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</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]--></head><body lang=EN-US link="#467886" vlink="#96607D" style='word-wrap:break-word'><div class=WordSection1><h2>Parma police join Blue Envelope Program: Sun Postings<o:p></o:p></h2><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>Cleveland.com<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>April 13, 2026<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>PARMA, Ohio -- Parma is now participating in Ohio’s <a href="https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Food.ohio.gov%2Fabout-us%2Fcommunications%2Fnews%2Fcommunication-disability-law-over-2000-license-plates-registered%3Ffbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExd1MxeXJXck9hU0lqeTZjcHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR5PsAqr_neGHh0SikZj4t8l805z9VSHb4gyeR5iXv298ZLIw4otZiQmEINMIw_aem_erS3trMO2hkUc7DSOyjFkg&h=AT5FBdRzQsbsBe32s6YSD0STjyGzDJLBJzica5aZW1tjrmz3nIzqmUXd-jJKUpt6ShSFAL8B24BrYNytDCftEmk4E-z_lKhrzkDAGQ390fBEZL4Jb0SzqrYtnIX6EXQv7VvkDUIQYy9O6XRLCc2nnGBboHQxXCGhE9mKcA&__tn__=-UK-R&c%5b0%5d=AT6Vfu35Tl-Z2LeK-97Izeum5z7vQuD8KBSVZ7xzfMYcdPl0csX3sRVCTrky4jQaNmrfbOEObebM5p7L2sWEFnpABfRrpH-rvAUFuL6OvsGLmQWEm0IHB4zxqSKj_fKY1eAOkTSVsD7YaFUbPBwDc4oJNc-87APseW9ltXt1kgOaNAedxw6NqBV8aZuJJHk2rsNgsJmUf2uOlBBWmDbtUUbOEg" target="_blank">Blue Envelope Program,</a> a voluntary tool for drivers with communication disabilities to improve communication with law enforcement, firefighters and EMS.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Envelopes are available at the Parma Police Department front desk or through a local Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities location.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Each blue envelope contains space for documents and accommodation notes, a car decal to alert first responders (decal display is optional) and a program overview brochure.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>“We are proud to support a program that promotes dignity, understanding and safety for all members of our community,” Mayor Tim DeGeeter said in a press release.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>“The Blue Envelope Program helps ensure that every interaction with our first responders is informed, respectful and responsive to individual needs.”<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Participants can also choose to voluntarily register with the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>This informs officers of a “medically diagnosed communication disability” included in the registration information.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The actual medical diagnosis remains private.<o:p></o:p></p><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:115%'><hr size=1 width="100%" align=center></div><h2>A bill would explore making NH a ‘technology first’ state on disability. Here’s what that means.<o:p></o:p></h2><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>Route Fifty<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>April 13, 2026<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Some lawmakers and disability advocates are working to make New Hampshire the latest to adopt what’s called a “technology first” framework for state-administered services for people with disabilities.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The technology-first framework is designed to address a persistent issue within state services for people with disabilities: a nationwide shortage of professional disability caregivers, commonly known as direct support professionals. Adopting this framework would mean the state prioritizes new technologies that might be able to mitigate the need for hard-to-come-by caregivers.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>For example, <a href="https://dmh.mo.gov/dev-disabilities/technology-first" target="_blank">in Missouri</a> which has adopted the framework, the state offers automatic medication dispensers instead of hiring a direct support professional to come to a disabled person’s home and administer medicine when possible. <a href="https://dds.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/dds/publication/attachments/DDS%20Tech%20First%20Toolkit%20v1%20Final%2010.20.25_0.pdf" target="_blank">Washington, D.C.</a>, has a program that allows people with physical disabilities to receive smart speakers that can control household features, such as lights, with their voice. In <a href="https://dodd.ohio.gov/about-us/resources/tech-first/Regional_Tech_Hubs" target="_blank">Ohio</a>, the state established 10 regional “tech hubs” where people can be trained on using these new assistive technologies.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><a href="https://stateofthestates.ku.edu/technology-first" target="_blank">Kansas University’s Lifespan Institute</a>, which promotes this type of legislation nationwide and tracks its progress across different states, ranks Missouri and Ohio as leaders — or “expert states” — in the technology-first movement. The institute categorizes Washington, D.C., as “advanced.” All but 11 states have adopted some form of this framework, according to the Lifespan Institute. New Hampshire is one of those 11.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>If enacted, <a href="https://gc.nh.gov/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/billText.aspx?sy=2026&id=2333&txtFormat=pdf&v=current" target="_blank">House Bill 1685</a> wouldn’t go so far as adopting the framework, but it would establish a commission to study the issue and develop ideas on how to move forward with it. That committee would include lawmakers, disability advocacy organizations, people with disabilities themselves, and their families. <o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>“We in the disability community believe in exploring options and giving opportunities for people to use technology as a way to solve some of the problems that they’re facing with some of the barriers that are occurring, especially around the workforce,” Vanessa Blais, policy and planning director for the New Hampshire Council on Developmental Disabilities, told state senators in support of the bill in March.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Rep. Heath Howard, who sponsored the bill, said the legislation would ensure New Hampshire becomes “a more inclusive and thoughtful state.” He also framed it in economic terms, saying it would “foster economic growth in (the) high-tech sector” that creates this assistive technology. The commission would also study ways to attract assistive technology companies to New Hampshire.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>“Technology first is more than a phrase; it is a framework that ensures that technology is considered first in discussions of support options to promote meaningful participation, social inclusion, and self-determination for individuals and their families,” Howard, a Strafford Democrat, said. “Similar legislation has already passed and seen bipartisan support in other states, and it’s time for New Hampshire to join them.”<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>An amendment to the bill softened its original language, removing the term “technology first” in favor of “assistive technology.” Some advocates worry this will result in a less comprehensive system-wide approach, but Heath is still promoting the bill as a technology-first measure. HB 1685 has been passed by the House with the amendment and is now being considered in the Senate.<o:p></o:p></p><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:115%'><hr size=1 width="100%" align=center></div><h2>Amtrak to invest $8M in Cleveland station upgrades to improve accessibility<o:p></o:p></h2><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>Cleveland.com<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'><b>April 13, 2026<o:p></o:p></b></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>CLEVELAND, Ohio – <a href="https://www.amtrak.com/home" target="_blank" title="https://www.amtrak.com/home">Amtrak</a> is investing $8 million in its downtown Cleveland station to make it more accessible for passengers.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The project includes building a new 1,200-foot-long concrete platform, along with new walkways and an expanded canopy. The new platform will feature a warning edge, railing, new signage and improved lighting.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Work is expected to start this spring and be completed within 18 months, according to Amtrak.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Train service is not expected to be disrupted during construction.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The improvements are part of a broader effort following a 2020 settlement between Amtrak and the U.S. Department of Justice over the railroad’s failure to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Since then, Amtrak has upgraded stations in more than 100 cities nationwide.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Additional Ohio stations are scheduled for upgrades, including facilities in Elyria, Sandusky and Bryan.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Cleveland’s station, built in 1977 and located at 200 Memorial Shoreway, just south of Huntington Bank Field, is Ohio’s busiest, with 61,685 passengers in 2025. That’s a 5% increase over the year before.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Nationwide, Amtrak served a record 34.5 million passengers in 2025.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The Cleveland station is served by four trains daily, all arriving and departing in the dark. The Lakeshore Limited travels between Chicago and New York City/Boston, stopping in Cleveland at 4:03 a.m. west bound and 5:38 a.m. east bound.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>The Floridian travels from Chicago to Miami, via Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C., with stops in Cleveland at 1:45 a.m. east bound and 2:59 a.m. west bound.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-bottom:8.0pt;line-height:115%'>Meanwhile, efforts continue to expand passenger rail service in Ohio. Several possible new routes are in the planning stages, including service from Cleveland to Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati and service from Cleveland to Detroit via Toledo.<o:p></o:p></p><div class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center;line-height:115%'><hr size=1 width="100%" align=center></div><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> Suzanne M. Hartfield Turner</span><span style='font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>National Federation of the Blind of Ohio, Vice President<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Ohio Legislative Director<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Cleveland Chapter, President<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-top:24.0pt'><span style='font-size:14.0pt'>The National Federation of the Blind advances the lives of its members and all blind people in the United States. We know 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. Our collective power, determination, and diversity achieve the aspirations of all blind people.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='mso-margin-top-alt:12.0pt;margin-right:0in;margin-bottom:12.0pt;margin-left:0in;line-height:18.0pt'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif;color:#333333'><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>P: (216) 990-6199<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>W: NFBOhio.ORG<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal>Facebook: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/ohiosblind/photos/"><span style='color:#0563C1'>https://www.facebook.com/ohiosblind/photos/</span></a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>