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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Read Bernstein's quote here and the word "most". I
think they arealready still trying to fundamentally dismantle PA
260...</FONT></DIV>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Snyder rescinds order on services
for blind people</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">April 24, 2012<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>|</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">list end</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Gov. Rick Snyder's executive
order was to take effect today.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Gov. Rick Snyder's executive
order was to take effect today. / Andre J. Jackson/Detroit Free Press</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Paul Egan</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Paul Egan</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Free Press Lansing Staff</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Detroit Free Press Lansing
Bureau</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">list end</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">LANSING -- Gov. Rick Snyder
rescinded a shake-up Monday that he had ordered in state services for blind
people -- proposed changes that had provoked loud</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">protests and threats of a lawsuit
from Michigan's blind community.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The executive order, issued Feb.
24, would have abolished the Michigan Commission for the Blind and replaced it
with an advisory committee. It was due to</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">take effect today, when a 60-day
notice period ended.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"We are committed to meeting the
needs of Michigan residents with disabilities," Snyder said in a news
release.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">He said a replacement executive
order will be delayed to allow more time for dialogue with federal officials and
advocates for blind people in Michigan.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Critics said the original order
lacked consultation. They said aspects of the plan, including the proposed move
of a small business program for blind people</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">from the Department of Licensing
and Regulatory Affairs to the Department of Technology, Management and Budget,
threatened federal funding.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Richard Bernstein, a blind
Farmington Hills attorney who specializes in disability cases, told the Free
Press in March he was researching a possible lawsuit.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">On Monday, he said he has been in
talks with the Snyder administration for several weeks about a revised executive
order, and a basic agreement is in place.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The new order will maintain the
commission as an autonomous body that will report to the governor and have
investigative powers, Bernstein said. Four of</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">its members will be blind, he
said. But the commission won't have all the powers it has today, he said.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Like the previous order, the new
order will move most blind services to the Department of Human Services from
Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, he said.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">"I think both sides were
committed to finding a really positive resolution," and this "is going to allow
for a fresh start," Bernstein said.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The National Federation of the
Blind and the Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired also have had
input on the new order, officials said.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">The Commission for the Blind,
established in 1978, served 2,750 residents during the 2010 fiscal year.</P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><o:p> </o:p></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">Contact Paul Egan: 517-372-8660
or</P>
<P class=MsoNormal
style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt">pegan@freepress.com</P></DIV></BODY></HTML>