[NFBMT] Washington Seminar Topics

[Bruce&Joy Breslauer]

Here is a brief summary of what we brought before the legislature in
Washington D.C. during the Washington Seminar.  If anybody wants more
information, I'll try to explain further.  Joy

 

The Washington Seminar is an annual event of the National Federation of the
Blind to introduce the agenda of blind Americans--the priority issues
requiring congressional attention over the coming year. The issues are
selected from official positions of the Federation and may address concerns
in the following areas: relevant civil rights issues; educational programs
and services; rehabilitation of the blind for competitive employment; the
operation of vending facilities by blind persons on public property;
specialized library services for the blind; the organization and funding of
federal programs; Social Security

and Supplemental Income programs; and other timely topics. Approximately
three legislative initiatives are chosen for priority attention during the
Washington

Seminar.

 

Washington Seminar Legislative Agenda of Blind Americans Priorities for the
115th Congress, First Session

 

The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation's blind. Every day we work
together to help blind people live the lives we want.

 

The Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education (AIM HE) Act

 

Electronic instructional materials have replaced traditional methods of
learning in postsecondary education, but the overwhelming majority of ebooks,
courseware, web content, and other technologies are inaccessible to students
with print disabilities. The law requires equal access in the classroom but
fails to provide

direction to schools for the way it applies to technology. AIM HE creates
voluntary accessibility guidelines for educational technology to improve
blind students' access to course material, stimulate the market, and reduce
litigation for schools.

 

The Access Technology Affordability Act

 

Currently, blind Americans rely on scarce sources of funding to acquire
access technology. By providing a refundable tax credit for qualifying access
technology purchases, Congress can stimulate individual procurement of access
technology and promote affordability of these tools for blind Americans.

 

Appropriation to the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically
Handicapped (NLS) for the Purchase of Refreshable Braille Devices

 

Established in 1931, the NLS provides its patrons with accessible format
copies of printed works. With the latest innovations in refreshable Braille,
it is now easier than ever before to put Braille into the hands of more Blind
people. A one-time appropriation to the NLS will save money and lead to the

proliferation of critically needed Braille material for blind Americans.

 

The Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who
Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled

 

Despite the ability to convert print books into accessible formats like
Braille, large print, audio, and digital copies, millions of blind and
otherwise print-disabled Americans are excluded from accessing 95 percent of
published works. The Marrakesh Treaty calls for contracting parties to
provide, in their national copyright laws, for a limitation or exception that
allows for the reproduction, distribution, and cross-border exchange of
accessible works.

 

These priorities will remove obstacles to employment, education, and access
to published works. We urge Congress to support our legislative initiatives.

 

C2017 All Rights Reserved - Copyright 2017 NFB

 

Joy Breslauer, President

National Federation of the Blind of Montana 

Web Site: http://www.nfbofmt.org <http://www.nfbofmt.org/> 

 

Live the life you want

 

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.