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Appropriations
AUCD has begun meeting with Members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to educate them about the work of the network. In addition, Connecticut Senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal have drafted a "Dear Colleague" letter to support funding for the DD Act partner programs. AUCD members and allies are encouraged to contact their Senators and urge them to support the funding support letter for UCEDD, P&A, and DD Councils programs.
Budget
Republican members of the conservative Freedom Caucus in the House of Representatives have called for Congress to pay for $30 billion allocated to sequestration relief by Congress and the President as part of the Bipartisan Budget Act last year, even though policymakers have already paid for the $30 billion in question. The measure is seen as an effort to force additional, deeper cuts to entitlements since paying a second time would require a prolonged decrease in funding for many important programs. Freedom Caucus members have also stated the measure is intended to move the U.S. towards establishing recurring mandatory long-term cuts to federal entitlement spending. For more information, see the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities' analysis here.
Health Care
Energy and Commerce Committee Hearing
The Subcommittee on Health will hold a hearing on Tuesday, March 1. The hearing is entitled "Examining the Financing and Delivery of Long-Term Care in the U.S." Witness include: Dr. Alice Rivlin PhD (Co-Chair, Long-Term Care Initiative, Bipartisan Policy Center), Dr. William J. Scanlon (PhD Consultant, West Health Institute and National Health Policy Forum), and Ms. Anne Tumlinson (CEO, Anne Tumlinson Innovations). AUCD will be in attendance (see also live webcast). While AUCD is pleased that Congress recognizes the importance of addressing the need for long-term services and supports, AUCD will be encouraging Congress to include people with disabilities of all ages in any proposed services and supports system.
Employment
On February 24, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) concerning the federal government's obligation to pursue affirmation action for individuals with disabilities under Sec. 501 of the Rehabilitation Act. The proposed rule states that federal agencies must adopt the goal of having 12% of their workforce consist of people with disabilities, and 2% of their workforce consists of people with targeted/severe disabilities. These goals would apply at both higher and lower levels of federal employment. AUCD will be providing input along with its colleagues within the CCD (deadline is April 25). For more information.
Education
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee held a hearing to review President Obama's nomination of John King as Secretary of Education on February 25. King currently serves as the Acting Secretary, following the resignation of Arne Duncan, who had held the position since 2009. Secretary King also attended a hearing held by the House Education and Workforce (HEW) Committee that concerned the implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act, and his plans for education policy in the remaining months of President Obama's term.
The Senate HELP Committee also held a hearing on implementation of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) last week, the first of its kind since the law was enacted in December. A number of witnesses appeared before the committee, including state-level school administrators from Illinois and Wisconsin, senior leadership figures from the American Federation of Teachers, the Education Trust, the National Education Association, and the Migration Policy Institute. Governor Gary Herbert of Utah also testified, appearing on behalf of the National Governors' Association (NGA), which he leads and is a major advocate for reforms to No Child Left Behind that culminated in the passage of ESSA.
Health
The Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold a hearing on Wednesday, March 2 entitled "Examining the U.S. Public Health Response to the Zika Virus." Witnesses include: members of the FDA, NIH, CDC, HHS, and others. The hearing will also be available via webcast.
Tuesdays with Liz: Disability Policy for All
This week Liz Weintraub, AUCD's advocacy specialist and host of Tuesdays with Liz: Disability Policy for All, interviews Andy Imparato, AUCD's executive director, about the current vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court (#SCOTUS) and what implications the situation may have for individuals with disabilities. In case you missed last week's edition, Liz interviewed Aaron Bishop (commissioner of AIDD) and Ken Capone (a member of PCPID and the Public Policy Director of People on the Go MD) on the 2015 report to the President.
Education for All Event
AUCD policy staff will be participating in the Education for All: and Evening with AUCD on Wednesday, March 2. On this special night, we will toast 45 years of promoting inclusive disability policies- in particular, the AUCD network's impact on improving education outcomes for children and youth with disabilities. These outcomes include educating thousands of early childhood teachers how to support and include young children with disabilities in their classrooms, advocating for and implementing positive behavioral interventions and supports in over 20,000 schools, providing training and assistive technology services to tens of thousands of students and teachers throughout the country, and much more. We hope to see you there!
For more from AUCD, follow @AUCDNews and like AUCD on Facebook
For updates from our Executive Director Andy Imparato, follow @AndyAUCD.
For more policy news, follow Kim on Twitter at @kmusheno
For definitions of terms used in In Brief, please see AUCD's Glossary of Legislative Terms
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