Date: Wednesday, February 23, 2005
Perhaps the famous actress, Bette Davis, said it best in the 1950s film classic, "All About Eve," when she uttered the now-famous line: "FASTEN YOUR SEATBELTS, WE'RE IN FOR A BUMPY NIGHT."
As we know you all fully appreciate VR and other WIA mandatory partners are in for a long, bumpy ride on the road to reauthorization.
The House WIA reauthorization bill, H.R. 27, the Job Training Improvement Act, is anything but what its title purports to be. This misguided bill is scheduled at this time to be brought to the Floor of the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday or Thursday of next week, March 2 or 3, 2005.
The purpose of this URGENT CALL TO ACTION is to ask that you contact your respective Representatives once again in the U.S. House of Representatives and urge them to vote NO on H.R. 27 when it comes to the House Floor for a final vote.
Let us begin by analyzing what our basic concerns are with H.R. 27.
First and foremost, Members of Congress need to heed the concerns of the disABILITY community, which we believe, is largely united in its belief that H.R. 27 is a bill that is, with all due respect, misguided and wrong-headed.
Members of Congress are really very good people and they want to do the right thing. But, like all of us, sometimes they need to be educated and provided the necessary outreach to appreciate what those in the advocacy community and those on the front lines -- the qualified rehabilitation counselors and other qualified professionals -- both public and private -- who actually deliver the COMPREHENSIVE services and supports to eligible individuals with disabilities who seek the dignity of a career -- know -- and that is that H.R. 27 IS A BAD BILL.
The message to your Representatives is simple:
VOTE "NO" ON H.R. 27 WHEN IT COMES TO THE HOUSE FLOOR OF THE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
H.R. 27, as amended, is A BAD BILL, make no mistake about it.
H.R. 27, as amended, rests the responsibility for what VR will pay in infrastructure costs in the hands of the Governors -- an infrastructure, mind you, -- that remains to this day -- inaccessible to all -- AND ALL MEANS ALL -- individuals with disabilities who seek the dignity of a career. This chronic, persistent inaccessibility not only refers to programmatic accessibility, but in some cases, to physical accessibility, as well.
Remember, too, that VR does not have a cap on administrative expenses, so the door is wide open as to how much VR would be mandated to pay by Governors for an infrastructure that is not accessible to many people with disabilities. These infrastructure costs are IN ADDITION TO operational, common and core services costs that VR and other mandatory partners at the one-stops are already paying under the Cost Allocation/ Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) agreements.
Secondly, H.R. 27 continues, as its predecessor bill did, to downgrade the Office of the Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) from a Presidential Appointee, confirmed by the full U.S. Senate, to a Director appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Education. As we have said on numerous occasions over the past several years, no one -- not Members of Congress -- not Congressional staff -- not the Department of Education -- has given the community a credible reason for this downgrade. JUST SAY NO TO THE DOWNGRADE OF THE OFFICE OF THE COMMISSIONER OF RSA.
H.R. 27, removes the State VR Directors from the Local Workforce Investment Boards (WIBS), a change that the National Rehabilitation Association opposes.
H.R. 27, while recognizing that the State VR Director should be a member of the State Workforce Investment Boards (SWIB) only places the State Director of the General VR Agency on the SWIB and LEAVES BEHIND the State Directors of the Blind. This is wrong. Please ask you Member of Congress to support both the State VR Directors on the SWIBS and the WIBS.
The "efficiency" measure in the WIA Common Performance Measures is a problem for the Public VR Program. This measure translates into QUICK, CHEAP, LOW-END JOBS FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES; The scope of the Governors' waiver authority has always been a concern, but the possibility of the inclusion of the WIA PLUS CONSOLIDATION BLOCK GRANT (which would block grant VR as well as four additional programs) in H.R 27, or in any venue, is really the last straw.
As we have said in previous Washington Wires, THE WIA PLUS BLOCK GRANT language LEAVES NO MANDATORY PARTNER BEHIND (INCLUDING VR) IN THE BLOCKGRANTING FRENZY THAT IS CONSUMING CAPITOL HILL.
The message is simple: SAY NO TO H.R. 27 AND SAY NO TO THE WIA BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM AMENDMENT.
BLOCK GRANTS ARE BAD FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS, INCLUDING:
-- FUNDS DEDICATED SOLELY FOR SERVICES AND SUPPORTS TO INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES SEEKING THE DIGNITY OF CAREER WOULD BE DIVERTED TO OTHER JOB SEEKERS OTHER THAN THOSE WITH DISABILITIES;
-- THIS BLOCK GRANT AMENDMENT WOULD ELIMINATE CHOICE AND ACCOUNTABILITY -- ACCOUNTABILITY THAT HAS BEEN WELL DOCUMENTED -- FOR CONSUMERS OF THE VR PROGRAM;
-- THE WIA PLUS BLOCK GRANT IS A SUPERWAIVER THAT HAS THE POWER TO --- AND WE ASSURE YOU WILL -- SUPERCEDE ALL PROVISIONS OF THE CAREFULLY CRAFTED VR STATUTE;
-- EVEN IF THE WIA PLUS BLOCK GRANT IS NOT OFFERED ON THE HOUSE FLOOR, THERE ARE PLENTY OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR THIS BLOCK GRANT TO REAR ITS UGLY HEAD.
SOME VIABLE VEHICLES (BILLS) FOR POSSIBLE INCLUSION OF THIS ODIOUS WIA PLUS BLOCK GRANT AMENDMENT INCLUDE;
THE RULE TO ACCOMPANY THE BILL H.R. 27 TO THE HOUSE FLOOR WHICH CAN BE STRUCTURED IN SUCH A WAY AS TO INCLUDE THE WIA PLUS BLOCK GRANT AMENDMENT;
THROUGH THE TEMPORARY ASSISTANCE TO NEEDY FAMILIES (TANF) REAUTHORIZATION LEGISLATION;
THROUGH THE HIGHER ED REAUTHORIZATION;
THROUGH THE SENATE WIA BILL; OR
THROUGH RECONCILIATION, which is the budgetary process by which funding cuts (called rescissions) are RECOMMENDED through the Budget Committees' blueprints to the Appropriators in both the House and Senate.
Please phone, fax or send electronic messages to your Members of Congress, but do not send letters through the mail because -- as we have said on many occasions -- delivery delays could occur because of security considerations.
One last point. Some in Washington (including the Department of Labor) may try to "divide and conquer" the disABILITY community by offering a little here, a little there. DON'T BE FOOLED BY THIS DIVISIVE STRATEGY. THERE IS VERY LITTLE TO BE GAINED, QUITE FRANKLY, IN MAKING SUCH A BAD BILL A LITTLE BETTER.
H.R. 27 is a BAD BILL. The WIA PLUS AMENDMENT IS A BAD AMENDMENT AND WILL HURT ALL INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES.
FIGHT ON, VR, FIGHT ON.
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