| Home | Our History |  |
Gov't Affairs | Membership | Publications | Events | Affiliates | Awards | Feature | Members Only |
 |
Government Affairs |
[an error occurred while processing this directive] Governmental Affairs: Advocacy in action. Read current and previous Legislative Network Alerts. View a listing of the Legislative Network Members. Frequently asked questions about the Legislative Network. |
Legislative Network Alerts Alert Number 162 May 11, 2006 For Your Information Legislative Update To: Members of the Legislative Network From: Patricia Leahy, Director of Governmental Affairs For those who read on the run, this Washington Wire deals with a few issues of importance to our constituencies. These issues include at this time: An update on the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act; a report on the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announcement of its intention to bar, without exception, Medicare coverage for any device such as closed-circuit television cameras (CCTVs), magnifiers and any other low vision aids or technologies, allowing people with vision loss, particularly those with low vision, to make use of their remaining vision; and, lastly, the President's Announcements on Nominations. But, first an update on the reauthorization of WIA follows immediately below. WOE IS WIA It appears at this time that time is running out this year for the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), and most importantly for us, the reauthorization of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended. As you know from NRA's Washington Wires, Senator Durbin (R.ILL.) placed a 'hold' on the Senate WIA bill last fall which prevents the Senate WIA bill from coming to the Senate Floor for a vote by the full U.S. Senate. Senator Durbin and others feel strongly that the faith-based provisions in the bill will allow discrimination in employment on the basis of one's religion. Until the 'hold' is lifted, which we do not anticipate anytime soon, the Senate WIA bill cannot be brought to the Floor. As you may know, any sitting Senator can place a hold on any piece of legislation at any time. There is no 'hold' process in the House, only in the Senate. Until both Houses of Congress pass their respective WIA bills, a Conference Committee, comprised of certain Members of Congress (usually Members of the authorizing Committees), cannot reconcile their differences (which are huge) between the House and Senate WIA bills. Moreover, until a Conference commences and an identical Conference Report is passed on both the House and Senate Floors, the Conference Report cannot be sent to the President for his signature into law. If the reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act is taken up next year, we will have a new Congress which will warrant new bills and new bill numbers. That said, don't be surprised if there are certain similarities from the previous Congress's bills in the new bills. If the reauthorization of WIA, and consequently the reauthorization of the Rehab Act, is deferred until next year, which seems likely, the National Rehabilitation Association will seize this opportunity to strengthen all Titles of the Rehabilitation Act, with an emphasis of Title I (the formula grant program) and Title III (training) and to safeguard all programs, some of which have been targeted for consolidation/elimination in the President's 2006 Budget, that are administered by the Act. If the Rehabilitation Act reauthorization is deferred until next year, Linda Winslow, NRA's Executive Director, Susan Sherman, NRA's 2006 President, and I will head up a new Task Force on Reauthorization of the Rehab Act this Fall, drawing on the foundational Principles that we already have and enhancing those Principles to focus on increased quality employment of eligible individuals with disabilities with training and supports provided by qualified rehabilitation counselors and associated qualified personnel. The second issue of importance is one that deals with the rollback of benefits that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) are proposing in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). On Monday, May 1, 2006, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Federal agency responsible for management of America's public health care system, formally announced its intention to bar, without exception, Medicare coverage for any device such as closed-circuit television systems (CCTVs), magnifiers and any other low vision aids or technologies, allowing people with vision loss, particularly those with low vision, to make use of their remaining vision. In its recently-published Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) concerning Medicare Competitive Acquisition for Certain Durable Medical Equipment, Prosthetics, Orthotics and Supplies, CMS states: 'We are proposing to clarify that the scope of the eyeglass coverage exclusion encompasses all devices irrespective of their size, form, or technological features that use one or more lenses to aid vision or provide magnification of images for impaired vision. This proposed regulatory provision clarifies that the statute does not support the interpretation that the term eyeglasses only applies to lenses supported by frames that pass around the noses and ears.' The NPRM invites comments from the public on this matter. Comments are due June 30, 2006, and are to be sent electronically. We will have additional information of this important issue next week and will share that with you in a forthcoming Washington Wire, which may be a Call to Action on this issue and other issues of importance to us. The third issue of importance to us is the White House's recent Press Release which announces President Bush's intention to nominate eight individuals, appoint one individual, and upon confirmation designate one individual to serve in his Administration. Of particular interest to us is the nomination of Troy R. Justesen of Utah to be the Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) at the U.S. Department of Education. You may recall, Troy Justesen has held several 'Acting' positions over the past several years in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) and in the Rehabilitation Services Administration (including Deputy Commissioner), and in the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) in the U.S. Department of Education. Presently, Mr. Justesen is the Deputy to Assistant Secretary of OSERS, John Hager. You may also recall that Troy Justesen, in a public forum, assumed complete responsibility for the closing of RSA's 10 Regional Offices on September 30, 2005, which housed most of the staff with the monitoring and technical assistance expertise in the Rehabilitation Services Administration. Although a number of Regional staff applied for positions in RSA's D.C. office, offers were made to a few of the seasoned staff in the Regional Offices at the very last minute before the Regional Offices were shuttered. Regrettably, very few of these individuals with the requisite expertise in the Rehab Act were able to pick up stakes with such little notice and relocate to Washington, D.C., one of the top 10 most expensive cities in the U.S. in which to live. The National Rehabilitation Association continues to monitor this situation closely and from time to time, as appropriate, will report on the status of this situation. Following immediately below is the White House Press Release in the above-referenced regard. All information on the reauthorization of WIA is current as of this time and date and could change quickly. *************************** The White House Press Release: Personnel Announcement President George W. Bush today announced his intention to nominate eight individuals, appoint one individual, and upon confirmation designate one individual to serve in his Administration: The President intends to nominate Troy R. Justesen, of Utah, to be Assistant Secretary for Vocational and Adult Education at the Department of Education. Mr. Justesen currently serves as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Prior to this, he served as Deputy Commissioner for the Rehabilitation Services Administration in the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. Earlier in his career, he served as Associate Director for the Domestic Policy Council at the White House. Mr. Justesen received his bachelor's and master's degrees from Utah State University. He went on to receive a doctoral degree from Vanderbilt University. The President intends to nominate Eric Solomon, of New Jersey, to be Assistant Secretary of the Treasury for Tax Policy. Mr. Solomon currently serves as Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Regulatory Affairs at the Department of the Treasury. Prior to this, he was a Partner at Ernst & Young, LLP. Earlier in his career, he served as Assistant Chief Counsel (Corporate) at the Internal Revenue Service. Before joining the IRS, Mr. Solomon practiced tax law at Cadwalader, Wickersham, & Taft in New York, and was a partner at Drinker Biddle & Reath in Philadelphia. Mr. Solomon received his bachelor's degree from Princeton University and his JD from the University of Virginia. He went on to receive his master's degree from New York University. The President intends to nominate W. Stuart Symington, IV, of Missouri, to be Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Djibouti. Mr. Symington, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, currently serves as the State Department Representative for the faculty on the National Defense University's Joint Forces Staff College. Prior to this, he served as Deputy Director for the Office of West African Affairs at the Department of State. During this time, he served in Baghdad, Iraq as Acting Deputy Political Counselor. Earlier in his career, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Niamey, Niger. Mr. Symington received his bachelor's degree from Brown University and his JD from Columbia University. The President intends to nominate Ellen C. Williams, of Kentucky, to be a Governor of the Board of Governors of the United States Postal Service, for the remainder of a nine-year term expiring December 8, 2007. The President intends to nominate the following individuals to be Members of the National Council on Disability, for the remainder of three-year terms expiring September 17, 2007: John R. Vaughn, of Florida, and upon confirmation designate Chairman. Victoria Ray Carlson, of Iowa Chad Colley, of Florida Lisa Mattheiss, of Tennessee The President intends to appoint Sean M. Healey, of Massachusetts, to be a Member of the President's Export Council. # # # |
|||||
| Home | Our History |  |
Gov't Affairs | Membership | Publications | Events | Affiliates | Awards | Feature | Members Only |