[Nfbofnc] FW: Legislative Alert-Washington Seminar Fact Sheets Available

Fri Jan 8 22:27:36 UTC 2010

F y I 

Tim Jones
Phone: 704-491-1486
Email: tjnc2 at carolina.rr.com

  _____  

From: Hartle, Jesse [mailto:JHartle at nfb.org] 
Sent: Friday, January 08, 2010 2:20 PM
Subject: Legislative Alert-Washington Seminar Fact Sheets Available

Fellow Federationists:

I am writing to you to let you know that the fact sheets for the 2010
Washington Seminar are now on the NFB Web site.  They can be found on the
"NFB 2010 Washington Seminar" page at
http://www.nfb.org/nfb/Washington_Seminar.asp.  For your convenience, the
fact sheets are also attached to this e-mail.  The hot issues for the 2010
seminar are: 

-- Passage of the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act;

-- Passage of a Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind; and 

-- Passage of the Blind Persons Return to Work Act.  

            Please review these fact sheets in preparation for your
appointments during Washington Seminar.  We expect that bills related to the
Technology Bill of Rights and a Senate companion bill to the Blind Persons
Return to Work Act will soon be introduced.  When these bills are
introduced, the fact sheets will be updated to include that information.  

            Should you have questions, I have included my contact
information at the bottom of this message.  I look forward to seeing all of
you at Washington Seminar as we work towards passage of these crucial
issues.  Once again, thank you in advance for all of your hard work.

Jesse M. Hartle

Government Programs Specialist

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

Phone:  (410) 659-9314, extension 2233

E-mail:  jharle at nfb.org

JMH/wmb

Attachments

Legislative Agenda of Blind Americans:

Priorities for the 111th Congress, SECOND Session

            The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) is the oldest and
largest organization of blind people in the United States.  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.  The social and economic
consequences of blindness affect not only blind people, but also our
families, our friends, and our coworkers.  

            Three legislative initiatives demand the immediate attention of
the 111th Congress in its second session:  

1.                  We urge Congress to ensure the safety of blind and other
pedestrians by passing the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act.  This
legislation would require the U.S. Secretary of Transportation to:  

*                                            begin a study within ninety
days of its enactment to determine the most practical means of assuring that
blind and other pedestrians receive essentially similar information to that
which they now receive from sound emitted by internal combustion engines; 

*                                            determine the minimum amount of
sound necessary to offer sufficient information for blind pedestrians to
make safe travel judgments, based on appropriate scientific research and
consultation with blind Americans and other affected groups; 

*                                            within two years of beginning
the study, promulgate a motor vehicle safety standard to address the needs
of blind and other pedestrians by requiring either a minimum level of sound
or an equally effective means of providing the same information as is
available from hearing internal combustion engines; and 

*                                            apply the standard to all motor
vehicles manufactured or sold in the United States beginning no later than
two years after the date it is promulgated.  

2.                  We urge Congress to work with blind Americans to create
a Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind that mandates that consumer
electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and electronic office technology
provide user interfaces that are accessible through nonvisual means.  This
legislation should:  

*                                                        mandate that all
consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and electronic office
technology be designed so that blind people can access the same functions as
sighted people through nonvisual means and with substantially equivalent
ease of use; 

*                                                        create a commission
comprised of essential stakeholders to establish standards for nonvisual
accessibility of electronic devices intended for use in the home or office;

*                                                        endow the
Department of Justice with the authority to enforce the regulations
promulgated by the commission established by this legislation; and

*                                                        authorize the
commission to reexamine and rewrite standards periodically as consumer
electronic technology continues to evolve.

3.                  We urge Congress to promote and facilitate the
transition by blind Americans from recipients of Social Security Disability
Insurance benefits to income-earning, tax-paying, productive members of the
American workforce by enacting legislation to:  

*        replace the monthly earnings penalty with a graduated three-for-one
phase-out (i.e., a $1 reduction in benefits for each $3 earned above the
limit); 

*        replace the monthly earnings test with an annualized earnings test
in an amount equal to twelve times the Substantial Gainful Activity amount;
and 

*        establish an impairment-related work expense deduction for blind
Social Security Disability Insurance beneficiaries equal to the amount
applicable for this deduction when determining an appropriate income subsidy
under Medicare Part D or 16.3 percent of earnings, whichever is greater.

            For more information about these priorities, please consult the
attached fact sheets.  

            Blind Americans need your help to achieve our goals of economic
security, increased opportunity, and full integration into American society
on a basis of equality.  Enactment of these legislative proposals will
represent important steps toward reaching these goals.  We need the help and
support of each member of Congress.  Our success benefits not only us, but
the whole of America as well.  In this time of national economic insecurity,
these measures will contribute to increasing the tax base and encouraging
the purchase of consumer goods.  

ENHANCING PEDESTRIAN SAFETY:  

ENSURING THE BLIND CAN CONTINUE 

TO TRAVEL SAFELY AND INDEPENDENTLY

Purpose:  To enact the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act, which will
establish a motor vehicle safety standard to alert blind and other
pedestrians of the presence of silent hybrid and electric vehicles.  

Background:  Until recently independent travel for the blind has been a
relatively simple matter once a blind person has been trained in travel
techniques and has learned to use a white cane or to travel with a guide
dog.  Blind people listen to the sound of automobile engines to determine
the direction, speed, and pattern of traffic.  Sounds from traffic tell
blind pedestrians how many vehicles are near them and how fast they are
moving; whether the vehicles are accelerating or decelerating; and whether
the vehicles are traveling toward, away from, or parallel to them.  With all
of this information blind people can accurately determine when it is safe to
advance into an intersection or across a driveway or parking lot.  The
information obtained from listening to traffic sounds allows blind people to
travel with complete confidence and without assistance.  Studies have shown
that sighted pedestrians also use auditory information when traveling.  

Over the past few years, however, vehicles that are completely silent in
certain modes of operation have come on the market, and many more silent
vehicles are expected in the near future.  These vehicles are designed to
have many benefits, including improved fuel efficiency and reduced
emissions, but they do not need to be silent in order to achieve these
intended benefits.  An unintended consequence of these vehicles as they are
currently designed is that they endanger the safety, not only of blind
people, but also of small children, seniors, cyclists, and runners.  

Need for Congressional Action:  For several years the National Federation of
the Blind has been concerned about the proliferation of silent vehicles.
These concerns were validated by a recent report from the National Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, which concluded that at low speeds hybrid and
electric vehicles are twice as likely to be involved in accidents with
pedestrians as vehicles with internal combustion engines.  Recently
automobile manufacturers have acknowledged the dangers posed to blind
pedestrians by silent-vehicle technology and have begun to work with the
National Federation of the Blind to craft solutions.  While participation
from some manufacturers is an important first step, many others continue to
take a wait-and-see approach on this important issue.  Congress must
therefore direct the Department of Transportation to take action.  It is
crucial that this problem be addressed before the inevitable avalanche of
tragedies involving blind people (including newly blinded veterans), small
children, seniors, cyclists, and runners shocks the nation.  

Proposed Legislation:  The Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act (H.R. 734 and
S. 841) was introduced by Congressmen Towns and Stearns in the House and by
Senators Kerry and Specter in the Senate.  This legislation directs the
secretary of transportation to conduct a study and establish a motor vehicle
safety standard that provides a means of alerting blind and other
pedestrians of motor vehicle operation based on appropriate scientific
research and consultation with blind Americans and other affected groups.
This national motor vehicle safety standard must have the following
characteristics:  

*	In all phases of operation (including times when the vehicle is at a
full stop), pedestrians must be able to identify vehicles by nonvisual
means.  
*	The motor vehicle safety standard must also provide pedestrians with
the range of information that is currently provided by combustion engines,
including whether the vehicle is idling, maintaining a constant speed,
accelerating, or decelerating.  

The standard need not prescribe the apparatus, technology, or method to be
used by vehicle manufacturers to achieve the required safety standard.  This
approach will encourage manufacturers to use innovative and cost-effective
techniques to achieve the motor vehicle safety standard.  

Automobiles that operate in complete silence endanger the safety of all of
us; silent operation should be viewed as a design flaw comparable to the
lack of seat belts or air bags, and therefore this safety issue must be
addressed.  

Requested Action:  Please support blind Americans by cosponsoring the
Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act to authorize the U.S. Department of
Transportation to establish and promulgate regulations specifying a motor
vehicle safety standard for all new automobiles sold in the United States.
In the House of Representatives members can be added by contacting Emily
Khoury in Congressman Towns's office, or James Thomas in Congressman
Stearns's office.  In the Senate members can be added as cosponsors by
contacting Doug Frost in Senator Kerry's office.  

Contact Information:

Jesse Hartle 

Government Programs Specialist  

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND  

Phone:  (410) 659-9314, extension 2233  

Email:  jhartle at nfb.org

A TECHNOLOGY BILL OF RIGHTS FOR THE BLIND

Purpose:  To mandate that consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and
electronic office technology provide user interfaces that are accessible
through nonvisual means.  

Background:  In recent years rapid advances in microchip and digital
technology have led to increasingly complex user interfaces for everyday
products such as consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and
electronic office technology.  Many new devices in these categories require
interaction with visual displays, on-screen menus, touch screens, and other
user interfaces that are inaccessible to individuals who are blind or have
low vision.  Settings on the stove, dishwasher, or home entertainment system
are no longer controlled by knobs, switches, and buttons that can be readily
identified and whose settings can be easily discerned.  Inaccessibility of
these devices is a major barrier to a blind person's independence and
productivity.  If a blind person cannot operate the interfaces of basic
office equipment such as copiers and fax machines, this is a potential
threat to that person's opportunity to join the workforce or to maintain an
existing job.  

Many popular nonvisual mechanisms are available for manufacturers to create
interfaces accessible to everyone.  For example, text-to-speech technology
is inexpensive and more ubiquitous than it has ever been-it is used in
everything from automated telephone systems to the weather forecasting
service broadcast by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Indeed, a few manufacturers have incorporated this technology into their
products to create talking menus or to articulate what is on the display
screen, but many manufacturers have continued to design interfaces that do
not include any nonvisual means of use, rendering the devices inaccessible
to blind people.  

Need for Legislation:  Currently no enforceable mandates exist for
manufacturers of consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and
electronic office technology to make their products accessible to all
consumers.  There are also no accessibility standards to provide guidance to
manufacturers on how to avoid creating barriers to access by the blind.  

Congress should therefore enact a Technology Bill of Rights for the Blind
which:

*	establishes that manufacturers must create accessible user
interfaces for their products, 
*	provides a means for enforcement, and 
*	establishes standards that will provide meaningful benchmarks that
manufacturers can use to make their products accessible.

This legislation does not mandate a single, one-size-fits-all solution for
all consumer technology, home appliances, kiosks, or electronic office
technology.  Rather it mandates regulations setting meaningful accessibility
standards that allow manufacturers to select from a menu of potential
solutions or create new ones.  This will not only give manufacturers the
freedom and flexibility they desire, but will also encourage innovations
that make consumer technology more usable for everyone.

Proposed Legislation:  Congress should enact a Technology Bill of Rights for
the Blind that:  

*	Mandates that all consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks, and
electronic office technology be designed so that blind people are able to
access the same functions as sighted people by nonvisual means and with
substantially equivalent ease of use.  

*	Creates a commission to establish standards for nonvisual
accessibility of electronic devices intended for use in the home or office.
Such a commission should represent all stakeholders, including:

-          organizations of the blind; 

-          manufacturers of consumer electronics, home appliances, kiosks,
and electronic office technology, or associations representing such
manufacturers; and

-          experts on universal design, electronic engineering, and related
fields.  

*	Endows the Department of Justice with the authority to enforce the
regulations promulgated by the commission established by this legislation.  

*	Authorizes the commission to reexamine and rewrite standards
periodically as consumer electronic technology continues to evolve.  

Requested Action:  Please support blind Americans and cosponsor a Technology
Bill of Rights for the Blind to ensure that blind people can fully
participate in all aspects of American society.  Increased access leads to
increased independence, increased employment, and increased tax revenue.  

Contact Information:

Lauren McLarney

Government Programs Specialist

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

Phone:  (410) 659-9314, extension 2207

Email:  lmclarney at nfb.org

REMOVING THE EARNINGS PENALTY:  

A COMMON SENSE WORK INCENTIVE 

FOR BLIND SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFICIARIES

Purpose:  To promote and facilitate the transition by blind Americans from
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries to income-earning,
taxpaying, productive members of the American workforce.  

Background:  The unemployment rate for working-age blind people is over 70
percent.  Part of the reason for this disproportionately high statistic is
the myths and misconceptions about the true capacities of blind people.
These erroneous perceptions are manifested when employers refuse to hire the
blind.  Low societal expectations result in low representation of the blind
in the workforce.  

In addition, governmental programs intended to provide economic security to
blind workers during periods of unemployment, especially the SSDI program,
have had the unintended consequence of creating an incentive for blind
people to remain unemployed or underemployed, despite their desire to work.

Despite the efforts of the National Federation of the Blind, blindness still
has profound social and economic consequences.  Governmental programs should
encourage blind people to reach their full employment potential; they should
not encourage economic dependence.  

Existing Law:  Title II of the Social Security Act provides that disability
benefits paid to blind beneficiaries are eliminated if the beneficiary
exceeds a monthly earnings limit.  This earnings limit is in effect a
penalty imposed on blind Americans when they work.  This penalty imposed by
the SSDI program means that, if a blind person earns just $1 over $1,640
(the monthly limit in 2010 following a Trial Work Period), all benefits are
lost.  

Section 216(i)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act defines blindness as a
disability based on objective measurement of acuity and visual field, as
opposed to the subjective criterion of inability to perform Substantial
Gainful Activity (SGA).  For blind people, doing work valued at the SGA
earnings limit terminates benefits but does not terminate disability.  Only
blind people not working or those with work earnings below an annually
adjusted statutory earnings limit receive benefits.  

Need for Legislation:  When a blind person enters the workforce, there is no
guarantee that wages earned will replace SSDI benefits after taxes are paid
and work expenses are deducted.  For example, Jane worked as a customer
service representative with an annual income of $35,000 until she became
blind from diabetic retinopathy.  Jane meets the criteria for SSDI benefits,
which provide income of $1,060 a month (or $12,720 a year) tax-free while
she is not working.  Jane wants additional income to meet her financial
needs.  After an adjustment period and blindness skills training, she finds
employment as a part-time representative making $10 an hour for thirty-five
hours a week.  Jane grosses $350 a week for an average of $1,517 a month.
Using a conservative 25 percent withholding tax, Jane nets $1,137.50 from
her work, combined with her $1,060 disability benefit, for a net total of
$2,197.50 a month.  If Jane should have the opportunity to work full time
(forty hours), her weekly salary would go up to $400 a week for a monthly
average of $1,733.  This amount is over the 2010 earnings limit, so Jane
loses all of her disability benefits.  Using the same 25 percent tax level,
Jane nets only $1,300 a month-working an extra five hours a week has cost
Jane $897.50 net income (over $10,500 a year).  This example illustrates the
work disincentive contained in current law.  

A gradual reduction of $1 in benefits for every $3 earned over the earnings
limit would remove the earnings penalty and provide a financial incentive to
work.  The benefit amount paid to an individual will gradually decrease,
while the individual's contribution to the Social Security trust fund
increases over time.  Under this approach, as Jane earns more, she pays more
into the trust fund, and her dependence on benefits decreases.  

Monthly earnings evaluations are unnecessarily complicated for both the
beneficiaries and the Social Security Administration.  Since the medical
prognosis for blind people rarely changes and because blindness is
objectively measurable, blind people should be subject to an annual earnings
test with the limit equal to twelve times the applicable monthly SGA amount.

Under current law blind workers frequently pay for items and services
related to their blindness that are necessary for them to work, and they are
permitted to subtract these Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE) from
monthly earnings when determining monthly income.  Properly crediting IRWE
poses a serious challenge to the SSDI program and creates a lack of
predictability for the blind person trying to determine whether benefits
will be available.  To address both issues, Congress should permit SSDI
recipients to claim the same amount used when determining an income subsidy
under the Medicare prescription drug program, currently 16.3 percent of
earnings.  

Proposed Legislation:  Congress should enact legislation to:  

*                    provide that earnings of blind SSDI beneficiaries in
excess of the annual earnings limit result in a gradual benefit reduction of
$1 for each $3 earned over the limit; 

*                    establish an annual earnings test for blind SSDI
beneficiaries; and 

*                    establish one standard IRWE deduction for blind SSDI
beneficiaries equal to the amount presently applicable for this deduction
when determining an appropriate income subsidy under the Medicare
prescription drug program or 16.3 percent of earnings, whichever is greater.

Requested Action:  For the House, please cosponsor the Blind Persons Return
to Work Act (H.R. 886) by contacting Michaeleen Crowell in Rep. John Lewis's
office, and provide a common sense work incentive for blind Social Security
beneficiaries.  For the Senate please consider introducing companion
legislation.  

Contact Information:

Lauren McLarney

Government Programs Specialist

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

Phone:  (410) 659-9314, extension 2207

Email:  lmclarney at nfb.org

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