| Pubs Archive | WRA Legislative Report |
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Federal legislative update:
The schedule for First Session of the 108th Congress has not been solidified, but in all likelihood will take up reauthorization of IDEA and WIA (The Rehabilitation Act) and the Higher Education Act. According to our legislative person in D.C., Pat Leahy, the current thinking is that WIA authorization could come first. If so, we may be asked for additional action, i.e. letter writing and advocacy. However there are other distractions going on in Washington. Congress is still trying to get 2002 appropriation bills approved, and will likely roll these into an Omnibus Spending Bill to keep the government running. President Bush will be presenting his 2004 Budget to Congress on February 3, 2003 and there will be debate about that. We also could be looking at a new war this spring.
In order understand the game, we need to know where the pieces of the puzzle are. In 1998, Congress merged the Rehabilitation Act with the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and it became Title 4 of WIA. WIA also sets up the One Stop model for the Workforce Centers. Title 4 places this program under the Department of Education, which includes a division called The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services (OSERS), and one level below that is the Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA). The language and provisions of the Rehabilitation Act trickle down through these bureaucracies, and influences the rules we follow, paperwork we do, and systems used in providing services. The Rehab Act also includes formulas used to determine distribution of federal allocations among the states. RSA, in turn, dictates how policies such as “Order of Selection” (OOS) are to be carried out.
Issues regarding reauthorization of the Rehab Act include the formulas used for allocation of funds. Cost of living increases don’t cut it, and result in states resorting to OOS. Programs such as Projects With Industry and Supported Employment have had separate funding streams in the past, but are still being encouraged by the Bush administration to be consolidated into the Rehabilitation Act. While this may sound good, it would result in lost funds as the VR program requires a state match, which many states (including Wisconsin) simply don’t have.
Local Concerns: I would appreciate help from board members or other WRA members who would like to be on a legislative committee. Specifically, it would be good for us to read and understand the Rehabilitation Act prior to the big push for it’s reauthorization. A review of the DVR OOS state plan (DVR Website) would also be helpful in understanding and addressing the impact of funding issues related to the Act. We could also use more feedback about, and from within, State government as to what the new governor and his budget plans will do to rehabilitation services.
We also need to determine our delegation for the upcoming NRA Legislative Affairs training seminar in March. I would recommend to the board the following criteria: (1) 3-4 participants (NRA recommends Small group visitations) , (2) diverse representation, i.e. public, private, consumer, (3) chance for new participants, and (4) potential work contribution of prior attendees.
| WRA Legislative Report 1/17/2003 | |
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