Laws of the Legislative Universe
There’s a
little known and totally unscientific theory based on the legislative
space-time continuum that boils down to this: for every calendar day during
a short legislative session, an entire lifetime passes by. It also has the
unique effect of aging some people by the same exponential rate or
permanently preserving those who thrive in its unstable universe. Depending
on one's view, it’s either a sign of dysfunction or twisted
self-preservation. That’s why we see the same people year in and year out —
they either can’t get enough or they haven’t been able to get out.
Sometimes, it's a case of both.
What this
means is that every day of a supplemental 60-day session is precious. Events
and actions by advocates, lobbyists, legislators and public opinion can turn
the tide of any issue in a heartbeat. Of course, the same tide will flip and
flop throughout the process, so don’t be confused or dismayed because one
day brings discouraging news — with your help, the tide will turn the other
way.
Bills take
center stage these first several weeks, while bean counters quietly work on
the budget until it rolls out in a fast fury in the final days. This week,
several issues affecting children and adults with developmental disabilities
were aired out during public hearings. It was a mixed bag of the good, the
bad and the fixable.
The
Good
Affordable Housing
House Bill 2418 — Increasing the availability of affordable housing --
was introduced and heard two nights ago in the House Housing committee. The
bill, sponsored by Rep. Springer (D-45), takes advantage of the hot housing
market to leverage increased real estate excise taxes for the benefit of
people who cannot buy into the run-away market. For people with
developmental disabilities, this bill adds $1.25 million to the Housing
Trust Fund DD Set-Aside.
Take Action: Contact members of
House Housing, especially if your representative sits on this committee
or you represent an organization in his or her district. Urge them to
support HB 2418 because it will provide desperately needed affordable
housing to people with developmental disabilities.
The
Bad
Foster Care
Senate Bill 6155 -- Licensing of facilities serving children and persons
with developmental disabilities — was in a hurry to be heard the first day
of session. This bill, sponsored by Sen. Fairley (D-32), addresses the issue
of inclusion and integration when selecting the location of staffed foster
care homes, but it goes about it in a way that opens the door to
discrimination. The bill was born out of discontent over the location of
several foster care homes for children with developmental disabilities that
are located in the same neighborhood. Advocates feel there is a better way
to promote inclusion and integration without discriminating against people
with developmental disabilities. This same legislation has been introduced
by Rep. Kagi (D-32) in House Children & Family Services. That bill --
HB 2390 -- is scheduled for a public hearing next Wednesday, January
18th, at 8:00 am.
Take Action: Contact members of
Senate Health & Long Term Care, especially if your representative sits
on this committee or you represent an organization in his or her district,
and urge them to oppose SB 6155 — Licensing of facilities serving children
and persons with developmental disabilities. Let them know there are better
ways to promote integration and inclusion without opening the door to
discrimination. The same message can be sent to
House Children and Family Services.
The
Fixable
Funding for Developmental Disabilities
House Appropriations listened to public testimony on Governor Gregoire’s
supplemental budget recommendations. Most notably, they heard from several
advocates about the lack of funding for developmental disabilities — this
was in sharp contrast to other interest groups who were able to sandwich
some “thank you’s” for funding in between their requests for additional
needs. People with developmental disabilities, parents, providers, and other
advocates testified about the needs of the unserved for family support,
employment and residential services; community-based respite for families of
adolescents in crisis; DD provider wage increases; and the need for more
case resource managers. Committee members were also reminded that, with the
Governor’s decision not to extend the DD Residential Advisory Council, the
legislature still needs to address the issue of our state DD institutions.
Take Action: Visit The Arc of Washington State
Action Center to send a message on the budget to all three of your
legislators. A sample message, with talking points, is provided. Feel free
to edit, using your own words.
Disability Access Voting
House Bill 2479 and
Senate Bill 6242 —Ensuring equipment accessibility for voters with
visual impairments — were both heard in both chambers this week. Sponsored
by Rep. Haigh (D-35) and Sen. Kastama (D-25), it’s a good bill, but it has
left out others with disabilities that would benefit from extended voting
periods so that they could access polling sites with voting equipment to
ensure their privacy. DD advocates support the bill with an amendment to
include all persons with disabilities.
Take Action: Contact members of
House State Government Operations & Accountability, especially if your
representative sits on this committee or you represent an organization in
her or his district. Urge them to support HB 2479 — Ensuring equipment
accessibility for voters with visual impairments. Let them know it’s a good
bill, but needs to be amended to include all people with disabilities. Send
the same message to
Senate Government Operations and Elections.
Waiting in the Wings
Birth-to-Three Early Intervention Services
House Bill 1107— Providing early Intervention services for children with
disabilities — is still in play from last session. The legislation,
sponsored by Rep. Dickerson (D-36) requires every school district to provide
or contract for early intervention birth-to-three services. So far, hearings
have not been scheduled.
Take Action: Contact members of
House Appropriations, especially if your representative sits on this
committee or you represent an organization in her or his district. Ask them
to support House Bill 1107 -- Providing early Intervention services for
children with disabilities. Let them know the value of school district
participation in birth to three early intervention services for children
with disabilities.
DD
Caseload Forecasting
House Bill 1416 and
Senate Bill 6052 — Expanding the responsibilities of the caseload
forecast council — were both introduced last session but neither even
received a hearing. Sponsored by Rep. Miloscia (D- 30) and Sen. Kline
(D-37), this legislation directs the inclusion of developmental disabilities
in the state’s forecast of caseload trends. This forecasting is what allows
the governor and legislature to plan for changes in the need for services
and funding. It’s time to shed some light on the caseload pressures with
developmental disability programs.
Take Action: Contact members of
House Appropriations, especially if your representative sits on this
committee or you represent an organization in her or his district. Urge them
to hold a hearing on HB 1416 — Expanding the responsibilities of the
caseload forecast council. Let them know it’s time to bring developmental
disabilities out of the dark and shed some light on its caseload trends and
pressures so that the legislature and better plan for the future of DD
services. Do the same for SB 6052 and members of
Senate Ways & Means.
The best
news of the week is that people showed up and spoke up. The Arc of
Washington State thanks the following organizations for ensuring that the
voice of developmental disabilities was heard this week: The Arc of Grays
Harbor, The Arc of King County, the Association of County Human Services,
Community Living, the Community Residential Services Association, the
Developmental Disabilities Council, Inland Empire Resources, Parent
Coalition of Clark County, Parent Coalition of King County, Parent Coalition
of Pierce County, Parent Coalition of Snohomish County, Partnership 2020,
Pas Port for Change, People First, REW, Self Advocates in Leadership, Self
Advocates of Washington, and Washington Protection & Advocacy. And, thanks
to all who wrote, called or visited your legislators — let’s keep it up!
