<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" http-equiv=Content-Type>
<META name=GENERATOR content="MSHTML 8.00.6001.18928">
<STYLE></STYLE>
</HEAD>
<BODY bgColor=#ffffff>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Hello Fellow
Federationists,</FONT></P><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT><FONT size=2
face=Arial></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=2 face=Arial>As you may know, there will be a delegation of
blind Kentuckians who are delegates of NFBK going to meet with the KY Congress
Members of the 113th Congress in early February and to participate in the NFB
Washington Seminar. This begins the advocacy work of NFB for 2013.
Once the delegates meet with the KY Congress Members and return to KY, the work
is not done, but only beginning. Therefore, I ask each of you to become
familiar with the issues below and make the calls to your Congress Members to
encourage their support of these critical issues. We must remain vigilent
and make our voices heard continually until people with disabilities receive
equal pay for equal work, until the education process and educational materials
are all accessible to students with disabilities and until our disabled veterans
are treated with the respect, dignity, honor and courtesy that they deserve as
defenders of our freedoms. </FONT>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>You will note that the issues impact
the lives of people who have other disabilities, even though these issues are
the legislative priorities of NFB. </FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>If you have any questions or
would like to share the results of your calls, please contact me.
</FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Cordially, Pamela</FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Pamela Roark-Glisson,</FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial>Legislative Liaison
NFBK</FONT> <BR><B></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B>Please see below-</B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><STRONG></STRONG> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal><STRONG></STRONG> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B>Legislative Agenda of Blind Americans:<?xml:namespace
prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B>Priorities for the
113th Congress, FIRST Session<BR></B> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT><FONT size=2
face=Arial></FONT><FONT size=2 face=Arial></FONT><FONT size=2
face=Arial></FONT><BR>The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is the nation’s
oldest and largest nationwide organization of blind people. As the voice
of the nation’s blind, we represent the collective views of blind people
throughout society. All of our leaders and the vast majority of our
members are blind, but anyone can participate in our movement. There are
an estimated 1.3 million blind people in the United States, and every year
approximately 75,000 Americans become blind.
<BR> <BR> <BR><B>The NFB’s three legislative initiatives for 2013 are:
<BR></B> <BR>· <B>The Fair Wages
for Workers with Disabilities Act <BR></B>This legislation phases out Section
14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act, which allows employers to pay disabled
workers subminimum wages. By ending this exploitative, discriminatory
practice, disabled Americans will receive equal protection under the law to earn
at least the federal minimum wage and reach their full employment
potential. <BR>· <B>The
Technology, Education and Accessibility in College and Higher Education Act
<BR></B>Electronic instructional materials and related technology have replaced
traditional methods of learning in postsecondary settings. Although it
would be inexpensive to create e-books, courseware, applications, and other
educational devices and materials in accessible formats, the overwhelming
majority of these materials are inaccessible to disabled students. This
bill calls for minimum accessibility standards for instructional materials,
ending the “separate but equal” approach to
learning.<BR>· <B>Equal Access to Air
Travel for Service-Disabled Veterans (HR 164)<BR></B>The Space Available Program
allows active-duty military, Red Cross employees, and retired members of the
armed services to travel on military aircraft if there is space available.
HR 164 reverses the exclusion of 100 percent service-disabled veterans who were
discharged before retirement and entitles them to the program’s
privileges. <BR> <BR> <BR>The real problem of blindness is
not the loss of eyesight; it is the misunderstanding and lack of information
that exist. Given the proper training and opportunity, blindness can be
reduced to a physical nuisance. Blind Americans need your help to achieve
these goals and reach economic security and full integration into society.
Supporting these measures will benefit more than just the blind, as promoting
our economic welfare increases the tax base. We urge Congress to hear our
demands for equality and support these legislative initiatives.
<BR><BR><BR> <BR><B>The Fair Wages for Workers with Disabilities Act of
2013<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal
align=center><B><BR> <BR>Current labor laws unjustly prohibit workers with
disabilities <BR>from reaching their full socioeconomic
potential.<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><BR> <BR>Written in 1938, Section 14(c) of the Fair
Labor Standards Act (FLSA) discriminates against people with disabilities </B>by
allowing the secretary of labor to grant Special Wage Certificates to employers,
permitting them to pay workers with disabilities less than the minimum
wage. Despite enlightened civil rights legislation prohibiting
discrimination on the basis of disability, this antiquated provision is still in
force, with some disabled workers making only three cents an hour.
<BR><B> <BR>The subminimum wage model actually benefits the employer, not
the worker. </B>Subminimum wage employers receive taxpayer and philanthropic
dollars because the public believes they are providing training and employment
for people with disabilities. The executives use the substantial proceeds
to compensate themselves with six-figure salaries on the backs of disabled
workers they pay pennies per hour. People who raise their own standard of
living while taking advantage of those who do not have the same rights as every
other American are engaging in discrimination, not charity.<B>
<BR> <BR><A name=OLE_LINK2></A>This discrimination persists because of the
myths that Section 14(c) is:<BR></B> <BR><B>Myth 1…a compassionate offering
of meaningful work.</B> Although the entities that engage in this practice
demand the benefits that come from being recognized as employers, subminimum
wage work is not true employment. These so-called employers offer
days filled with only repetitive drudgery for which workers are compensated with
third-world wages, leading disabled employees toward learned incapacity and
greater dependence on social programs.<BR> <BR><B>Myth 2…an employment
training tool for disabled workers. </B>Fewer<B> </B>than 5 percent of workers
with disabilities in subminimum wage workshops will transition into integrated
competitive work. In fact data show that they must unlearn the skills they
acquire in a subminimum wage workshop in order to obtain meaningful
employment. Therefore Section 14(c) is a training tool that perpetuates
ongoing underemployment.<BR> <BR><B>Myth 3…a controversial issue among the
disability community. </B>More than fifty disability-related organizations and
counting support the repeal of Section 14(c) of the FLSA, and many former
subminimum wage employers have abandoned the use of the Special Wage Certificate
without terminating anyone. Only entities profiting from this exploitive
practice refuse to acknowledge that it is discrimination.
<BR> <BR><B>The Fair Wages for Workers with Disabilities Act of 2013:
<BR></B> <BR><B>Discontinues the practice of issuing Special Wage
Certificates.</B> The secretary of labor will no longer issue Special Wage
Certificates to new applicants. <BR> <BR><B>Phases out all remaining
Special Wage Certificates over a three-year period.</B> Entities currently
holding Special Wage Certificates will begin compensating their workers with
disabilities at no less than the federal minimum wage, using the following
schedule: <BR>· private
for-profit entities’ certificates will be revoked after one year;
<BR>· public or governmental entities’
certificates will be revoked after two years; and
<BR>· nonprofit entities’ certificates
will be revoked after three years. <BR> <BR><B>Repeals Section 14(c)
of the FLSA. </B>Three years after the law is enacted, the practice of
paying disabled workers subminimum wages will be officially abolished, and
workers with disabilities will no longer be excluded from the workforce
protection of a federal minimum wage.
<BR> <BR> <BR> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><BR><B>STOP THE
DISCRIMINATION.<BR>Create opportunities for real work at real
wages.<BR> <BR>Cosponsor the Fair Wages for Workers with Disabilities
Act.<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B> </B><o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal
align=center><BR><B> <BR> <BR>For more information
contact:<BR></B>Anil Lewis, Director of Advocacy and Policy<BR>National
Federation of the Blind<BR>Phone: (410) 659-9314, Extension
2374 email: <A
href="mailto:alewis@nfb.org">alewis@nfb.org</A><o:p></o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><BR> <BR><B>The Technology, Education, and Accessibility
<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B>in College and
Higher Education Act (TEACH)<BR> <BR> <BR>Inaccessible technology in
the classroom creates a separate-but-equal <BR>approach to learning that
discriminates against disabled students. <o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><BR>The evolution of technology has fundamentally changed
the education system. </B>The scope of instructional materials used to
facilitate the teaching and learning process at institutions of higher education
has expanded. Curricular content comes in the form of digital books, PDFs,
webpages, etc.; and most of this content is delivered through technology such as
courseware, library databases, digital software, and applications. These
advancements have revolutionized access to information, but the majority of
these materials are partially or completely inaccessible to students with
disabilities. <BR><B> <BR>Barriers to access for disabled students create a
separate-but-equal approach to learning. </B>According to a 2009
Government Accountability Office report, approximately 10.8 percent of students
enrolled in postsecondary institutions had some disability. The mass
deployment of inaccessible electronic instructional materials creates barriers
to learning for millions of disabled students. When a website is not
compatible with screen-access software, a blind student is denied access to
online course information; if nondisabled students are using an inaccessible
e-reader, a student who cannot read print has to petition the school for an
accessible device and thus potentially different content. This approach to
access is discriminatory and places unnecessary barriers in the way of students
with disabilities. <BR> <BR><B>Technology exists to remedy this
discrimination, but postsecondary institutions are not investing in
accessibility. </B>Innovations in text-to-speech, refreshable Braille, and
other technologies have created promise for equal access for disabled students;
yet an unacceptable number of postsecondary institutions do not make it a
priority to purchase accessible technology. Schools are buying
inaccessible instructional materials and then separate, accessible items on an
ad-hoc basis for students with disabilities. Some resort merely to
retrofitting the inaccessible technology, which sometimes makes accessibility
worse. Until postsecondary institutions harness their purchasing power,
the market for accessible instructional materials will remain limited, and
disabled students will continue to be left behind. <BR><B> <BR>Equality in
the classroom is a civil right. </B>Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibit
discrimination on the basis of disability. The deployment of inaccessible
instructional materials violates these laws. <BR><B>Technology, Education,
and Accessibility in College and Higher Education Act:
<BR></B> <BR><B>Develops accessibility guidelines for instructional
materials.</B> The Access Board will consult experts and stakeholders to
develop technical specifications for electronic instructional materials and
related information technologies so that those materials are usable by
individuals with disabilities. <BR> <BR><B>Establishes a minimum
accessibility standard for instructional materials used by the government and in
postsecondary academic settings. </B>The Department of Justice will
implement the guidelines developed by the Access Board as enforceable standards
applicable to all departments and agencies of the federal government and
institutions of higher education covered in Titles II and III of the Americans
with Disabilities Act. <BR><B>Promotes competition while ensuring
equality. </B>The guidelines provide guidance to manufacturers on how to
develop products that are fully accessible to disabled users, and the required
standards will ensure that all colleges, universities, and federal agencies
procure and deploy only fully accessible instructional materials, ending the
separate-but-equal approach to learning.
<BR> <BR> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><BR><B>PROTECT
EQUALITY IN THE CLASSROOM.<BR> <BR>Cosponsor the Technology, Education, and
Accessibility<BR> in College and Higher Education Act
(TEACH).<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B> </B><o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><BR><B> <BR>For
more information contact:<BR></B>Lauren McLarney, Government Affairs
Specialist<BR>National Federation of the Blind<BR>Phone: (410) 659-9314,
Extension 2207 email: <A
href="mailto:lmclarney@nfb.org">lmclarney@nfb.org</A><o:p></o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><BR> <BR><B>Equal Access to Air Travel for
Service-Disabled Veterans (HR 164)<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><BR> <BR>The
Space Available Program denies 100 percent of<BR>Service-Disabled Veterans the
opportunity to participate.<o:p></o:p></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><BR>Discharged service-disabled veterans are not entitled
to air travel privileges to which other members of the military have
access. </B>The Space Available Program<B> </B>allows members of the
active military, some family members, Red Cross employees, and retired members
of the armed services to travel on military aircraft if space is
available. However, members of the military who are 100 percent service
disabled do not qualify for this program because they do not fall into one of
those categories.<BR> <BR><B>This unintentional exclusion denies discharged
service-disabled veterans a privilege to which they would be entitled had they
not been disabled during service. </B>Those service members who are
disabled during active duty and are medically discharged do not have the chance
to stay on active duty or fulfill the twenty years requirement to become
qualified for this program. Had they not been medically discharged, 100
percent service-disabled veterans are likely to have served until retirement.
These men and women have earned the right to space-available travel just as
others have because they have defended our country. <BR><B> <BR>Equal
Access to Air Travel for Service-Disabled Veterans would:
<BR> <BR>Provide travel privileges to totally disabled veterans.
</B>This bill amends Title 10 of the U.S. Code, to permit veterans who have a
service-connected, permanent disability rated as total to travel on military
aircraft in the same manner and to the same extent as retired members of the
Armed Forces entitled to such travel. <BR> <BR> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><BR><B>HONOR OUR
SERVICE-DISABLED VETERANS WITH <BR>PRIVILEGES THEY ARE ENTITLED
TO.<BR> <BR>Cosponsor HR 164.</B><o:p></o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><BR>To cosponsor
the bill, contact:<BR> <BR></B>Mirium Keim, Legislative Assistant<BR>Office
of Congressman Bilirakis (R-FL)<BR>Phone: (202) 225-5755 email: <A
href="mailto:mirium.keim@mail.house.gov">mirium.keim@mail.house.gov</A>
<BR><B> <BR>For more information contact:<BR></B>Jesse Hartle, Government
Affairs Specialist<BR>National Federation of the Blind<BR>Phone: (410) 659-9314,
Extension 2233 email: <A
href="mailto:jhartle@nfb.org">jhartle@nfb.org</A><BR> <BR><BR> <o:p></o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></P></DIV></BODY></HTML>