Jessica
[mailto:JFreeh@nfb.org]<BR><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 29, 2012 4:11
PM<BR><B>To:</B> Alpidio Rolon; Amy Buresh; Art Schreiber; Beth Rival; Bill
Packee; Bob Kresmer; Carl Jacobsen; Cassandra McNabb; Cathy Jackson; Charlene
Smyth; Christine G. Hall; Dan Hicks; Daniel Burke; Donna Wood; Duane Iverson;
Elsie Dickerson; Frank Lee; Franklin Shiner; Fred Schroeder; Garrick Scott;
Gary Ray; Gary Wunder; Grace Pires; J.W. Smith; James Antonacci; Jeannie
Massay; Jennifer Dunnam; Joe Ruffalo; John Batron; John Fritz; Joy Harris;
Joyce Scanlan; Ken Rollman; Kim Williams; Kimberly Flores; Larry Posont; Lynn
Majewski; Mary Willows; Melissa Riccobono; Michael Barber; Michael Freeman;
Mika Pyyhkala; Nani Fife; Pam Allen; Parnell Diggs; Patti Chang; Patty Estes;
Rena Smith; Ron Brown; Gardner, Ron; Sam Gleese; Scott LaBarre; Shawn
Callaway; Terry Sheeler<BR><B>Subject:</B> National Federation of the Blind of
Michigan Calls for Reversal of Executive Order on Commission for the
Blind<BR><BR></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 14pt">FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></DIV>
<DIV>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 14pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">CONTACT:<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Fred Wurtzel, Spokesperson<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">National Federation of the Blind of <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(517) 485-0326<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">(517) 256-5575 (Cell)<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">f.wurtzel@att.net<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<H1 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt" align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 14pt">National Federation of the Blind
of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>
Calls for Reversal <BR>of Executive Order on Commission for the
Blind<o:p></o:p></SPAN></H1>
<H2 style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 12pt 0in 3pt" align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><EM>Blind Citizens to Protest
Order Tomorrow<o:p></o:p></EM></SPAN></H2>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><o:p><FONT
face=Calibri> </FONT></o:p></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Dearborn
Heights, Michigan (February 29, 2012):</SPAN></B><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> The National Federation of the Blind of Michigan,
the voice of blind citizens in Michigan, calls upon Governor Rick Snyder and
the Michigan Senate and House of Representatives to rescind Executive Order
2012-2 and conduct an open and transparent review of services to blind
citizens.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>In response to
legitimate concerns about mismanagement, poor performance, and a high degree
of consumer dissatisfaction over the past ten years that reached a crescendo
this year, Governor Snyder issued Executive Order 2012-2 abolishing the
Michigan Commission for the Blind and transferring its remnants to the
Michigan Department of Human Services (the welfare department) and the
Michigan Department of Technology, Management and
Budget.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The National Federation of the Blind of Michigan
vigorously objects to Executive Order 2012-2 on several
grounds:<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" type=disc>
<LI
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">It appears to violate
federal laws and regulations regarding rehabilitation and it jeopardizes
nearly 15 million dollars in federal funds targeted to provide
rehabilitation and training to approximately 2,500 blind <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>
citizens.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></LI></UL>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" type=disc>
<LI
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">It threatens the jobs of
more than forty blind persons who operate vending facilities on federal
property and along <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>’s interstate highways plus an
additional sixty employees of these blind
entrepreneurs.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></LI></UL>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" type=disc>
<LI
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">It abolishes the Michigan
Commission for the Blind, a consumer-driven board that sets policy for the
agency serving blind persons.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Three of the five persons on the board are required to be blind.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>This arrangement assured that blind
citizens have oversight of services to the blind of the
state.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></LI></UL>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" type=disc>
<LI
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Neither the Governor, nor
his staff, consulted with the board of the commission or any other blind
person or organization representing blind persons.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>No staff of the agency was consulted
about the necessity, viability, or legality of the executive
order.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></LI></UL>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<UL style="MARGIN-TOP: 0in" type=disc>
<LI
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; tab-stops: list .5in"
class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Blind people object to
being served by the Department of Human Services (the welfare
department).<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Blind people want
work, not welfare.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></LI></UL>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">“Given the Governor’s emphasis on open,
transparent, and data-driven decisions in state government, we are astonished
by the poorly-thought-out executive order and the potential negative
consequences it brings to blind people and the citizens of Michigan,” said
Larry Posont, president of the National Federation of the Blind of
Michigan.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">“Where will the forty blind vendors go for work?”
Posont continued.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>“What will
happen to their families?<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>This
will force more people into unemployment and on to welfare rather than
creating jobs as the agency is designed to do.” <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">“We do not have any problem with the legal
structure, the staff, or the funding of the commission,” said Mike Powell, the
National Federation of the Blind of Michigan’s first vice president.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>“It is the mismanagement of services
and programs, the lack of results, and the lack of responsiveness to which we
object, not the legal structure of the commission.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>We want a strong commission board that
will make good public policy, set high goals for job placement, and raise
respect for blind people here in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>We call upon the Governor and the
legislature to consult with the representatives of blind citizens in this
state to craft a better approach than this ill-considered executive
order.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Members and supporters of the National Federation
of the Blind of Michigan will gather at noon tomorrow in front of the
<st1:PlaceName w:st="on">Romney</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">Building</st1:PlaceType> in <st1:City w:st="on">Lansing</st1:City>
to protest the executive order and inform the public about the negative impact
that it will have on blind citizens of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>, their families, and their
employees.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">###<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal
align=center><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">About
the National Federation of the Blind of <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place><o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt" class=MsoNormal><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">The National Federation of the Blind of Michigan is
the state’s oldest and largest organization of blind consumers.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Founded in 1941, we have chapters in
most large cities in <st1:State w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State> and provide
advocacy, information about blindness, scholarships, and many other services
that work toward our goal to change what it means to be blind in <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:State
w:st="on">Michigan</st1:State></st1:place>.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></P></DIV>
<P>
<HR>
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