Legislative Advocacy on a National Scale

1. Legislative Advocacy on a National Scale Samantha Marsh, M.T.May 7, 2009

2. About the Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD )

3. Federal Legislative Process

4. Three Branches of Federal Government Executes laws Enacts laws Interprets laws

5. President & Executive Branch • Comes up with ideas for new laws • Writes the rules that make the laws work • Enforces the laws • Signs or Vetoes bills • Has access to the media

6. Executive Cabinet • Secretary of Health and Human Services • Secretary of Education

7. 111th Congress • Democrats control both houses of Congress, control over floor agenda, committee chairs, committee ratios, and committee agendas • Congress will last from January 3, 2009, until January 3, 2011 • 100 Senators435 Representatives6 Non-voting members

8. House of Representatives • 435 Members • Two-year terms • More rules • More focused on regional issues

9. House Leadership • Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) • Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) • Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) • Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-SC) • Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA)

10. Budget John Spratt (SC), Chair Ranking Member Paul Ryan (WI) Appropriations David Obey (WI), Chair Ranking Member Jerry Lewis (CA) Ways and Means Charles Rangel (NY), Chair Ranking Member Dave Camp (MI) Judiciary John Conyers (MI), Chair Ranking Member Lamar Smith (TX) Education & Labor George Miller (CA), Chair Ranking Member Howard McKeon (CA) Energy & Commerce Henry Waxman (CA), Chair Ranking Member Joe Barton (TX) Key House Committees

11. Senate • 100 Members • Six-year terms • More focused on national issues • Less rules • Consent agreements • More individual power • Filibuster – use of parliamentary procedures to delay or kill bills

12. Senate Leadership • Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) • Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) • Assistant Majority Whip Richard Durbin (D-IL) • Assistant Minority Whip John Kyl (R-AZ)

13. Appropriations Chair Inouye, HI Ranking Member Thad Cochran, MS Budget Chair Conrad, ND Ranking Member Judd Gregg, NH Finance Chair Baucus, MT Ranking Member Charles Grassley, IA Health, Education, Labor & Pension Chair Kennedy, MA Ranking Member Michael Enzi, WY Judiciary Chair Leahy, VT Ranking Member Arlen Specter, PA??? Key Senate Committees

14. HawaiiDelegation - Senate • Daniel Inouye(D) • Appropriations Chair • Commerce, Science and Transportation • Rules and Administration • Indian Affairs • Daniel K. Akaka (D) • Armed Services • Banking/Housing/Urban • Homeland Security • Veteran’s Affairs Chair • Indian Affairs

15. HawaiiDelegation - House • Neil Abercrombie(D-1st ) – Armed Services and Natural Resources • Mazie K. Hirono (D-2nd)– Education and Labor, Transportation and Infrastructure

17. How a Bill Becomes a Law • Introduced by Member of Congress • Sent to Committee/Subcommittee • Hearings and markups held • House or Senate debates • Conference Committee meets • House and Senate approve compromise • President to signs into law

18. Federal Budget

19. Federal Budget Process • Enactment of bills authorizing/mandating appropriations • Submission of President’s Budget • Passage of Budget Resolution (BR) • Sometimes the BR contains instructions called Budget Reconciliation • Enactment of 12 appropriations bills • President signs or vetoes

20. Federal Budget • Authorization – establishes or continues (reauthorization) an agency or program • Appropriations – funds the authorized programs • Discretionary spending (1/3 budget) • Entitlement/mandatory spending – for programs guaranteed to eligible individuals a specified level of benefits, e.g. SSI and Medicaid (2/3 budget)

21. Budget Timeline • President submits budget • usually early February • Congress enacts concurrent Budget Resolution • by April 15th • Budget reconciliation • 302(b) allocations • H&S agree on 13 annual appropriations bills • Fiscal year begins October 1st

22. Break Kareem Dale Video

23. Taking Action

24. What is advocacy? • Influencing public policy • Seeking adequate funding • Making sure laws are implemented • Making sure laws are enforced • Making sure laws are interpreted correctly

25. How to advocate Need to understand: • Legislative process • How are policies made? • Timeline for decisions • Who the key policymakers are • Political Climate • Current and Key Issues

26. Who do you know?

27. Write letters Make phone calls Make personal visits Write letters to the editor Start an advocacy network Build a coalition Organize a demonstration Develop notebook of positive activities Organize and educate voters Hold candidate forum What can you do? What worked/didn’t work for you?

28. What can you do? • Put your issue on your Members’ radar screen • Make your group a force to be reckoned with

29. Resources • AUCD: http://www.aucd.org • In Brief: http://www.aucd.org/aucd_inbrief.htm • Action Center: http://capwiz.com/aucd/home/ • Public Policy Website • Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities: http://www.c-c-d.org

30. Questions?

31. Legislative Update

32. Lifespan Respite Care Act Long-term Services and Supports CLASS Act Direct Support Professionals Autism Developmental Disabilities Act Hate Crimes Education & NCLB Budget and Appropriations Key Disability Issues for 2009

33. Budget and Appropriations

34. President’s FY 2010 Budget • February 2009 President submitted “bare bones” FY 2010 Budget Request • Final version of budget request expected mid May • President’s 2010 Budget Information • A New Era of Responsibility: Renewing America’s Promise • $3.6 trillion new investment in health care, education, energy independence and tax policy

35. FY 2010 Budget Resolution(S Con Res 13) • Both chambers adopted FY 2010 BR • Congress adopted the fiscal 2010 budget on April 29th with no GOP support (21 Democrats also voted against the measure) • $3.65 trillion total includes reconciliation instructions • Health Care proposal could move through Congress without a fillibuster

36. Legislative Issues and Current Legislation

37. Long Term ServicesCCA, CLASS, Direct Support • Improvements to long-term services and supports • Improvements to the Medicaid Home and Community Based State Plan Option • Sens. Kerry (D-MA) and Grassley (R-IA) Empowered at Home Act (S 434) • Make improvements to state HCBS options • Establish incentives for states to take up the option

38. Removal of the 2-year waiting period for Medicare for individuals with disabilities eligible for SSDI • Sens. Bingaman (D-NM), Brown (D-OH) and Collins (R-ME) Ending the Medicare Disability Waiting Period Act of 2009 (S 700) • Reps. Green (D-TX) and Terry (R-NE) introduced companion bill in House (HR 1708) • Legislation would gradually phase out the 2 year waiting period for Medicare • Relevant Committees • Senate Finance Committee • House Energy and Commerce Committee (Subcommittee on Health)

39. Community Choice ActS. 683 and H.R. 1670 • Introduced on March 3, 2009 • Senator Harkin (D-IA) and Specter (R-PA) and Rep. Davis (D-IL) • Allows choice in long term care options • Seeks to correct the institutional bias in the Medicaid program by giving individuals who are eligible for nursing facility services or other institutional "care" equal access to community-based services and supports, like attendant services. • Builds the capacity of local communities to provide the necessary services and supports for people with disabilities to live in their communities

40. Get your Member of Congress for co-sponsor and pass the CCA • Stand alone legislation • Piece of comprehensive health care reform • Relevant Committees • Senate Finance Committee • House Energy and Commerce Committee • Subcommittee on Health

41. The Community Living Services and Supports Act (CLASS Act)S. 697 and H.R. 1721 • 1 in 5 households in the United States, family caregivers are providing care to an individual with disabilities. • The CLASS Act provides options to purchase long-term care insurance through a national program. • Provides critical coverage without forcing people into impoverishment • Compliment to the Medicaid program • New national insurance program (payroll deductions) • Ideally incorporated within comprehensive health care reform

42. Introduced by Senator Kennedy (D-MA) and Representative Pallone (D-NJ) • Senate Special Committee on Aging Hearing in March 2009 • Swift passage of the CLASS Act • Relevant Committees • Senate Finance and HELP • House Energy and Commerce • House Ways and Means

43. Direct Support Professionals Fairness and Security Act of 2009 • Introduced on February 4, 2009 (H.R. 868) by Congresswoman Lois Capps (D-CA) and Congressman Lee Terry (R-NE) • Amends title XIX of the Social Security Act • Gives states a much-needed option to secure additional federal dollars for the direct support workforce. • Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce • No Senate version as of yet

44. Health Care Reform • Key Policy Issue • White House Health Reform Summit • Disability Community advocated for inclusion of long term services insurance program and the improvement of the Medicaid program • Reduce “spending down” • Removing Medicaid’s Institutional bias

45. Support Health Reform Legislation • Coverage available through private insurance for ALL Americans • Incorporation of long term services and supports • Strengthen Medicaid program • Amending the Public Health Services Act to require appropriate training • Relevant Committees • Senate Finance, HELP and Budget • House Budget, Ways and Means and Education and Labor

46. Social Security and Supplemental Security Income • Years of inadequate funding for SSA • Delays and decreases in services • Adjustments needed to programs • SSA’s Administrative Expenses • Efforts to address solvency • Improvements needed to SSI and Social Security Disability Programs

47. SSA received $500 million through ARRA for addressing backlog and $500 million to replace National Computer Center • Congress should: • Increase appropriations to SSA • Address areas for improvement • Relevant Committees • Senate Finance, Budget and Appropriations • House Ways and Means, Budget and Appropriations

48. Autism Treatment Acceleration ActS 819 • Introduced on April 2, 2009 by Senators Durbin (D-IL), Casey (D-PA), and Menendez (D-NJ) (House version Rep. Smith and Doyle) • This bill was originally drafted with President Obama when he was in the Senate near the end of the 111th Congress. • Bill incorporates some of the provisions of the Expanding the Promise to Individuals with Autism Act introduced by Sen. Clinton in the last Congress, including a revised version of the interdisciplinary training provision to increase the number of professionals skilled to work with individuals with ASD. • The bill (S. 819) was referred to the Senate HELP Committee. • No similar bill has been introduced in the House

49. Educate Members of Congress about the need to build capacity to provide interdisciplinary training and research through fully funding the Combating Autism Act • Especially those on Senate Health Education and Pensions (HELP) and House Energy and Commerce Committees • Urge your Members to co-sponsor Autism Treatment Acceleration Act S. 819 • See action center for alerts and sample letter! www.aucd.org

50. Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Accounts Act of 2009 S.493 and H.R. 1205 Sens. Casey (D-PA), Hatch (R-Utah), Dodd (D-CT), Burr (R-NC), Kennedy (D-MA), and Brownback (R-KS) Reps. Kennedy (D-RI), McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), and Meek (D-FL) To encourage individuals with disabilities to save, tax-free, for disability-related expenses Broad allowed expenses and flexibility in management of account