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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 style='line-height:normal'>News:<o:p></o:p></h2><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Letter to the Social Security Administration:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>On March 26 we sent a </span><a href="https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements/letter-social-security-administration-regarding-recent"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>letter to the Acting Commissioner of the Social Security Administration</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> (SSA), Leland Dudek, in response to several proposed policy changes that had recently been announced by the SSA. Most notably, this letter was in response to announced planned reductions in the number of employees who work for SSA, and the closing of dozens of Social Security field offices across the country. This letter can be read in full on the </span><a href="https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Policy Statements page</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> of our website. After we sent our letter, there were further developments to this situation. See the next item for details. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span></b><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Legal News: Disability Advocates Sue to Stop Unlawful Cuts to Social Security Services:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>We filed a federal lawsuit on April 2, 2025, with several disability advocacy organizations and individual plaintiffs. As shared in the press release, “Many blind Americans rely on Social Security benefits for their survival and for the support of their families...In the most severe cases, these cuts could endanger people’s very lives. The National Federation of the Blind supports greater government efficiency and recognizes that much can be done to improve the SSA, but careful planning and collaboration with blind Americans and other disability advocates are the right ways to handle reform.” </span><a href="https://nfb.org/about-us/press-room/disability-advocates-sue-social-security-administration-and-doge-stop-unlawful?fbclid=IwY2xjawJqpNdleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHosh9nhSbHJoKZv9v45x_e8tapICdaQ5cZy3IWHIN1ALUFxQGrLF0guWKQF1_aem_VaqOVDHjJN8BrkC0nndy2Q"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Read and share the full press release</span></a><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>.</span><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Federal Workers Impacted by Recent Layoffs:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.25in'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>We know that federal employees with disabilities have been disproportionally affected by recent reductions in the federal employment workforce, and we are doing all we can to help our blind colleagues. If you are a federal worker impacted by the government layoffs and are interested in information on career opportunities through the National Federation of the Blind Employment Initiatives, please submit the </span><a href="https://nfb.org/programs-services/employment/general-interest-form"><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Employment Interest Form</span></a><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> to receive announcements about career opportunities and to receive notices about potential financial support to attend the NFB National Convention to explore additional employment opportunities. </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Chapter Presidents Listserv Clean Up:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Affiliate presidents have recently been asked to confirm/update chapter presidents and their email addresses so we can clean up the chapter president listserv distribution. Current chapter presidents who are not yet subscribed will be added in the near future, and those who are not chapter presidents any longer will be removed. If you have not yet sent your affiliate's list of current chapter presidents and their email addresses, the deadline is April 18. Going forward, when a new chapter president is elected (or otherwise put into that position), please send an email to </span><a href="mailto:bbraun@nfb.org"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Beth Braun</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> so that modifications can be made to the listserv, the database, and access to the NFB Portal and the Membership Management module.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><a name="_Hlk195604033"><b><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Jesse Shirek Testimony to the House Appropriations Committee, Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch:</span></b><o:p></o:p></a></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.25in'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>On April 9, Jesse Shirek, one of our government affairs specialists, testified in front of the Subcommittee on the Legislative Branch regarding the importance of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS). Jesse emphasized how critical it was that the subcommittee maintain at least the current level of funding for the NLS. The testimony can be found in full, beginning at 14:10, on the </span></span><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hxf9vGtDAOU"><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>House Appropriations Committee YouTube channel</span></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'></span></a><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>. You can also </span></span><a href="https://appropriations.house.gov/schedule/hearings/legislative-branch-public-witness-day?fbclid=IwY2xjawJqpgdleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHh8n73G_ZktPBfzHdkkcx94R6LDzkeZWdJAqDHD8BJlmVCLshrgOw9pjN5Yp_aem_-j4eXu3V6b0EZtwRSqXbMA"><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>read and share the full written and verbal testimony from the hearing</span></span><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'></span></a><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=MsoNormal style='margin-left:.25in'><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'><span style='font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p><span style='mso-bookmark:_Hlk195604033'></span><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Letter to the Secretary of Education Regarding the Executive Order to Close the Department of Education:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>On March 20, 2025, the White House issued an executive order to close the United States Department of Education. Just a few days later, on March 25, we sent a </span><a href="https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements/letter-secretary-education-regarding-executive-order"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>letter to the Secretary of Education, Linda McMahon</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>, reminding her of the importance of many programs for blind and disabled Americans that are currently administered by the Department of Education, and urging her to maintain those programs. Our letter can be read in full on the </span><a href="https://nfb.org/programs-services/advocacy/policy-statements"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Policy Statements page</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> of our website. On April 11, we received a response from Diana Diaz, the Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, which states in part, “No employees in the Office of Special Education Programs or the Rehabilitation Services Administration were part of the reduction in force. The Department is committed to ensuring uninterrupted services to meet the needs and develop the potential of children and youth with disabilities, while also supporting states and other agencies in providing vocational rehabilitation and other services.”</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>Access Technology Affordability Act (H.R. 1529):</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Last week, the United States House of Representatives passed the FY25 Concurrent Budget Resolution. Now that both chambers of Congress have passed this resolution, the work begins on the comprehensive tax bill, part of the reconciliation process that is frequently mentioned in the news. This is the ideal opportunity that members of the National Federation of the Blind have been waiting for to get the Access Technology Affordability Act included as part of the larger tax legislation. A legislative alert was sent out by Jesse Shirekon Monday, April 14, on this very topic, so please check your inboxes and review it carefully to understand the next steps that we need to take in order to get the Access Technology Affordability Act passed into law!</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>New State Legislation Harmful to Blind Merchants:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>The respective state legislatures in North Dakota and Tennessee are considering statutory changes that would dramatically restrict or eliminate opportunities for blind merchants to continue to operate vending facilities in these states. We are coordinating with affiliates and the National Association of Blind Merchants to defeat this harmful legislation. If you learn of similar legislation in your state, please reach out immediately to Jesse Shirek, government affairs specialist, by emailing </span><a href="mailto:jshirek@nfb.org"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>jshirek@nfb.org</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> or calling 410-659-9314, extension 2348.</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><h3 style='line-height:normal'><b>A Breakfast Response to Low Expectations:</b><o:p></o:p></h3><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Every day, the National Federation of the Blind raises the expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles between blind people and our dreams. An example of low expectations was displayed in a segment of <i>The Breakfast Club</i> radio show regarding a news story of a blind man named Terry Sutherland, from Indiana, who acquired a gun license but felt that he shouldn’t have been because he is blind. <i>The Breakfast Club</i> agreed with him and began to perpetuate misconceptions about blind people. We address those misconceptions in a video featuring national board members, Jim Marks and Shawn Callaway, and Federationists, Danielle McCann and Anil Lewis. </span><a href="https://youtu.be/V8HwahweBJI?si=FFWzzB_oBtomMNqZ"><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>Watch and share the video, “Serving Up the Truth: A Breakfast Response on What It Really Means to Be Blind</span></a><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'>.”</span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoListParagraph><span style='font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Arial",sans-serif'> </span><o:p></o:p></p><p class=MsoNormal><span style='font-size:11.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div></body></html>