[Arizona-students] From Jim McCarthy - Updates from the 2008 Washington Seminar

[David Andrews]

>----------------------------------------------------
>From: McCarthy, Jim
>Sent: Thursday, February 14, 2008 5:05 PM
>Subject: Updates from the 2008 Washington Seminar
>
>
>Fellow Federationists,
>
>
>
>Let me begin by thanking those of you who were able to be at the 
>2008 Washington Seminar for a very successful time in our Nation's 
>Capitol.  Here are several updates that will help you as you 
>continue to advocate for the agenda we set at the Washington Seminar.
>
>
>
>-- Blind Persons Earnings Fairness Act - Our legislation to raise 
>the amount blind people can earn before losing SSDI benefits is in 
>both houses of Congress.  The bill number in the House is H.R. 3834, 
>and the bill number in the Senate is S. 2559.  Many of you received 
>commitments from your members of Congress to cosponsor this 
>legislation.  I need you to follow up with all who you believed 
>would cosponsor this legislation, to assure that they actually do 
>so.  Therefore, I will attach the latest list of cosponsors so that 
>you know which members who agreed to cosponsor actually followed through.
>
>
>
>-- Quiet Cars - As you now know, we seek a minimum sound standard 
>for vehicles in order that blind and other pedestrians can make the 
>essential judgments required to travel safely.  While at Washington 
>Seminar, Congressman Edolphus Towns of New York, an orientation and 
>mobility instructor prior to his distinguished congressional career, 
>agreed to take the lead on this legislation.  I provided him a draft 
>and his staff is reviewing it at this time.  The chairman of the 
>Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation pledged to 
>hold a hearing concerning this issue and that office also has the 
>draft bill for consideration.  I fully expect to be announcing a 
>bill number soon for this legislation.
>
>
>
>Once a bill has been introduced, we must make the case that it is 
>necessary.  To help with this task, an e-mail has been created for 
>those of you who can to send stories of your encounters with quiet 
>cars.  The email address is quietcarstories at nfb.org.  I encourage 
>each and every
>
>one of you who has such a story to send it to the above address with 
>information sufficient to allow us to contact you.  If your friends 
>have stories, please urge them to send their stories to 
>quietcarstories at nfb.org.
>
>
>
>-- Full Funding for Digital Talking Books Conversion - The final 
>issue considered at Washington Seminar was our push for full funding 
>of the conversion of analog talking books to digital talking books 
>and replacement of the cassette players and tapes with digital 
>players and flash cartridges.  We seek the $19.1 million that the 
>library needs for the second year of the project, as well as the 
>$6.6 million Congress failed to provide for the first year, for a 
>total of $25.7 million.  At Washington Seminar we did not know the 
>amount the Library of Congress would request in its budget, but we 
>believed the library would only request the $12.5 million it 
>received last year.  Our concerns have been confirmed, which makes 
>our job of seeking the entire amount difficult, but by no means 
>impossible.  This is the kind of battle we relish and we will not 
>shrink from it.  We know that full funding is necessary or blind 
>people will certainly be left without books to read or machines on 
>which to read them.  You can expect more information on our strategy 
>as it is developed.
>
>
>
>Members of Congress are about to go on their President's Day 
>recess.  As a result, many of them should be in their districts next 
>week.  To enhance the chance that our legislation is enacted during 
>this second session of Congress, you need to meet the members and 
>remind them of their commitments to you at the Washington Seminar, 
>or if you did not see them, please get commitments from 
>them.  Meeting the members in their districts makes a powerful 
>statement of your interest in the issues and improves the odds that 
>they will do what is needed.
>
>
>
>Thank you for your hard work.  To those who were unable to join us 
>in Washington, as we dig into the follow-up work, you can also help 
>us accomplish our objectives, and I have no doubt that you will.
>
>
>
>Cordially,
>
>
>
>James D. McCarthy
>
>Government Programs Specialist
>
>National Federation of the Blind
>
>
>
>JDM/wmb
>
>
>
>Attachment
>
>
>
>
>
>Blind Persons Earnings Fairness Act
>
>H.R. 3834
>
>Cosponsors
>
>110th       2008
>
>
>
>AR
>
>Representative Mike Ross
>
>
>
>CA
>
>Representative Linda Sanchez
>
>Representative Bob Filner
>
>
>
>GA
>
>Representative John Lewis
>
>Representative Sanford Bishop
>
>
>
>IA
>
>Representative Bruce Braley
>
>Representative Leonard Boswell
>
>
>
>IL
>
>Representative Philip Hare
>
>Representative Danny Davis
>
>
>
>IN
>
>Representative Peter Visclosky
>
>
>
>KS
>
>Representative Dennis Moore
>
>
>
>MN
>
>Representative James Oberstar
>
>
>
>NJ
>
>Representative Rush Holt
>
>
>
>NY
>
>Representative Edolphus Towns
>
>
>
>
>
>OH
>
>Representative Timothy Ryan
>
>
>
>PA
>
>Representative Robert Brady
>
>
>
>TN
>
>Representative Steve Cohen
>
>Representative Lincoln Davis
>
>
>
>TX
>
>Representative Ron Paul
>
>
>
>VA
>
>Representative Bobby Scott
>
>Representative Frank Wolf
>
>
>
>VT
>
>Representative Peter Welch
>
>
>
>WA
>
>Representative Jim McDermott
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>Blind Persons Earnings Fairness Act
>
>S. 2559
>
>Cosponsors
>
>110th       2008
>
>AZ
>
>Senator John McCain
>
>
>
>CT
>
>Senator Christopher Dodd
>
>
>
>VA
>
>Senator John Warner
>
>
>
>ME
>
>Senator Susan Collins
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