The Unique Aspects of Disability Advocacy

Transcription

1 WASHINGTON State Independent Living Council P.O. Box Olympia, WA Meeting Minutes April 11-12, 2013 Phoenix Inn Suites Olympia, Phoenix Room, Olympia, WA Call to Order: The meeting was called to order on April 11, 2013, at 1:07 P.m. by Jim Morris, SILC Chair. Members Present: Bill Luria: Bainbridge Island. Jim Morris: Olympia. Dale Kosier: Sumner. David Born: Vancouver. Devin beach: Ellensburg. Debbie Cook: DSB and interim staff to the council, Seattle. Andres Aguirre: DVR, Olympia. Aerius Franklin: Pullman (remotely by CART). Charity Drummond: Seattle (remotely via CART.) Support Staff: Gaby de Jongh: Seattle. Anny Chang: Seattle. Visitors: Lu Walls: Alliance of People with Disabilities, Seattle. Trina Forrest: Center for Independence, Lakewood and Bellingham. Charley Lane: Coalition of Responsible Disabled, Spokane. Linda McLain: ACIL-WA Chair, Spokane. Mark Leeper: Disability Action Center, Moscow, Idaho. Angela Foster: CFI, Lakewood. Hillary Smith: CFI, Lakewood. Approval of Minutes: Motion: Bill Luria moved and david Born seconded that the Minutes for the January meeting be approved as submitted. Motion carried. Executive Director s Report: Debbie Cook SILC ED: The Search Committee of Jim, Bill, Aerius, Trina and Debbie reviewed 19 applications and chose 6 for phone interviews. This was narrowed to 3 for in-person interviews which were conducted in Lacey and included Andres along with the Committee. Special thanks to Trina and Bill for drafting the interview questions. Unfortunately the top candidate withdrew after the interviews. The Committee decided not to hire any other candidates and to open the position again after the State Plan is 1 Meeting Minutes April 2013

2 completed in July. We will definitely need to reach out further to identify new candidates. Please identify any avenues we might have overlooked. STATE PLAN: The SPIL Committee has drafted 3 goals and several objectives to be discussed during the meeting. EMPLOYMENT TASKFORCE: State Representative Cyrus Habib along with the Governor s Office has started a taskforce to increase employment of people with disabilities in both state government and private industry. There have been several meetings which Debbie and Andres have attended. This taskforce could potentially be the basis for the employment objectives in the SPIL. WEB SITE: There have been no updates to the SILC web site and members have expressed concern. Debbie has sent updates to DVR with no response. Andres said he would look into this and provide a contact. PUBLIC MEETINGS COMPLIANCE: The SILC has not complied with the Public Meetings Act. Staff have received consultation from the State Code Reviser s Office and have made necessary changes to comply. The SILC must determine its annual meeting plans at the October meeting each year and stick with this as closely as possible. MEETING SCHEDULE: The Executive Committee determined that the July meeting would be moved to June in order to complete the SPIL. This meeting will be in Seattle rather than Pullman. Devin has a family conflict, and both Aerius and Jana may be unable to attend. The October 2013 meeting will be in Ellensburg. NEW MEMBER RECRUITMENT: Devin s term ends in September and she is not eligible to reapply. Charity s term ends in September and she is eligible to reapply. Debbie s term ends but she is ex officio and DSB does not have anyone else to appoint. We need a recruitment to fill Devin and Charity s positions. We need candidates by mid-july for the Governor s Office to fill positions by October 1. Debbie will send the most recent recruitment announcement to members for edit suggestions before advertising. Cheryl no longer qualifies as the IL Centers rep since she is not Associate Director at CORD. Jim and Debbie will attempt to expedite the termination of Cheryl s appointment and the new Director appointment in the Governor s Office. Lu said that she will be the Director Designee and she has sent her application but did not send the references. BUDGET: There will be a budget breakdown as part of the SPIL. Most of the budget goes to salaries and to member travel. The SILC can usually send one or two people to a national conference and there are a few thousand discretionary dollars. The NCIL Conference is in July and SILC could send one or two people if desired. There was discussion but no motion was made. BYLAWS: In response to concerns from the last meeting, Debbie proposed to form an ad hoc Bylaws Committee. It was decided instead that she would draft changes for the SILC to consider at the October meeting. 2 Meeting Minutes April 2013

3 Chair s Report: Jim Morris Jim and Andres discussed the proposed state cut to DVR. Jim also reminded people about an advocacy training session offered by the Housing Alliance later that evening. Jim also discussed peer advocacy training requirements and financial opportunities that are changing and might be available to Centers as a result of new mental health parity requirements under the Affordable Care Act. DVR Report: Andres explained that DVR used to sit within the Secretary s Administration. DVR is now housed in the Juvenile Justice and Rehabilitation Administration. DVR recently completed RSA Monitoring which went very well. Some issues were identified related to services for transitioning youth and also how DVR codes certain program expenditures. DVR is hiring a new IT Manager and also a new Field Services Administrator to fill recent vacancies. SPIL: Discussion of Population Data Debbie presented information on service delivery by county, race and disability. For the last SPIL, every minority was classed as underserved. But this may not be the case when contrasted with the overall population. The entire state is underserved of course and data alone may not drive our decisions, but it should influence and explain them. To get this data, staff took the 704 and 7OB reports, and compared this with 2011 disability data from the American Communities Survey and 2010 Census data for WA State. There were numbers on the 704 reports that did not add up. There are also slightly different categories in the IL reporting than are used for census data. So this is not a scientific data collection but it s the best we have and can inform the decision making process. Last year, CILs did case management for 1003 individuals. Older Blind and Part B IL for DSB served 1,695. Our state population is 6,772,000 with 12.4%, 836,500 people, reporting they have a disability. All IL programs served 0.32% of the population of people with disabilities. What we don t know how to capture is how many unserved people with disabilities actually need IL services. Native Americans have the highest reported rate of disability at 22%. In contrast, Asian populations report a disability rate of only 5%. The proportion of the population who identify as a minority is 27%. If all IL programs are combined, 21% of those served identified themselves as being from a minority race. CILS served 29% minorities so they overall exceed the population representation which is great new. Caucasians, Native Americans and African Americans received IL services from all programs at a disproportionately higher rate than their representation in state population. In contrast, Hispanic Americans and Asian Americans were served at disproportionately low rates compared with the general population. Disability populations were approximately equally served by CILs except for people who are deaf or have hearing disabilities and people who are blind or have vision disabilities. It is understandable that CILs serve few blind people because when they are combined with the DSB programs 59% of all consumers 3 Meeting Minutes April 2013

4 served have vision disabilities. On the other hand, both DSB and CILs serve only about 3% deaf consumers compared with approximately 20% for each other disability population. Each CIL and each DSB provider is assigned particular counties. Of these, service was not provided by any program in San Juan County. Additionally, Chelan, Ferry, Stevens and Whitman counties are contracted to CILs by RSA but were not served. DSB is contracted to cover all but two counties in the state. IL Centers are contracted to cover only 19 of the 39 counties. Most service provided by Centers is concentrated in King, Peirce, Spokane and Kittitas Counties with a disproportionately high level of service in Kittitas and Spokane Counties. This does not mean that any county is over-served, but rather that the service is disproportional to the population. This has implications for the SILC as they decide wether to expand existing Centers or establish new ones. It also has implications for Centers as they decide where to conduct outreach for service delivery. Trina stressed that Centers serve many people who do not have IL plans and are not represented in these numbers. Debbie agreed that only those consumers contracted for and reported to RSA are considered in this chart. Centers do many other things in the community that are wonderful resources. But we can only work with the captured data that is given to RSA. Unfortunately comprehensive data is not captured on individuals served through I&R. This means we cannot use I&R data to measure outreach to minorities or underserved geographic areas. Centers would not want to collect more data, so we make decisions based on data we do have and understand they are not perfect. Debbie said she had requested data from Mark Leeper regarding service provided by his center in eastern WA counties, but has not received it. It has not been previously included in our SPIL and can be if it is received. David asked about IL services provided by agencies such as ODHH and why they are not included. Debbie said that many agencies provide valuable services that contribute to Independent Living. We are only measuring service delivery funded by RSA to organizations that meet specific criteria as IL Centers or DSB contracts. Part of the challenge is delivering IL services through the Centers to individuals who, for culture or language reasons, want to get these services through agencies such as ODHH instead. This is all part of what we should discuss regarding outreach and collaboration. Trina asked why DSB was included but DDD was not. Debbie and Andres said that DSB receives funding to provide IL services through Part B and the Older Blind program and must be included in the SPIL. DDD does not receive these funds, so like ODHH, DDD is not included even though they provide many similar services. (See January Minutes for a full discussion of IL funding for Centers, DVR and DSB.) Bill said we should not be controlled by data but should use it to define what we do and to set very specific measureable targets and activities. There was discussion of service to Hispanic and Asian populations. Language and cultural barriers are identified as a problem and whether people who are illegal will be deported. Targeted outreach to specific service providers as resource networks and staff training for Centers were identified as strategies. 4 Meeting Minutes April 2013

5 Trina said that serving these populations is especially challenging because they can t serve those who are already coming. It also costs more to serve individuals with different languages and they are not always culturally comfortable. There is concern about doing outreach and then not being able to meet the needs. Jim suggested we should track instances where we do not have resources to meet needs so we can share this with Legislators. Lu shared how Alliance hires staff who are culturally competent, and who are proficient in other languages. Also how they share services with other organizations to serve those who are not readily accommodated by staff. She and Linda stressed importance of recruiting staff who have experience with the underserved populations. Housing Objective: Bill Luria Proposed activities will connect the SILC and Centers to providers of affordable, accessible and safe housing. The SILC would identify the resources and the CILs would establish formal relationships if not already existing. Consumers must also be aware of their rights. Again, the SILC should gather resources, and CILs should distribute them to consumers and assist with advocacy. The SILC and Centers should also formalize relationships with organizations that deal with universal design, ADA compliance and visit-ability. Finally, Bill proposes that we formalize relationships with advocacy organizations to make sure we re effectively partnering on legislative and other efforts regarding housing. DISCUSSION: Housing is a priority initiative and the most requested need. Visit-ability seminars are good idea. Also campaign on Fair Housing for landlords and property managers and consultation for consumers with a Fair Housing advocate. Centers have agreements with housing providers, but there is no policy that accessible housing is prioritized for people with disabilities because nondiscrimination rules in the Fair Housing Act are interpreted to allow non-disabled to live in accessible housing. Linda and Jim mentioned Kathy Griffith at ARC of Spokane as an advocate for home ownership and Toby Olson from GCDE as a resource. Devin talked about discrimination against individuals with service animals, and Jim said the State law is being changed to comply with federal requirements. Mechanism is needed for Housing Authorities to consistently and accurately notify advocates when accessible housing becomes available so consumers can take advantage of it. Responsible renter programs are helpful and Centers should be paid to offer this to consumers. Transportation: Coordination with Driving Schools both for assistive technology and alternative format materials and accommodation strategies. Increase access to taxis or similar vehicles with lifts at comparable prices to standard transportation. Increase access to rental vehicles with lifts. 5 Meeting Minutes April 2013

6 Identify resources such as Washington Access Fund and Individual Development Accounts to pay for vehicle modification when not covered by DVR or other government resource. Coordination between Medicaid supported para-transit and para-transit that is not Medicaid funded to ensure that service is provided appropriately for medical appointments. Inconsistency of screening processes and requirements across the state for para-transit eligibility. Deinstitutionalization: It would be great if the SILC could help Centers deal with the programmatic issue of systems wanting to move people out against their will rather than a truly self-directed process. Centers feel it s a medical model rather than an Independent Living model. Emergency Preparedness: Jana Finkbonner Debbie met with Sue Bush from DSHS and staff from FEMA regarding SILC continuation of Emergency Preparedness activities. Need to facilitate coordination at a state level to ensure needs of people with disabilities are considered. Model programs in Puget Sound need to extend to rest of the state particularly where there are not Centers. Assistive Technology: Lu Walls Lu proposed that there be training for the SILC on AT resources and on the AT Act. She also discussed the legislation to allow students to take low incidence AT with them into other settings. She thought the SILC should be involved with this. Also, anything we can do to make AT devices and training resources more affordable, not just for low income. Particularly includes seniors and others not seeking employment or education. Can we expand the Older Blind program to include more AT training, for example? Find ways to make broadband access available for all, particularly for video phone access. Support efforts such as AT exchange for computer reuse and other initiatives that make technology available and affordable. Expand video phone access to include CILs, if possible. Continue collaboration with the NDBEDP at ODHH to equip deaf blind people with telecommunications and internet technologies. Work with libraries to increase access to computing in library systems. Employment SILC can partner with other agencies and organizations to implement the Governor s Executive Order on Employment of People with Disabilities in State Government which will be released soon, and an access initiative sponsored by Representative Cyrus Habib which includes a focus on employment in private industry. Dale expressed concern about accommodations for people in employment who are not clients of DVR. Accessibility of IT systems, reasonable accommodation policies, application processes, staff training, etc. 6 Meeting Minutes April 2013

7 Public Forums: Debbie Cook For the last SPIL we had 8 forums around the state to get public input. We can have general forums or ones for specific groups. We can meet near Centers, elsewhere or both. Devin suggested that we meet near Centers. It was decided to hold forums in Ellensburg, Spokane, Tacoma, Seattle and Bellingham. David and Andres suggested we also hold a forum in Vancouver since there is no longer a Center there, but the community is still interested and concerned. So there will be 6 forums beginning the week of May 20 and finishing at the June 14th meeting. Debbie will coordinate with Centers and with David. Additional Initiatives: Bill Luria Bill said he hoped members would take an active role in helping to implement the new SPIL. He asked members to consider three specific initiatives: IL Speakers Forum to make presentations throughout the year; Establish WA Disabilities Consortium to work on issues of mutual interest across disability organizations; and, Legislative Disability Caucus to promote relevant legislation. There was general agreement that these were good ideas and should be incorporated into the SPIL. Some discussion about existing groups such as the DODO s and how to interface with that. ACIL-WA Comments: Trina Forrest Trina hoped that CIL reporting for the SPIL could be part of their 704 and not a separate Plan. Debbie said that since the 704 for Centers and SILC are due at the same time, this may not be realistic. But if reporting was given verbally during SILC meetings, it wouldn t be burdensome to Centers. It also needs to be more timely than once a year so that the SILC has a better picture of accomplishments and challenges for Centers. Definitely developing a separate Plan should not be necessary. Next Steps: Debbie Cook Debbie will take the ideas generated at the meeting and draft new Plan Initiatives. She will send these out. Members can have conference calls or can send written feedback. Debbie thought it might work to have calls on particular topics. At the June meeting, Debbie will present the latest revisions which will incorporate feedback from the public comments. The SPIL must be finalized, entered into the RSA system, and signed prior to July 1. Motion To Adjourn: Bill Luria moved to adjourn. David Born seconded the motion. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 2:25 PM. 7 Meeting Minutes April 2013