[NFBMO] HB2171

Wed Feb 7 15:17:33 UTC 2018

The drivers license thing confuses me. If a person is determined to be blind enough to receive the blind pension, wouldn't the drivers license immediately be revoked? I've heard of people having their licenses restricted after going to the Dr. and finding out their sight was poor enough to limit whether they drove at night or whatever. However, it's one more trip in the applying process for blind pension for someone to get their license changed over. It should be a requirement, as someone blind enough to receive the pension should not be driving, ever! I do understand how difficult it is for people to give up that freedom, and receiving that check is hardly compensation for losing that privilege, but the two do not go hand in hand. How in the world did 161 people fall through the cracks, according to this article? There are some things in this article that aren't accurate, so maybe that part is wrong, too?
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/blind-missourians-with-spouses-making-a-year-would-lose-state/article_f1636602-9944-5784-a37f-99bbf91bb41e.html

-----Original Message-----
From: NFBMO [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Gene Coulter via NFBMO
Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2018 4:53 PM
To: 'NFB of Missouri Mailing List' <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
Cc: escoulter at centurytel.net
Subject: Re: [NFBMO] HB2171

It appears to me at first blush the following is true but I reserve the right to later correction:
The is no real change in the payment  authorization as section 209.040 already states that the pension may go up or down depending on available funds but not be less than $340.
It may eliminate the exemption that the NFB got put in in 2014 regarding permenantly blind persons making the 5 year provision back in.
The bill will not affect anyone not married to a sighted spouse.
Most folks receiving are  senior citizens andsuddenly the pulling the rug out from those on a fixed income seems most unfair even if they have a big income as  their bills and motgages are based on income they thought they could on.  A grandfather provision seems more fair.
The Drivers License provision is mostly fair. However, it  would require persons to go out and get a non-driver's license before they could be approved. 
At first blush this appears to be within the state constitution as it does not substantially change the qualifications for the blind person.
Again, I may not have  all my ducks in a row.
Gene  

-----Original Message-----
From: NFBMO [mailto:nfbmo-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Gary Wunder via NFBMO
Sent: Tuesday, February 6, 2018 1:41 PM
To: NFB of Missouri Mailing List <nfbmo at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Gary Wunder <GWunder at earthlink.net>
Subject: [NFBMO] HB2171

HB 2171 -- BLIND PENSION FUND

SPONSOR: Wood

This bill specifies, a person who obtains, maintains, or renews a

valid driver's license, who operates a motor vehicle, who is not

blind, or who has violated a particular state law regarding the

Blind Pension Fund shall not be entitled to a blind pension.

Additionally, a person whose sighted spouse's annual income equals

or exceeds 300% of the federal poverty level shall not be eligible.

The Department of Social Services may require any applicant for or

recipient of the blind pension to submit to a vision test or

reexamination if there is reason to believe the person is not

eligible for the pension.

This bill requires vision tests to determine eligibility for a

blind pension to measure vision in both eyes. A person is "blind"

for the purposes of qualifying for a pension if his or her vision

cannot be corrected to better than five two-hundredths, in the

better eye, or if his or her visual field is less than or equal to

five degrees as tested with five millimeter target on perimeter in

the better eye, for a period that lasted or is expected to last at

least 12 months. The department shall determine the appropriate

vision test and may require a recipient to be retested in less than

five years if the department reasonable believes that the person's

vision is not eligible for a pension. Additionally, the

ophthalmologist, physician, or optometrist who conducted the vision

test may indicate if retesting in less than five years is

recommended.

Finally, this bill requires the department to submit to the General

Assembly a projected estimate of the monthly pension payment for

each upcoming fiscal year based on the department's estimate of

projected revenue from the blind pension tax levied, the projected

balance in the Blind Pension Fund, the projected cash flow

estimates to the fund, and estimates of the number of eligible

persons. The estimated change in the monthly payment for the

upcoming fiscal year shall be calculated as one-twelfth of the

quotient obtained by dividing 75% of the annual change in the

amount of funds in the fund for the preceding fiscal year by the

projected number of eligible persons.

This bill is the same as SB 910 (2018).

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t

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