FW: The National Council on Disability (NCD) is gathering public input

[Guest guest]

From: Randee

Sent: Monday, August 24, 2009 2:30 PM

To: Parent to Parent Information List Serve

Subject: The National Council on Disability (NCD) is gathering public

input

National

Council on Disability

Public Consultation

July 27, 2009

Emerging Trends and People with

Disabilities: Public Consultation

The

National Council on Disability (NCD) is gathering public input for a study of

emerging issues and trends affecting the lives of people with

disabilities. Information gathered will be used in the development of

NCD's next annual progress report to the President and Congress, " National

Disability Policy: A Progress Report, " which is required by Section

401( of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.

How

can you participate in our public consultation process? We will briefly

outline the purpose, key policy areas of interest, and questions to answer or

items to respond to.

The

purpose of this public consultation is to gather input to inform NCD's

assessment of the status of the nation in achieving policies that guarantee

equal opportunity for all individuals with disabilities, and empower

individuals with disabilities to achieve economic self-sufficiency, independent

living, and inclusion and integration into all aspects of society.

We

are seeking input on specific quality of life areas and issues. Your input will

be used in the development of recommendations including, but not limited to,

recommendations for changes in legislation, regulations, policies, or programs,

as appropriate. NCD seeks input from individuals with disabilities,

organizations representing a broad range of individuals with disabilities, and

agencies interested in or serving individuals with disabilities.

If

you are interested in participating in this public consultation, you may want

to respond or comment on any of the following quality of life areas or issues

of interest:

·

Employment

·

Education

·

Health

status and healthcare

·

Financial

status and security

·

Leisure

and recreation

·

Personal

relationships

·

Crime

and safety

·

Homeland

security

·

Housing

·

Technology,

Assistive Technology, Telecommunications

If

you do want to respond or comment, please follow these basic guidelines:

Be brief: Use one short sentence to

explain each point you want to make, as this will help us understand your

response or comment. You can add more detail afterwards if you wish.

Focus on what is important to you: Write

about what you care most about first. If you want to make more

detailed comments, put them in an appendix to your response or in a

separate document.

Provide evidence: Your comments will be

more convincing if they are supported by evidence or information. If

you are responding by regular mail or email, send in copies of supporting

documents rather than information about where to find them.

Submit your response as soon as

possible: The earlier you send in your views, the longer we have to

consider them. This is particularly important if you are providing

new information or evidence.

Tell us who you are: Say whether you are

commenting as a private citizen, representing other people, or on behalf

of an organization.

Let us know if you want your response to

be kept confidential: NCD may publish your views as part of the results of

the consultation. If you do not want us to do so, state this clearly

in your response.

If possible, please react or respond by

email: You can even insert your comment(s) or reaction(s) into this

document following the questions you wish to answer or the subjects you

want to discuss from the list below. If you are not able to respond

by email, please share your written comments with us in a format that you

choose, but please identify the “policy topic” you are addressing at the

beginning of your response.

Now

we want to hear from you. Please provide answers and comments in response to

the following:

1.

What one sentence best describes your

idea(s) about how to change federal programs to

improve the quality- of-life for people with disabilities?

2. Please

describe your idea(s) in more depth:

3. What

problem(s) or issue(s) do/does your idea(s) address?

4. If

your idea(s) were to become reality, who would benefit the most, and how?

5. What

are the initial steps needed to get the idea(s) off the ground?

6.

Describe the optimal outcome(s) should your idea(s) be selected and

successfully implemented. How would you measure that/those outcome(s)?

7.

What is working (best practices) in communities, and does this address a

regional/state issue or national issue?

8.

What is working that the federal government can utilize to improve already

existing programs?

9.

What is working in communities that you think has been improving over time?

Your responses and

comments will help NCD provide a guide for America’s programs and services to

be modernized to reflect the changed and changing needs of people with

disabilities in our communities.

Please

send your information to NCD by September 15, 2009, in one of two ways:

Email

to:

ncd@...

Type " Emerging Trends " in the subject line

Or

by U.S. mail to:

National Council on Disability

ATTN: Emerging Trends Committee

1331 F Street NW, Suite 850

Washington, DC 20004

Thank you very much for your time and consideration in

response to this public consultation.