[NFBWV-Talk] Fwd: [NFB-Legislative-Directors] State Audits of Subminimum Wage Sheltered Workshop Contracts and Agencies affecting Parental Rights

[Sheri Koch]

Just sharing an idea

Sheri Koch, President
National Federation of the Blind of West Virginia
304-993-5103



Begin forwarded message:

> From: Justin Salisbury via NFB-Legislative-Directors <nfb-legislative-directors at nfbnet.org>
> Date: May 11, 2020 at 8:38:06 AM EDT
> To: 'NFB Legislative Directors List' <nfb-legislative-directors at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Justin Salisbury <PRESIDENT at alumni.ecu.edu>
> Subject: [NFB-Legislative-Directors] State Audits of Subminimum Wage Sheltered Workshop Contracts and Agencies affecting Parental Rights
> Reply-To: NFB Legislative Directors List <nfb-legislative-directors at nfbnet.org>
> 
> Dear Colleagues,
>  
> I am writing to describe a strategy idea for an affiliate and ask if any other states have tried it.
>  
> Over the weekend, I received a call from a candidate for the statewide office of Auditor General. She had heard about our work to end subminimum wages for workers with disabilities and to protect the rights of parents with disabilities. She has worked for the auditor general for almost 30 years and now wants to hold the position herself. She offered some advice on our efforts based on her experience.
>  
> One of the things she explained was that the auditor general doesn’t do the advocacy, but they investigate and report on dysfunctional government systems and spending, which can inform advocacy efforts of other parties. In our case, the auditor general could investigate and publish reports on government contracts with subminimum wage sheltered workshops and then discuss how that practice is a misuse of public funding. Additionally, she recommended that we ask the auditor general to audit some of the social service systems involved in denying parental rights to parents with disabilities. We could even ask them to audit the same agency that took a local NFB leader’s son away from her. Since the state already has supportive parenting services, those should be made available to the parents with disabilities, and we know from experience that they are not. Since they are being paid for by the state, the auditor general would want to make sure that those services are being utilized effectively, and it would be a problem if a parent was denied access to that state-funded service.
>  
> She said that we should submit a citizen’s audit request right away for each issue, which we can do through the auditor general’s website. She noted that she would love to tell us to wait until she’s in office to give her an easy first report to make a splash, but she wants us to make progress sooner than the election. I appreciate that. She said that the current auditor general would create an initial report describing our concerns and publish that at a bare minimum, so then we would have more documentation that the government knew that this was a problem. If we get a report that aligns with our position, it could help.
>  
> Before we do that, we’re going to have to make a decision to do it. Have any other states taken this route before? How did it work?
>  
> Be well,
>  
> Justin
>  
>  
> Justin Mark Hideaki Salisbury
> he/him/his
>  
> Phone: 808.797.8606
> Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu
> LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-salisbury  
> ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Justin_Salisbury
>  
>  
> “Once social change begins, it cannot be reversed. You cannot un-educate the person who has learned to read. You cannot humiliate the person who feels pride. You cannot oppress the people who are not afraid anymore.”
>  
> Cesar Chavez
>  
>  
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