Legislative Preview: It’s Advocacy Season in Georgia!
By Dawn Alford, GCDD Acting Public Policy Director
By the time you receive this issue, the 2015 Georgia legislative session will be underway. As many of you know, legislative advocacy is one of the primary tools that the Georgia Council on Developmental Disabilities (GCDD) uses to further its mission. The mission of GCDD is to bring about social and policy changes that promote opportunities for persons with developmental disabilities and their families to live, learn, work, play and worship in Georgia communities. We know that Georgians with disabilities want to live full lives in our communities, and they are fully capable of doing so. When all our citizens are able to use their gifts and talents and pursue their dreams, it creates a better Georgia for us all.
And working to create a better Georgia for us all, including its citizens with disabilities, is just what this year's GCDD legislative agenda seeks to do.
2015 Legislative Agenda
Support an Employment First Policy for Georgia
In an Employment First policy, employment in the general workforce at or above minimum wage is the priority service outcome for individuals with disabilities in the publicly funded service system. Right now, that is not the case in Georgia. Service providers receive more money for supporting an individual in a non-work option than they do for supporting an individual to work in the community. Georgians with disabilities want to work, and the reality is that virtually everyone with a disability is able to work with supports in the right situation. GCDD member Evan Nodvin of Dunwoody is one example of an individual who is thriving with the right supports to work in the community. He has worked full-time with senior citizens for the past 14 years and recently received a promotion.
Furthermore, when Georgians with disabilities work, it benefits all Georgia taxpayers. For every dollar put into employment support for Georgians with intellectual disabilities, Georgia taxpayers reap $1.61 in benefits. But despite all this, only 14% of Georgians with developmental disabilities are currently employed in the community. To change this situation, Georgia needs an Employment First policy – a clear-cut policy that works across agency lines to establish integrated employment as the priority outcome for individuals with disabilities in the publicly funded service system. Therefore, we will work diligently to educate the governor, legislators and other policymakers about the need for an Employment First policy in Georgia.
Support Unlock the Waiting Lists!
The GCDD is proud to support Unlock the Waiting Lists! These advocates are investing in Georgians with disabilities so they and their families can live full lives and contribute to Georgia communities and the Georgia economy. Unlock the Waiting Lists! and GCDD believe Georgia must rebalance its system of long-term supports, so that fewer dollars are spent on institutional care and more dollars are invested in long-term supports in the community.
• Increase funding for 1,000 NOW/COMP waivers to address the community waiting list of over 7,000 Georgians. $16,493,000
• Fund housing vouchers to support 100 Georgians with developmental disabilities who wish to live in their own home or apartment. $600,000
• Increase the Independent Care Waiver Program's Personal Support rate to $20/hour to be consistent with other Georgia waivers. We recommend phasing in this amount starting with increasing the Personal Support rate by $3/hour for FY 2015. $7,975,490
• Fund 26 COMP waivers so that young Georgians with disabilities under the age of 22 who are currently living in nursing facilities or intermediate care facilities can move out of these facilities into permanent loving homes. $799,316
HOPE for Students: Inclusive Post-Secondary Education
Inclusive post-secondary education provides opportunities for students with intellectual disabilities to access higher education. This education prepares them to live increasingly independent lives and pursue careers of their choice Individuals with intellectual disabilities who receive post-secondary education are more likely to find paid employment than those who don't, and their earnings are 73% higher than peers who do not receive post-secondary education.3
Charlie Miller, a second-year student at the Academy for Inclusive Learning at Kennesaw State University (KSU), says, "The best way I can explain inclusive learning is it's a chance to fully express yourself out from under your mom and dad's wing, into being a productive person in society."
Thanks to legislative support, the number of inclusive post-secondary programs in Georgia has grown from one to four. However, students in inclusive post-secondary programs are not currently eligible for the HOPE scholarship program. And these inclusive post-secondary programs are so new and innovative that parents did not realize that they needed to save for a post-secondary education because for so long it was out of reach for so many students with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Without HOPE or some type of scholarship program, many qualified and eager students simply cannot afford the life-changing opportunity of inclusive post-secondary education.
• Allow students in Georgia's inclusive post-secondary education programs to access either HOPE or other scholarship funds.
Support Georgians Who Care for Their Families: The Family Care Act
Many Georgians balance their work lives with caring for their families. The Family Care Act would allow Georgians who have earned sick leave to use up to five days of that leave to care for sick or injured members of their immediate family. The Family Care Act does NOT add any additional sick days or require employers to provide them; it only allows Georgians to use the sick days they've already earned to care for family members.
• Support The Family Care Act
The previous items are the main focus of our legislative agenda for 2015! In addition, GCDD is also proud to support ...
• Changes to Georgia's high school diploma system that will give more students with disabilities the opportunity to obtain diplomas and access further career and educational opportunities
• Annualization of the 2% cost-of-living adjustment added in 2014 for providers of services and supports to persons with disabilities
• A 3% adjustment for providers to be utilized for wage increases for direct support professionals
• Changing the legal standard of proof for proving intellectual disabilities in capital punishment cases to "preponderance of the evidence," which is the standard used in most other states.
So as you can see, we have many important issues that we will be working on during this session. Moreover, given the nature of how the legislative session operates, there could also be unexpected surprises that pop up that could be of significance to Georgians with disabilities. Given this and our robust legislative agenda, we will definitely need to call on our network of grassroots advocates to help us.
In fact, we cannot be successful unless we all join together to let our voices be heard!
Get Involved: Join Our Advocacy Team!
So you may be saying to yourself, "I would love to help make some positive changes in Georgia for people with disabilities but what do I know about being an advocate? This all seems so very intimidating to me!" Well, do I have some good news for you!! If you are a person with a disability, love someone with a disability, or simply are concerned about issues facing Georgians with disabilities, we need YOU to be a part of our advocacy team – and we will teach you all you need to know about speaking to your legislators.
Leading up to the 17th annual Disability Day at the Capitol, there will be a series of Advocacy Days. We will start the day with fun, interactive advocacy training across the street from the Capitol at Central Presbyterian Church. All are welcome but due to limited space, you must register in advance. Then, we'll go over to the Capitol together to educate our legislators about what they can do to support individuals with disabilities and their families. First-timers and seasoned advocates alike are welcome! Take a moment now to look at the schedule and decide which advocacy days you want to attend (and why not come to all of them!), mark your calendar, and then go to www.gcdd.org for details on how to sign up. Further details will be emailed to all registrants. (Please click here for complete information on Advocacy Days at the Capitol.)
And when you sign up for the Advocacy Days, sign up for GCDD's 17th annual Disability Day at the Capitol, Georgia's largest advocacy rally, to be held at its new location of Liberty Plaza on Thursday, March 5, 2015.
We hope that you can make it to some or all of these events. But even if you can't attend any of them, there are still other ways you can get involved. Here are just a few:
• Make appointments with your State Representative and State Senator and share this article with them. (You can also go to www.gcdd.org to print out separate copies of our 2015 legislative agenda to share with them. If you're not sure who your State Representative and Senator are, you can find out by going to www.votesmart.org or www.legis.ga.gov.)
• While you're at www.gcdd.org, scroll to the bottom of our homepage and click on "Join our Advocacy Team!" and follow the instructions. You will have the opportunity to select your subscription preferences. If you are specifically interested in receiving calls-to-action, legislative updates and other notifications that require action from our advocates, be sure that you sign up to receive our "Advocacy & Policy Alerts" and "Unlock the Waiting Lists! Alerts."
• Visit the Unlock the Waiting Lists! website at www.unlockthewaitinglists.com for regular legislative updates during the session.
• Join our weekly legislative teleconference calls for advocates to hear the latest highlights of what is going on at the Capitol and what you can do to help. Go to www.unlockthewaitinglists.com for details on how to join the call.
• Email your advocacy question to and it may be answered in an upcoming issue of the GCDD public policy newsletter. Use the subject line, "Advocacy Question for Newsletter."
We look forward to seeing you at the Capitol and advocating for more "opportunities for persons with developmental disabilities and their families to live, learn, work, play and worship in Georgia communities."
References:
1. Cimera, R. (2010). National Cost Efficiency of Supported Employees With Intellectual Disabilities: 2002 to 2007. American Journal on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: January 2010, Vol. 115, No. 1, pp. 19-29.
2. National Core Indicators 2011-2012. National Association of State Directors of Developmental Disabilities Services and Human Services Research Institute. www.nationalcoreindicatorsorg/charts/
3. Migliore, A., Butterworth, J., & Hart, D. (2009). Postsecondary Education and Employment Outcomes for Youth with Intellectual Disabilities. Think College Fast Facts. No 1. www.thinkcollege.net/publications/fast-facts
Want to be involved in advocacy?
Become part of our advocacy team! Go to www.gcdd.org and click on "Public Policy" in the navigation bar. Then click on the green "Get Involved" button. Be sure to choose "advocacy" as one of your interests!
2015 Advocacy Days at the Capitol!
Location: Central Presbyterian Church, 201 Washington Street SW, Atlanta, 30303
Leading up to the 17th annual Disability Day at the Capitol, GCDD is hosting Advocacy Days at the Capitol and workshops to advocate for waivers and more support for the disability community! Check out the schedule below and sign up for the workshops and Disability Day!
We Need Waivers Day
Wed., Jan. 21, 9 AM-12 PM
Did you know over 7,000 Georgians are on the waiting list for a NOW or COMP waiver? Join us as we advocate to get more waivers!
ICWP Raise the Rate Day
Thurs., Jan. 29, 9 AM-12 PM
Georgia families are in crisis because they cannot find caregivers who will work for as little as $8 an hour. Join us as we advocate to raise this impossibly low rate!
Kids Need Real Homes, Not Nursing Homes Day
Wed., Feb. 4, 9 AM-12 PM
Right now, 39 school-aged children in Georgia live in nursing homes or facilities for people with disabilities. Join us as we advocate for 39 COMP waivers to bring these children home!
Employment First Day
Wed., Feb. 11, 9 AM-12 PM
Working age Georgians with disabilities want real jobs in their communities. Join us as we advocate for real jobs with Employment First!
Youth Day
Thurs., Feb. 19, 9 AM-12 PM
Calling all youth with disabilities! Come advocate for yourself and your friends and enjoy the excitement of the legislature in action! We will start the day with a fun, interactive advocacy training to teach you all you need to know about speaking to your legislators. Then, we'll go over to the Capitol together to educate our legislators about what they can do to support individuals with disabilities and their families.
17th Annual Disability Day at the Capitol
Thurs., March 5, 9 AM-2 PM
Be a part of Georgia's largest, disability advocacy event by gathering to promote access, opportunity and meaningful community living for all Georgians. Disability Day will be held at Liberty Plaza, across from the Capitol. All are welcome but due to limited space, you must register in advance.
Register for the 2015 Advocacy Days at the Capitol and the 17th annual Disability Day at the Capitol at http://www.gcdd.org/2015DisabilityDay
Tags: Making a Difference