[Pibe-division] Legislative Alert-Immediate Action Needed to Support The Higher education Textbook Commission

[David Andrews]

----- Original Message -----

From: "Hartle, Jesse" <JHartle at nfb.org>


Sent: Friday, March 27, 2009 1:27 PM

Subject: Legislative Alert-Immediate Action Needed to Support The Higher

education Textbook Commission

Fellow Federationists:

It has come to my attention that Congressman Yarmuth of Kentucky has

circulated a Dear Colleague letter in support of funding the Commission

that will study ways to provide accessible textbooks to Blind students

in higher education.  This Commission was created in the Reauthorization

of the Higher Education Act and passed by Congress last year.

It is urgent that we contact members of the House of Representatives and

ask them to sign on to Congressman Yarmuth's Dear Colleague letter.  If

funding is not provided in the Appropriations process, no work will be

done to correct the problems that Blind students face in obtaining

accessible textbooks.

We worked very hard to get the language in the Higher Education

legislation to solve this problem, and now we need to do our best to

ensure funding is provided.

Congressman Yarmuth is holding the letter open for cosigners through

Wednesday, April 1.  Currently, only 6 members of the House have signed

on to the letter and I have listed them below.

If your Representative wants to be added to this letter he or she should

contact Lillian Pace in Congressman Yarmuth's office.  You can be

connected to your Representatives office by calling the Capitol

Switchboard at (202) 225-3121.

Please contact me with any questions.  I thank all of you for your hard

work on this important issue.

Sincerely,

Jesse M. Hartle

Government Programs Specialist

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

(410) 659-9314, extension 2233

E-mail:  jhartle at nfb.org <
mailto:jhartle at nfb.org>

Cosigners of Dear Colleague Letter

Congressman Yarmuth

Congressman McDermott

Congressman Conyers

Congressman Hinojosa

Congressman Bobby Scott

Congressman Petri