ADA@25: Economic Advancement and
Financial Inclusion Summit - Transcript
>> Good morning. All right, there we go. We want to invite people to take their seats so we can
begin our exciting summit. All right, this is a great crowd. You ask them to be quiet, everybody
gets quiet. Let me see, anybody got a $10 bill, you know, you're just giving away? If you're just
going to follow everything I say today we're going to have a great time. But I just want to say
first I want to welcome you to ADA@25 and the first of its kind economic advancement and
financial inclusion summit in our nation's capital. Please, give it a round of applause. This is
great to be here today.
[ Applause ]
Let me get out a few quick announcements that I have to make. First, someone gave me this
thing, Michael. Evidently someone in this room has lost a roll of $100 bills wrapped --
>> That's mine!
>> -- in a rubber band. Whoever it is, please see us, because we have found your rubber band.
[ Laughter ]
Now don't ask me what happened to the money, but we found your rubber band. I want to say
good morning to representatives from the White House, Chairman Gruenberg, leaders and
members of the National Disability Institute, sponsors, respected government leaders,
committed community leaders, supportive corporate leaders, concerned religious leaders,
ladies, gentlemen, and my beloved brothers and sisters all. My name is Kelvin Boston, and I
am the host of the "Moneywise" public television series, and I have the privilege of being your
emcee along with Michael this morning. Before I bring up our first speaker I'd like to just say a
few comments. As we begin what I think is one of the most exciting, important, and impactful
day in our nation's history. My friends, let me share these words with you. "Consult not your
fears, but your hopes and your dreams. Think now about your frustration, but about your
unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with those things you have tried and failed in, but
consider what is still possible for you to do." Pope John XXIII said these words many, many
years ago, but I think they are fitting as we come here today at this summit on economic
inclusion. As we gather today, my friends, as we're here to celebrate the 25th anniversary of
the Americans with Disabilities Act, consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams.
And as you discuss strategies later and pathways to a better economic future for people with
disabilities think not about your frustrations, but think about your unfulfilled potential. And
tomorrow when you return to your place of work don't focus on those things that you have tried
and failed in. But consider only what is still possible for you to do. This is an important event.
This is an important week. We have seen history made over and over in the past few weeks.
But what I'm most excited about is that we're going to make history today. Now many people
know me from my work in public television, but I'm happy to be here today because of the work
that I do with the Moneywise Foundation. I'm honored to be here because our work in many
ways reflects that work and mission of NDI, and it also reflects the purpose for us being here
today. The Moneywise mission, both our television programming, and our outreach work, and
our foundation work, has one mission, and that mission is to help all Americans live their lives
with financial dignity. And I think, Michael, that our mission is similar to NDI's mission which
focuses on economic advancement for people with disabilities. Now and our work has primarily
focused on people of color. And many of whom, as you may know, took the biggest hit from
the recession. And according to our friends at the Center for Responsible Lending,
multicultural communities have lost almost 50% of their collective net worth because of the
recession. And for this reason during the next series of "Moneywise" we're going to be
focusing on helping all Americans develop their own personal economic recovery plan,
regardless of their income, regardless of their race, and whether they have disability or not. We
want to make sure that every American has their own economic recovery plan. And we're
going to use our national broadcast reach to bring that about. So I'm very excited about that.
But what many people don't know is that -- the reason why we're doing this. We're doing this,
my friends, because the recession may be over, but for many communities the recovery will
take another five to 10 years -- the economic recovery will take another five to 10 years,
especially in these low-wealth communities that we try to focus on. But we're also doing this
work because we're the only national television program that has this mission, that serves this
audience, and that can provide this type of information. But Michael, a lot of people do not
know about the work we're doing outside of television. They don't know that because of our
friends at the FDIC, and our friends at Prudential, and our friends at the US Small Business
Administration, and our friends at NEFE and other nonprofit organizations that we also have
the number one faith-based economic empowerment tour in the country. And that once a
month we travel to an African-American church, and we teach five, to 500, to 1000 people how
that they can improve their lives and find economic success in America. But what I'm most
happy about being here today to share with you something I think that we can work with the
NDI on is the Moneywise Retirement for All initiative. Again, thanks to our friend at the Insight
Center for Economic Conclusion in San Francisco and Prudential. For the next three years
we're going to help underserved communities prepare for retirement security in America. Now
you can imagine, Michael, what people say to me when they say, "Well, Kelvin, didn't you just
say that the people you serve lost 50% of their net worth? Didn't you just say that many
Americans took a big hit during the recession, many have not come back? So why are you
focusing on helping these people who seem to have little savings, who seem to have little
assets instead of helping wealthy Americans improve their life? Didn't you get the memo that
we have a trickle-down economic society?" And I share with them, "Well, you know, I think that
we need to focus on all Americans." And this is especially difficult, namely when you're trying
to raise money. Especially because most of our supporters are financial institutions and
foundations. And so sometimes, Michael, I have to dig down deep and share with them this
story about why I'm doing this work for what I think people who need the most. I remind them
of the -- about this young lady who wanted to get a business loan. She was an AfricanAmerican. And the vendor said, "You know, I'd like to give you this loan, but you have some
very -- how can I say this? -- unflattering information on your credit report." And the young lady
looked at the banker and said, "Yes, but my future is spotless." My friends, I believe all
Americans' future is spotless. I think that we have to give all Americans a chance regardless
what they've been through. And for that reason we don't focus on the assets people don't have
in our work. We focus on the assets they can have. And we try to share with them through
financial education, and empowerment, and resources how they, too, can enjoy the American
dream. But I'm happy to be here, my friends, because the most important thing we can share
with people, especially coming out of the Great Recession, is this the recession has impacted
everyone's lives financially. And yes, some people have rebounded better and quicker than
others. But even those Americans who find themselves at the recession with fewer financial
resources and assets, we have to remember that they are still blessed with enormous human
capital. And if we share with them how they can use their human capital then eventually they
will increase their financial capital. And that's why I'm here to be with you today. I'm so excited
about this conference. But I think we have to bring one thing home that's very important -- two
things that are very important. One, we can never forget that in our great society today a
technology entrepreneur can lose a billion dollars with a failed venture, and afterward angel
investors will come along and give this person another billion dollars on their second venture.
And often when you ask the angel investor why did they invest in this person after they lost a
billion dollars their rationale is that, "Well, you know, that entrepreneur will learn from his earlier
mistakes, and he will not make the same mistake the next time. He'll get it right the next time."
My friends, I believe that all Americans, black or white, affluent or poor, disabled or
nondisabled should have another chance to secure the American dream. I think that they will
learn from any past financial mistakes, and that the next time they will get it right. But that it's
up to us to get them the financial information that they need, the financial resources they need,
and the government assistance that they need so that they can get it right the next time. I am
so excited to be here because that's what we're today. We're here to celebrate ADA 25 years
after its signing into our laws. But we're also here to prepare for the future and to look at what
America will be like 25 years from today. And I'm so excited because I believe America's future
is bright. I believe that if you look at the new technologies, the rapid urbanization of our country,
and the fact that for the most part we still have a stable economy, that it's going to take some
time, But America's economic future is bright. The question is where will people with disabilities
be in that future? And that's what we're here to talk about. We want to make sure that not
some Americans but all Americans share in the great economic progress that's going to bless
this country in a few years. And so I share with you my friends that this is an important
discussion we're going to have today. This is an important summit. And I ask for you only to do
one thing as you go through this day, to consult not your fears but your hopes and your
dreams. Are you ready to get started?
>> Yes.
>> Oh, you got to say it better than that. Are you ready to get started?
[ Applause ]
What I'd like to do right now, we have a special guest with us. And so what I'd like to do is
introduce to you Ms. Maria Town, Associate Director from the White House Office of Public
Engagement. And she's going to bring us remarks from President Barack Obama.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you, Kelvin, for that introduction and those wonderful opening remarks. I really love
the concept of a spotless future. I'm thrilled to be here today on behalf of the White House and
the President. And if you look in your program you will see a letter from the President
welcoming all of you and championing all of you in your work for economic stability and
financial independence for all Americans. I want to applaud everyone at NDI for organizing this
critical conversation. When I go out in my role in public engagement, and I talk to Americans
with disabilities I hear things like, "I feel like I'm being punished for getting married. I feel like
I'm being punished for wanting a family. I feel like I'm being punished for wanting to work. I feel
like I'm being punished for trying to pursue the American dream." Now beneath all of those
comments is the reality that, "Because of the systems and structures I need to support myself
and live in my community I cannot pursue the American dream and continue to survive
because I cannot attain economic stability and plan for my future." Right? The ADA created
possibility, and I'm very honored to be a part of the ADA generation, a group of young people
who's grown up -- since its passage who's grown up with the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act which is celebrating its 40th anniversary in the fall. And while they can see
possibility, while they can see future, they may not be able to establish the path to get there.
And so yesterday when I was at the Department of Labor and I heard Senator Tom Harkin, a
fearless champion for disability rights, talk about the next 25 years being jobs, jobs, jobs I
completely agree. But in the context of jobs, jobs, jobs we have to talk explicitly and directly
about how we address poverty and economic stability for all Americans. Now all of you know
this, but I'm going to say it anyway, poverty and disability go hand in hand. In fact, disability
can be both a cause and a consequence of economic insecurity. It's a cause because disability
or illness can lead to job loss or reduced earnings, barriers to education and skill development,
as well as significant additional expenses. Disability can be a result of poverty and economic
insecurity because it can limit access to healthcare and preventive services that increase the
likelihood that a person lives in an environment that adversely affects their health. Now it's
unfortunate that even when we talk about individuals with disabilities who are employed at fulltime wages we have these large disparities of wage earnings. New research reveals that large
disparities exist when we compare part-time and full-time workers with and without disabilities.
In 2013 21.7% of part-time workers with disabilities were poor compared to 16.7% of part-time
workers without disabilities. For full-time workers with disabilities 8.9% had incomes at or
below the poverty line in 2013, which is nearly twice the rate of full-time workers without
disabilities. People with disabilities are much more likely to be underbanked or not banked at
all. And I'm really grateful that NDI as well as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau are
actively doing work right now to address this. The Roads to Economic Independence Grant
Program is one of the first of its kind to really get at financial literacy and economic stability
tools for both people with disabilities and veterans. And I want to really applaud NTI for their
work on that. The President has had a strong agenda when it comes to poverty since the very
beginning of his administration. The Lilly Ledbetter Act was the first act that he signed into law,
right? The Dodd-Frank Act, formulating things like the Consumer Protection Bureau, and now
six years later the President continues to believe that in America everyone should be
empowered by the country that they call home and not limited by the ZIP code into which they
are born or the fact that they may have received public benefits since they were born. And
that's why he's really focused on actions to expand opportunities for more Americans. He has
tried to restore economic security to hard-hit American families, building strong neighborhoods
and communities, defending the civil rights of all Americans, and ensuring that young people
have opportunities to reach their full potential. What we know is that when children grow up in
poverty it costs our nation half a trillion dollars in lost wages, productivity, and other costs each
year, which is roughly equivalent of 4% of the GDP. So when we address the problem of
poverty it's more than just money. It's a moral responsibility for all Americans, and it's an
absolute economic imperative for our nation. When we think about addressing poverty, in
addition to financial resources and making sure that they are accessible to all Americans we
have to think through strengthening unemployment, SNAP benefits, launching rehousing
programs, and expanding the eligibility of child tax credits and the Earned Economic Tax
Credit. These things have helped more than 3.9 million people and 5.7 million families get out
of poverty during the recovery. In fact, during 2013 more than 1.1 million Americans were lifted
out of poverty, led by the largest one-year drop in childhood poverty since 1966. Now I have 18
months left in my job. We are in the fourth quarter. How many of you out there are sports fans?
Right? I'm a Saints fan myself, from Louisiana. Anyone who watched that Saints Super Bowl
game know that a lot can happen in the fourth quarter. On Monday the President celebrated
the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. And I highly recommend that all of
you take a look at his remarks. At the end of his address he made a strong, fervent
commitment to advancing disability rights and raising the tides for all Americans, including
Americans with disabilities. So I am really looking forward to what comes out of your
conversations today because I think they can directly inform what the White House does for
the next 18 months. Thank you all very much.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you. Great, thank you. Thank you. At this time we will have our opening key mark -keynote remarks from an individual with the unique advantage point to observe and assess
financial inclusion for all Americans, including households headed by individuals with
disabilities. Martin Gruenberg is the 20th Chairman of the FDIC. He joined the FDIC after
broad congressional experience in the Senate Banking Committee and has served actively
with the FDIC Advisory Committee on Economic Inclusion to provide advice and
recommendations to expand access to banking services to all underserved populations. Will
you please welcome the Chairman of the FDIC, Mr. Martin Gruenberg -- Chairman Martin
Gruenberg?
[ Applause ]
>> Morning, everybody. And Kelvin, thank you for that introduction. And Maria, thank you for
your thoughtful and inspiring comments this morning. I -- it's a real privilege for me to be here.
And let me begin if I may by commending the National Disability Institute for convening this
summit and for focusing attention on the issue of financial inclusion for people with disabilities.
You know, there are a range of issues and challenges confronting with people with disabilities.
I think that a mention of access to basic financial services and credit products perhaps has
received less attention in the past? But clearly it is a critical factor in terms of providing
individuals with a measure of empowerment, of independence, and of personal security, that it
really goes to the essence of the issues and challenges. So this has perhaps been an area
that has received less attention in the past, probably deserving of greater attention going
forward. So I really commend you for your focus in leadership in this area. And I want to
underscore the FDIC's commitment to work with you and to focus increased attention. For the
FDIC, you know, expanding access to the banking system and to mainstream financial
services very much goes to the core mission of our agency. The FDIC was established more
than 80 years ago when our banking system was in collapse during the Depression. And the
purpose was to restore the public's confidence in the banking system and to give people a
sense of security in their personal finances. And really since that time that has been the core
mission of the FDIC and certainly remains one of our key priorities today. And we have spent a
lot of time on this issue of financial inclusion and expanding access to the banking system for
everybody who lives in the United States. And I'm really particularly pleased and grateful for
the opportunity to speak with you all today about the work we're doing, particularly focused on
expanding access to the financial system for people in the United States with disabilities. So let
me -- I want to do three things, talk about particularly the research that we've done which I
think has been important because the first -- for the first time we've been able to document the
dimensions of the issue and the challenge in terms of access to basic banking services for
people with disabilities. And then talk about some of the work that we've done and initiatives
we've undertaken to be responsive -- to be responsive to that challenge. So first, if I may, let
me turn to the research. In order to have a better data, to help develop effective economic
inclusion strategies the FDIC periodically conducts national studies that explore households'
use of financial services. The FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked
households is conducted in partnership with the Census Bureau every two years. It estimates
the size of the unbanked and underbanked populations, describes their demographic
characteristics, and provides insight into opportunities to address the financial services needs
of consumers. This initiative, which we began back in 2009, this partnership with the Census
Bureau on a national survey of who's unbanked and underbanked I really think has been a
foundational effort to document credibly the dimensions of this issue in our country and to use
it as a basis for developing effective responses. The most recent survey results from 2013
shows that substantial portions of the population in the United States remain unbanked or
underbanked. The most recent survey found that 7.7% of US households have no bank
account, and 20% are underbanked. And as defined in the survey that means they may -someone in the household may have a bank account, but they've also utilized high-cost
alternative nonbank financial services in the previous year. And as in prior surveys we found
that unbanked and underbanked rates are particularly high among non-Asian minorities,
households with lower income and education levels, young households, and households
experiencing unemployment. And for the first time in our 2013 report we show that households
headed by individuals with a disability are also less likely than the general population to have a
bank account and more likely to use high-cost alternative financial services even when they
are banked. If I may, let me walk through some of the numbers with you. Among lower-income
households, those with annual incomes below $30,000, approximately one in five, 19%, are
unbanked and nearly a quarter, 23.8% are underbanked, for a total of over 40% of the lowincome populations either unbanked or underbanked. For African-American households more
than one in five are unbanked, and about a third are underbanked. Over 50% of AfricanAmerican households in the United States are either unbanked or underbanked based on the
findings of the survey. And the survey found that one in six Hispanic households are unbanked,
and nearly 30% are underbanked. Over 40% -- 46% of Hispanic households are unbanked or
underbanked. For households headed by a working-age individual with a disability
approximately one in six, over 18%, are unbanked, and more than one in four, 28% are
underbanked. In short, over 46%, nearly half of households headed by an individual with a
disability rely on providers outside of the financial mainstream for some or all of their financial
services. Now while some of these figures show that access to mainstream financial services
continues to lag among these populations, the survey also found that banks can serve the
needs of these populations. In other words, you can look at the glass as half empty, or you can
look at the glass as half full. So 40 to 50% of these populations may lack access to the banking
system, but what that also says is that 50% have access. So it is possible, and there are
opportunities to expand access. And that's really, I think, an important foundation for us to build
upon. The FDIC survey results raise several important implications about ways to successfully
serve diverse consumer needs. First we should recognize that banking status is dynamic.
Many households enter and exit the banking system each year. In fact, we see that almost half
of unbanked households, 45.9% have previously held a bank account. The survey shows that
many households that experienced banking transitions also had changes in their employment
and income that influenced those decisions. For those exiting the banking system over 1/3 said
that job loss or a significant drop in income contributed. At the same time employment changes
also help explain many transitions into the banking system. One in five households that
recently opened a bank account said that a new job contributed to their decision. It's worth
noting that there are some differences in the results for those with disabilities. These
households were less likely to say that employment changes contributed them opening or
closing a bank account in the past year. On the other hand, they were more likely to cite direct
deposit as the reason for establishing an account. Nearly half of recently-banked households
headed by an individual with a disability said they opened the account mainly to receive direct
deposit of a paycheck or benefits. That seems to me to be an important piece of information.
Taken together these results suggest that interventions or product features designed to help
households maintain and renew their banking relationships through economic challenges may
reduce unbanked rates over time. This may mean, for example, reaching out to consumers
starting new jobs or enrolling in benefit programs with opportunities to open an account. It may
mean structuring a bank account to waive fees if the consumer uses bill pay services in a
month rather than requiring them to maintain a certain balance in the account which can be
difficult for households experiencing unemployment or receiving certain benefits. A second
implication from the survey findings is that mobile financial services offer intriguing possibilities
for helping to expand economic inclusion. Mobile financial services can provide -- and the
relevance of this to people with disabilities is really self-evident. Mobile financial services can
provide account information from virtually any location at any time. Along with this information
mobile financial services can provide tools consumers can use to manage their finances,
conduct transactions, and avoid potential problems such as overdrafts, late fees, and fraud. As
a result this technology has the potential to make banking relationships more convenient and
sustainable for households that may experience such concerns. Our survey with the Census
Bureau shows widespread use of mobile phones across the US population. More than 2/3,
68%, of unbanked households and more than 90% of underbanked households owns a mobile
phone. While smartphone ownership lags somewhat among the unbanked at 33%,
underbanked households are actually more likely to have a smartphone than fully-banked
households. And in fact underbanked mobile phone users are actually more likely to have used
mobile banking and are more likely to rely on it as their primary banking method than fullybanked households. But though we know that mobile services are being rapidly adopted by a
wide variety of consumers and institutions it is not clear whether the technology's full potential
is being leveraged to expand inclusion in the banking system. A white paper that the FDIC
released last year noted that mobile financial services will only -- likely will only recognize its
economic inclusion potential when thoughtfully designed and integrated into a bank's overall
strategy. Notably, households headed by individuals are less likely to use mobile banking at
this time. Smartphone ownership is somewhat low among these households, less than 40%.
Even among banked households, those headed by an individual with a disability were only half
as likely to use mobile banking relative to others. This difference suggest an opportunity to
learn whether and how mobile technology can be better used as a tool for financial inclusion
for peoples with disabilities, and this will be a focus of attention for the FDIC going forward.
The third and final implication from the survey relates to the fast-growing use of prepaid debit
cards among the unbanked and underbanked. Between 2009 and 2013 the proportion of
unbanked households that indicated they had ever used a prepaid card more than doubled.
The most recent data shows that more than one in four unbanked households have used a
prepaid card at some point. In fact, in 2013 a majority of all households, 55%, used prepaid
cards in the last 12 months -- using prepaid cards in the last 12 months were either unbanked
or under banked. Did you catch that? A majority of all households using prepaid cards in the
last 12 months were either unbanked or underbanked. Relevant to our focus here, more than
one in 10 households, over 13%, that used a prepaid card in the last year was headed by an
individual with a disability. Moreover, consumers using prepaid cards generally report that they
received them from nonbank sources but are using them to conduct the same sort of day-to-
day transactions associated with bank accounts. It may be interesting then to learn that almost
half, 46.5%, of unbanked households that used prepaid cards in the last year report that they
are somewhat or very likely to open a banking account in the future. All told, these results
suggest that there are opportunities to meet these consumer needs within the banking system.
So let me talk a little bit about one initiative that the FDIC has been pursuing in this area, and
we call it our safe accounts initiative. As I indicated earlier an account relationship is
fundamental to participate in the mainstream banking system, and frankly is an avenue for
economic opportunity. In many ways opening an account with an assured bank is a stepping
stone to participation in our economy. But it is critical that consumers are matched with
accounts that meet their needs. To facilitate sustainable banking relationships the FDIC
developed a model safe account template. The template describes transaction and savings
accounts that are transparent, low-cost, and easy-to-understand, backed by established
consumer protections, and insured by the FDIC. The transaction accounts that I want to focus
on this morning are structured around an account-based debit card. This account-based debit
card does not offer checking services, but frankly that's about the only service it doesn't
provide. By foregoing checking you substantially reduce the cost of offering the card to the
financial institution. But at the same time the card affords the consumer a full account
relationship with the institution which means access to ATM, access to point of sale, the ability
to walk in or go into a branch of an institution, present yourself as an account holder to gain
access to the banking services and the credit products that the institution offers. And under the
terms of our safe account the minimum balance for these cards has to be very low. The
minimum fees are also quite low. And no overdraft fees are permitted for these safe accounts.
We initiated a pilot program -- a one-year pilot program with nine banks around the country to
test the market acceptability of the card. The results were very positive. And we have since
engaged with major institutions around the country. And I'm pleased to tell you that both major
money-center banks and major regional bank are now offering account-based debit cards that
comport with the standards of the safe account. And I should point out that others have
demonstrated that insured institutions can also use prepaid cards as a tool that leads to
meaningful banking relationships following the standards of the safe account. And there are a
number of institutions that are doing this, including the institution that's hosting this event.
These card products can help consumers meet basic transactional needs while providing
security for their funds and access to a range of products and services. The FDIC estimates
today that 78% of the US population lives in a county with one or more branches of bank that
offer safe accounts. But access alone is not enough to ensure that consumers will take
advantage of the opportunities provided by these accounts. So that's the next portion of this
speech. The FDIC has engaged with community-based organizations, financial institutions,
and consumers in efforts to expand access to these cards and utilizing financial literacy and
capability as a vehicle. I would note just at the outset I believe we have a representative of the
Bank On movement taking part in this program later today, but the FDIC has established a
partnership with the Bank On movement to work with local Bank On partnerships around the
country to expand access to safe accounts. And we have utilized our Money Smart program to
expand financial education and literacy so that individuals can better understand the financial
challenges that they face. The Money Smart program helps consumers, particularly low- and
moderate-income consumers, enhance their financial skills and create positive banking
relationships. I want to spend a moment talking about Money Smart if I may. Nearly 2.8 million
consumers have used the Money Smart program since 2001. For many in the United States,
especially those outside the financial and economic mainstream, financial education introduces
the benefits of a bank account and provides the basic skills necessary to make sound financial
decisions. To be successful, financial education must be easily accessible. To this end we
make Money Smart resources available in multiple languages and format including large print,
Braille, and through podcasts and have our online service including self-paced segments meet
federally-mandated accessibility standards. And because we train instructors who can use
Money Smart materials to teach consumers the FDIC includes implementation resources and
tips for teachers and instructors to use to engage individuals with disabilities. All of these
resources and materials are available for free by starting at our website,
FDIC.gov/moneysmart. In fact, through this website you will find new resources that involve
parents, other family members, and caregivers in the learning process for financial education,
and particularly focused on young people. In addition to making these materials widely
available our community affairs staff and FDIC regional and area offices play an important role
in addressing the needs of individuals with disabilities. For example, our Dallas region has
been working with REACH, the Rehabilitation, Education, and Advocacy for Citizens with
Handicaps, a nonprofit organization serving North Texas. As a result, REACH is using the
FDIC Money Smart curriculum to provide financial education and increase the financial
resilience of students transitioning from high school to independent living. I'm sure that others
in this room could share their own stories of working to expand access. So while we have
made a lot of progress, I think, in recent years it is clear there is a -- that there is a great deal
more to be done. Most financial -- more financial institution partners are needed to ensure that
consumers can readily find convenient options. We also depend on our partners to identify and
help initiate strategies to educate and connect consumers to banking options that will meet
their needs. I would note, as was noted earlier, NDI's recent announcement that it is working
with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and that's an important example. The initiative
aims to blend financial education, counseling, and support services to help individuals with
disabilities set and achieve financial goals such as better credit scores and increased savings.
If I may say, NDI's work with the FDIC is another example. Researchers and experts, including
staff from NDI, advised the FDIC as we devised methods for using our data to provide
estimates for individuals with a disability. We have also learned from research NDI copublished with Syracuse University using FDIC household survey data. The research
concludes that financial institutions can do more to make their products and services more
accessible to individuals with disabilities. And I am pleased to announce that NDI has agreed
to help the FDIC find ways to improve access to banking services. To that end, at the fall
meeting of our FDIC Advisory Committee on Economic Inclusion we will be working with NDI
to convene a panel to identify additional opportunities for our financial institutions, to better
serve individuals with disabilities, and this will be a focus in priority for the FDIC's work going
forward. So in conclusion I would like to thank you for the work that you do, really for the
critical leadership that NDI has provided in this area, and if I may I would like to underscore the
commitment of the FDIC to partner with you to expand access to the banking system for
people with disabilities in our country. Thank you all very much.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you. Good job. All right, thank you, Chairman Gruenberg. Exciting things going on.
We would not be here today at this great summit were it not for the vision of the two people
whom you are about to meet. Man. Michael Morris is the Founder and Executive Director of
the National Disability Institute. NDI is the leading voice and source for engagement for
governments, financial institutions, nonprofit organization, and disability communities seeking
ways -- trying to understand ways to make sure that 58 million Americans with disabilities are
not forgotten in our society. Will you please welcome Michael Morris? And he will introduce a
very special guest from JPMorgan Chase.
[ Applause ]
>> Well, thank you all for being here this morning and being a part of this important summit.
This day had months in planning and really was as much about a celebration of the ADA and
all that has been achieved to date, but also as has been shared by Maria, and by Kelvin, and
by Chairman Gruenfeld [sic], this is about the future. This is about where we go next. This is
about building that roadmap to financial inclusion, better-informed financial decision making by
people with disabilities, and ultimately about full inclusion in our economy by individuals with
disabilities and their families nationwide. I think all of us are familiar with that the ADA, its intent
was to end discrimination and segregation. But it also established a new norm, 25 years ago,
the set of promises to establish a new norm of equal opportunity for community action -community access and inclusion. The National Disability Institute's vision when we started 10
years ago was a simple one, to create a world where people with disabilities have the same
opportunity to achieve financial stability and security as their nondisabled peers. This summit is
about that. This summit is about marking our progress toward that goal. And this summit is
about building the next generation of policy and practice ideas, efforts, activities to fulfill the
promise of the ADA to advance economic self-sufficiency. I think all of us -- and Kelvin,
certainly with your opening remarks really drew the connection, as you did, Maria, between
disability and poverty. But what we also know about disability is that it cut across the dividing
lines of gender, race, ethnicity, and age. And what we're trying to do here today with you is
about bringing the conversation to a new level. This morning's agenda is about understanding
the challenges as well as opportunities to economic advancement and financial inclusion for
people with disabilities. But after lunch even more significant to me is about building that
roadmap for the future. It's about everyone in this room regulators, government leaders,
nonprofit community leaders, people with disabilities, parents, family members, everyone in
this room having a say, beginning in round-table discussions, talking about where do we go
next? How do we really expand the opportunity for economic advancement and financial
inclusion for individuals with disabilities? You all when you sat down found at your table -there is the program guide with a wonderful, welcoming letter from President Obama and an
extraordinary letter as well from the signer of the ADA, President George H. W. Bush. Please
take the time and read those letters. We also provided with you a commemorative poster. If
you haven't opened up that round -- if you have anyone -- right there. Hopefully you'll open this
up. It's in your bag. And what you will find is a commemorative poster. This poster was
developed with the support of a person with a disability, and extraordinary artist who we have
been the pleasure of working with her family, the Apantes [assumed spelling] who are here,
Berthy and Milton.
[ Applause ]
Their daughter's poster, as you look at it, the title of the poster is Imagination. And you can
learn more about the artist on the inside cover of the program guide. We also provided you in
your bag the two reports which have been groundbreaking in defining financial inclusion and
behavior of people with disabilities. Also you have materials from JPMorgan Chase about
some of their efforts to build a world of financial inclusion and innovation. All of these materials
today and PowerPoints that are going to be used by the subsequent panels will be found on
our website, www. Realeconomicimpact.org/pages/ADA-event. They will be there permanently
for all of you to reference in the future. We also offer to those of you active in social media a
hashtag ADA25 when tweeting about today's event. In addition to the 100 -- approximately 150
people that are in this room this event today is being live web streamed across the country. At
an independent living center in Milwaukee, at the Washington Access Fund in Seattle, at
places all across the county as well as people watching in their home, they are participating in
this summit today. And we have asked them with the notice that we sent in advance earlier this
week -- you, too, will be part of the conversation. Send us your ideas. Send us your
recommendations, and those two will be synthesized into a final -- what I hope will be 25 at 25,
extraordinary, powerful, transformative recommendations to advance economically people with
disabilities across this nation. I want to share with you three quotes that I think really set the
tone for the day. The first is in the welcome letter from President Barack Obama, "Across our
country, people with disabilities enrich and contribute to their communities, and they deserve to
participate in our progress and pursue their dream. I wish you the very best for a productive
summit. And this is in the letter from Former President George H. W. Bush, "Today's Economic
Advancement and Financial Inclusion Summit is a crucial first step to making economic
equality a reality for all. And finally, the individual certainly all of us recognize as the Father of
the ADA, Justin Dart, who went state to state all across this country building and galvanizing
support for the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Justin stated some time ago,
back in those formative years, "The vision of justice is an eternal long march to the promised
land of the good life for all." So before I turn to our next speaker for some welcoming remarks I
want to thank all of you because so many of you represent part of what has made the National
Disability Institute so strong over the past 10 years, our short history. I want to particularly
thank some of the government agencies that have been extraordinarily a part of what we do.
Our first collaborator was the IRS, and you're going to hear from the IRS on the next panel.
The extraordinary work we have done with the US Department of Labor, and they're here in
the room as well. And then it cuts across the federal government. The new project that has
been mentioned with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Social Security
Administration, Treasury, the FDIC as was discussed, Department of Education. We have
mined the fields of government to find the critical connections to focus on this issue, which is
the issue of the day and the future in terms of the ADA, advancing economic self-sufficiency. I
want to thank as well a distinguished group of private funders that made us possible to be here
today and get us to this point. Our first funder was Bank of America that took a chance on an
unknown organization that was only a few days old and has been with us ever since, taking the
risk then and helping us grow. I want to thank the Kessler Foundation for support over and
over again in building our dreams, testing new projects in sites across the country. I want to
thank Walmart for its many years of support of us. I want to thank Acorda Therapeutics who
had the novel idea to work with us about creating a financial wellness series. What a novel
idea for a pharmaceutical company to give back and help the people they support with finding
that pathway to a better economic future. And there are others, but I just wanted to single out
some of those. Today would not have happened if it wasn't for a conversation that started less
than a year ago. I was welcomed by Rodney Hood -- Where's Rodney? There he is -- who
came up to me when we released our first report based on FINRA data about financial
capability of adults with disabilities, and he said to me, "We need to talk." And you know,
sometimes -- sometimes you forget and you meet so many people. This time I remembered,
and I called Rodney up, we emailed, and the next person he introduced me to is Naomi
Camper. And we began a conversation about what do we do that will be the event, the
moment, the conversation about the ADA? And we came to the conclusion that first I wanted
help with support of research. And that was working with the FDIC on this extraordinary report
on banking status and financial behavior of individuals with disabilities. But that was just the
appetizer. What we had to get to was this today. This today, because it is a defining moment. It
is -- as Kelvin said, this is history, and you are part of history. And this is an extraordinary
concept to not just celebrate and reflect on where we have been, but to make a commitment to
the future.
[ Applause ]
I want to introduce you to our collaborator for this extraordinary event at JPMorgan Chase,
Naomi Gendler Camper, Managing Director and Head of the Office of Nonprofit Engagement.
[ Applause ]
>> Good morning, everyone. And Michael promised a standing-room-only crowd. There are
lots of people standing, but there are also seats over here, so as much as I love the vision of -you know, the appearance of standing room only I do welcome you to cross right in front and
sit if you would like to. So thank you so much, all, for being here. As we gather on the 25th
anniversary of the ADA I'm struck by periodically how important it is to step back and take
stock not just of how far we've come but how far we need to go. And I'm also struck as a
Washington insider by how much a law can accomplish, but how much laws can't accomplish
and how much needs to be done outside of the legislative process. A law can require equal
access or outlaw overt discrimination, but it can't mandate equal attitudes, or understanding, or
employment rates. It can't mandate fully banked populations. There's so much that a law
cannot do, which is why today collectively talking about the next frontier for financial inclusion
and equality of access of economic advancement is so important to us. It's a true commitment
and passion for us at JPMorgan Chase, and I'm very gratified to see we share that passion
with you. There are no simple answers. It's not going to be the banks that do it all, or
government that does it all, or individuals, or community-based organizations. I mean, it really
takes a collective effort, which is why today is so important. I want to give a special shout-out
to Keith Ernst who is the godfather of the FDIC Unbanked and Underbanked Survey.
Everybody here who does anything in Washington knows that you can only get so far without
data to prove the point and to prove the need. And so the data combined with the personal
stories, that is the holy grail for progress in Washington and in any area throughout the country.
So I think we've got the winning combination with those two elements. A couple of things I
wanted to note. You know, like we've heard, the statistics can be really depressing, really
daunting, but as Chairman Gruenberg said, let's view it as a glass half full. What do we have,
you know, to look forward to? There's some real reason for optimism. The ABLE Act, wow, like
a huge step forward.
[ Applause ]
Taking head-on one of the structural elements that's been preventing people with disabilities
from building assets toward their future. Section 503 to [applause] -- right, to encourage
workplaces to hire people with disabilities, and to encourage current employees with
disabilities to feel comfortable self-identifying and saying, "Yes, I have a disability. And yes, I
am an amazing contributor to this company or this workplace." At JPMorgan Chase we have a
deep commitment to making our products and services accessible, being a dynamic place for
everybody to feel comfortable working. I just want Norma Borcherding and Amy Furasher
[assumed spelling] sitting right over there -- their full-time jobs are to make sure that everything
we do is inclusive. And it's very important, I think, for all companies not to separate their core
businesses with the policy people over there. This is all -- for anything to work it's going to be
an inclusive effort. I want to shout out to the USBLN who launched the first ever Disability
Equality Index so that companies can really help rate themselves on how are they doing about
promoting an inclusive employment environment. I will say not immodestly we were very
pleased to receive a perfect score on that. But the tool -- you know, we hoped we would, but
we didn't know going in whether we would. And that kind of tool, the self-assessment, was
extremely helpful and we hope will be widely adopted by industry. And the other thing I would
note is we have a deep commitment to investing in the capacity of all the community-based
organizations that do such important work to promote the interests of people with disabilities.
Without the community-based organizations we would not be anywhere close to where we are,
and I know many of you represent those organizations. You need to be strong to be able to
accomplish your mission of inclusion. One final note, there's a ramp. There's cart translation
services. There are ASL translators throughout the room, and there's a mix of people here.
The integration and the welcoming of those simple steps should be a model for all of the
conferences that we attend, whether they're in DC or throughout the nation. So for those of you
who are sponsors like we are of convenings and conferences where we're talking about the
importance of economic advancement make sure as funders that you ask for basic
accessibility measures. Make sure as funders or participants that you're asking the question,
"Are there people with disabilities, A, attending, and B, included in the conference agenda and
the panels?" Let's make sure the discussions are inclusive.
[ Applause ]
So with that -- I know no one ever looks forward to the [inaudible] remarks, so thank you for
your patience. I don't know about you, but I really want to hear the next panel. So thanks so
much for being here.
[ Applause ]
>> Okay, thank you. Naomi, I always want to hear the sponsors' remarks because without
sponsors we couldn't do what we do. But let's give Michael and Naomi a round of applause.
Great, great, great, great, great.
[ Applause ]
We're going to take time to let our panelists come up for the next -- for the first panel. And
while they do I just want to make a quick thought to kind of put things in perspective of why this
meeting is so important, why this week is so important. We are here to talk about improving the
economic conditions for people with disabilities. But guess what, my friends, as it's been said
earlier but I want to bring it back home? As we increase the economic opportunities with
people with disabilities we increase the economic opportunities for all Americans -- for all
Americans.
[ Applause ]
And I know some of you out there are trying to get funders, and you're trying to do things in
your own work where you are, and sometimes you're looking for an example. Let me just give
you an example that I hope you can share with other people who don't understand that point.
And this was brought home to me a few days -- a few months ago when I was at a conference
on closing the wealth gap. And someone gave this example that has stuck with me to this day.
They said, "You know, a few years ago America went through the process of making sure that
no matter what street in our country, what sidewalk you walked on in our country, there was a
special place for people who had disability could come onto that sidewalk with access." Do you
remember what we're -- what I'm talking about? You know what I'm talking about? Have you -huh?
>> Curb cuts.
>> Curb cuts, right. Have you noticed, my friends, that today all Americans use the curb cuts?
>> Yes.
>> Not just those Americans with disabilities. If you are a mother, and you have a child, and
you have -- and you're going to take her in with a stroller you use the curb cuts. If you're a
jogger and you're running down the street you use the curb cuts. If you're a traveler or a
shopper with a bag or luggage you use the curb cuts. Now the curb cut was designed for
what? People with disabilities, but today they serve all Americans. Does that help you out?
>> Yeah.
>> That's why we're here today.
[ Applause ]
Okay, and forgive me, because I get excited about this stuff. This is important stuff. Today
we're going to -- by the way, if you -- let me just share with you our format for today. We're
going to have three exciting panel discussions that's going to help set the context for our
discussion today to give us some context about ADA, but also to give us some information that
we can use to think about how we want a better, more inclusive society in the future. But then,
I don't know, there must be something at this NDI organization that they decided we need to go
beyond that. We need to talk about solutions, and we need to plan for the future. Now if you're
like me, you go to a lot of these type of meetings and no one ever gets to the solutions. We
just like to talk about the problem. But not this meeting. Not this session. Not this summit. So
again, I just want to give you some ideas what we're going to talk about. We're going to first
ask our friends from the federal government to give us their insight on how they had to respond
to the challenges associated with including people with disabilities. We have a great panel. I
mean, first of all we have to give it up. The NDA -- the NDI had remarks from two presidents.
They had the Chairman of the FDIC. They brought one of the leading foundations in America
here today. Let's give it up for you guys. You guys got some influence, okay? You got some
clout.
[ Applause ]
And it continues with our first panel. We are happy to have with us today -- we'll here from
David Buchholz, an Assistant Director, Division of Consumer and Community Affairs from the
Federal Reserve Board of Governors. And he's going to share with us some new findings from
the Federal Reserve Board Survey on Household Economics and Decision Making. David will
be followed by comments from Gail Hillebrand, Associate Director for Consumer Education
and Engagement at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. At CFPB -- I should know that
by now Gail; I apologize -- Gail oversees six offices which address financial education,
consumer engagement, and financial protection for economically vulnerable population. And
Gail will be followed -- get this, she's going to be followed by Annie Donovan who is the
Director of the CDFI Fund at Treasury. Now these are some heavyweight people here, in case
you don't know this. I mean, this is the Director of the CDFI Fund. Okay, Annie was previously
a Senior Policy Advisor at the White House, and she's worked with the Office of Social
Innovation. And our final panelist will share thoughts this morning with us is Julie Garcia who is
the Director of Consumer Assistance, Relationships, and Education at the Internal Revenue
Service. She has over 30 years of experience there, and she has been working primarily on
focusing on how we can outreach to disability communities and improve access to their famed
-- and I want to say it is very important -- Earned Income Tax Credit. And -- but again, there
must be something at NDI that not only do they have four great panelists, but they brought us
two community leaders to add their thoughts to what the panelists have to say. Now I feel like
I'm at public television, you know what I mean? Yeah, give it up. That's great [applause]. But
we're going to hear -- after our panelists -- I'm going to ask them a few questions, and then
we're going to ask our responders to give their thoughts on what the government has done,
what they can do. And we're all friends here. But we're going to have just a discussion and
bring everybody together to talk about -- again, to get their context from a community
perspective. So Wendy Crawford and Lex Frieden is going to respond. Wendy is the founder of
the Mobile Women's Organization and Rare Beauty Project. And Lex is recognized as the
Founder of the Independent Living Movement. And he was a key architect in the development
of the ADA legislation as Chairman of the National Council on Disability. Why don't we begin?
Please welcome our first speaker.
[ Applause ]
>> Hello? Oh, there it is. Great. Well, we're going to go out of order. I have to apologize. I do
have to leave in about 25 minutes, so Michael has graciously offered the first slot to me. So I'm
very, very excited to be here today. My awakening to the world of people with disabilities came
from Michael Morris actually back in 2005 when he talks about the birth of NDI in the basement.
I think that we -- the organization I was with actually pulled him out of the basement of the
bank and put him in a real office. And I -- Michael came to us -- at the time I was with an
organization called -- that's now called Capital Impact Partners, and we're a community
development financial institution. And we -- the organization's been -- had been around for
about 20 years. And Michael came along, and he said that -- oh, did you want a mic?
>> If you want to move to a slide just hit --
>> Okay, thank you. Michael came along and he said, "I am creating this thing called the
National Disability Institute, and it's going to be about economic empowerment for people with
disabilities. And I don't want to talk to you about social security benefits, disability benefits. I
don't want to talk about federal government programs. I want to -- although those are very
important. I want to talk about how do we get ahold of your tools for this community? Because
your tools are about economic empowerment. They're about social mobility, and financial
security, and financial inclusion. And that's what we want." And we got extremely excited to
create a partnership with Michael that then blossomed into the National Disability Institute. So
fast forward to today. I'm now currently the Director of the CDFI Fund that came out of the
CDFI world into federal government. And I think this is a great turning point for us. This is a
momentous period for us, too, because we now have certified several CDFIs that are disabilityoriented. I'm going to talk a little bit about that if I can advance the slides. Okay, so the CDFI
Fund is -- I'm going to skip the stats but just get straight to the purpose of the Community
Development Financial Institutions Fund, and it's dedicated to serving market niches that are
underserved by traditional financial institutions. CDFIs are mission-driven and are certified by
the CDFI Fund for providing services to low-income census tracks and targeted populations.
Now does that sound like a perfect fit or what? We've been around for about 20 years, and it's
just been in the last few years that we began certifying. In fact, the Disability Opportunity Fund,
which is run by Charles Hammerman who's in the audience, was created and spawned by NDI
in the early days. So I'm going to talk a little bit about what the CDFI Fund does and what folks
in your community -- how you're using us and how you can use us more and better. So CDFIs
come in all forms. They can be for-profit. They can be nonprofit. They can be regulated
institutions. Some are banks. Some are credit unions. Some are nonprofit loan funds. Some
are venture capital funds. But the thing that ties them all together is a core mission of serving
low-income communities. So we are focused on low-income populations and targeted
populations as well. So that includes all parts of the disability community. The stats are
abundantly clear that people with disabilities are underserved by financial institutions, and that
makes them eligible for our programs. So what do we do as -- at the CDFI Fund? We have a
program called the Community Development Financial Institutions Program through which we
offer matching funds. And they come in the form of equity investments, loans, or grants that
support the financial viability of the organization. So the disability -- the Opportunity Fund, for
example, is -- we fund their business plan and their balance sheet. We don't -- they take that
money then, and they decide what's the best way to use it in their community. And I think this
program is very, very powerful because it's flexible, because we judge the capacity of the
organization. We invest in building the capacity of the organization. And then those
organizations decide the best way to invest their funds. We have a program that's targeted
toward Native American CDFIs. There are about 70 certified CDFIs that work in Native
communities. And if there's not already a connection drawn between disability and Native
communities I'm sure that's an area ripe for exploration. We have the Bank Enterprise Award
Program which is for insured depository institutions. You don't have to be a certified CDFI to
get access to the awards, but if you are working with a certified CDFI you get preference in this
program. So for CDFIs out there that are disability-oriented you could go to banks and partner
with them, and they could pull down this -- they have to compete for it, but they can apply for
this money to help support those programs. We have a -- the New Markets Tax Credit
Program which provides tax credits for investments in low-income areas. And I can imagine
this being used for things like housing and services for people with disabilities or bigger
community facilities that serve people with disabilities. The CDFI Bond Program which is a
guarantee for CDFI assets, and the Capital Magnet Fund which targets affordable housing and
in particular affordable housing that integrates other community strategies. So again, our
programs weren't specifically designed for the disability community, but I think they are a very
good fit. So let's -- these are some of the uses that are already underway, financing affordable
housing and community facilities, financing assistive technology -- and I'm going to give an
example of that in a minute -- asset development, facilitating savings, IDA accounts, and
financial education. So all of those are eligible uses under our programs. I'm going to talk
about two examples here or ways in which our resources are already being used. So this first
picture is of a -- the client here is Movin' Out, Inc., and they're in Madison, Wisconsin. This is
33 units of housing for people with disabilities. And the Disability Opportunity Fund financed
this. And the Disability Opportunity Fund has an impressive track record of helping people with
disabilities do all sorts of things, and this is just one of them. And the local organization works
with people with permanent disabilities and their families to find and maintain housing that is
the kind of the housing they choose to live in, that they want to live in, and that their families
are happy to have them in. So a very important empowerment tool, I think, is the -- you know,
the ability to live on your own with the supports you need. The picture -- the photo down at the
bottom is the Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation. The client there is Sharrod
Williams, and I had the great opportunity to speak with Susan yesterday about all the fantastic
work that is happening with this fund. This was launched with support of -- from the state of
Pennsylvania, but it was created as a nonprofit certifiable CDFI and is drawing resources in
then amplifying the resources that are coming from other places with the resources of the
CDFI Fund. In this particular case I was astounded that they have used $33 million and made
2800 loans so far. It's an incredible accomplishment. There's -- when you think about that on
the scale of -- you know, from the perspective of somebody like a JPMorgan Chase that does,
you know, just huge, huge volumes, and to even, you know, talk to some of those bigger
financial institutions, this scale is so small it's hard to even get them to blink an eye. And that's
why this work is so very important, because we have to be able to scale to the level that's
meaningful for people. And that's exactly what's happened here. So in this case you see the
photo of a motorized wheelchair, and Sharrod Williams needed to buy a larger van to transport
him and his growing family. And he wasn't sure how he could finance it. And while he was
shopping for the van he was referred to the Pennsylvania Assistive Technology Foundation.
And they helped him build his credit rating and assisted him with purchasing with a loan this
vehicle which, you know, changed his life. And I'm also very impressed with the way in which
these organizations take anybody wherever they are on the credit spectrum in terms of credit
scores or -- low scores or no scores. There are many, many people who have not yet
established a credit score. And then -- and don't have access to the financial mainstream
because of it. And these are very, very important initial stepping stones. So we are delighted
with the -- that the -- that we have the opportunity to partner with CDFIs and support them for
the work that they're doing. And if a CDFI is not part of your strategy already you might want to
think about, you know, the possibilities that creating a CDFI might bring, and talk to your
colleagues who have -- are paving the way with pioneering programs and products. I want to
talk for one minute about the ABLE Act because the regulations in the ABLE Act that were -are proposed by the IRS allow for the -- allow for a role for CDFIs to play in either marketing, or
educating, or brokering these accounts. And so hats off to Charlie Hammerman and his team
for talking with the IRS and educating them on the benefit -- the beneficial role that CDFIs can
have in trying to build the bridge between the capacity that's in the law and the capacity to use
it that's on the ground, which is critical infrastructure that CDFIs really are in a great position to
build. That's really what they are are bridges to, you know, what's possible for people who are
not accessing the financial mainstream. I want to talk just for a minute about a few other
programs that are not being done by the CDFI Fund but are being done by the Treasury
Department. So some of my colleagues are working on -- you may have heard of myRA, and
that's a product that helps working people start to save for their future in a way that's safe,
simple, and affordable. People can put aside small amounts of money from each paycheck to
save. There are no fees, no cost to open or maintain the account. And the balance never goes
down. And so if you want more information on how you can connect with that product it's
myRA.gov is the website. Also with partners across the government Treasury hosts the
mymoney.gov website which contains free resources from more than 20 federal agencies on
financial topics of -- for various audiences. The site is meant to be easy to navigate by life
events like graduation or changing family status as well as by the MyMoney Five, earn, save
and invest, protect, spend, and borrow. So I will stop there. And again, I just want to give my
own note of personal thanks to Michael Morris for my own transformation in understanding the
world of people with disabilities and the opportunity to really connect tools of empowerment
that are -- have been developed in the community development space with the world of people
with disabilities. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Good morning!
>> Good morning!
>> I'm going to move up here so that I can talk with my hands without injuring Gail [laughter].
>> Thumbs up.
>> Before I say anything else, I need to start with our standard disclaimer and tell you that
anything I'm about to say this morning represents only my own views [laughter] and not
necessarily those of the Federal Reserve or our system. My role this morning with the panel
presently is to help ground some of today's conversations with some factual information about
what we know about the financial lives of individuals with disabilities. And as Kelvin said, this is
data from a survey that we conducted. It is pretty fresh information as far as data goes. It's
relatively hot off the presses. It's from a survey we conducted called the Survey of Household
Economics and Decision Making which is a large, nationally representative survey of adults 18
and over this data was collected late last year and just published in a report in May so two
months ago called the Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S. Households. If anyone's
interested, it's available for free download on our website. And if we have any researchers in
the room, the data are available for free download as well and we hope that folks use it. As you
can see from this, is sort of a table of contents from the survey. I'm not going to cover anything
like all this ground today but rather, I'm going to cover just a few sort of highlights of what we
know about some of the areas of particular interest, at least as expressed to us by NDI. And I
just want to say one kind of methodological note. In this survey, when I talk about people with
disabilities, it's using sort of the standard -- one of the standard census definitions which is
folks who identified themselves as not employed because of a disability. That's obviously a
suboptimal definition. We're missing a lot of folks. We will ask a more -- a set of more nuanced
questions when we issue the 2015 survey. So if there's an ADA at 26 event, I can come back
here and give you more nuanced information. But that's an important caveat to keep in mind as
I am discussing the data. And actually, as Michael says, that these PowerPoints are going to
live in perpetuity on our website. I might want to go back and add a slide that explicitly says
that in writing. Well, let's get going. I'm going to hit a number of points. Some of them are going
to go fairly quickly and apologies in advance if some of it's too quick but I'm happy to discuss
any of this. I'll start off by some basic measures of economic well-being. Some of it is just
collaborative, what we know through other data sources including two reports that NDI has
been involved with that Michael referenced based on the FINRA data and based on the FDIC
data. Some of this is new. First, we just have some basic income information. This slide just
tells us again what we already know which is on average, as a group, people with disabilities
tend to have incomes that are lower than the rest of the population. And I think it's important to
keep in mind, I have a number of folks here in the room who are interested more generally in
low and moderate-income populations. There's a pretty significant portion of that population.
So nearly one in five of folks with low or moderate income also have a disability so really
important to keep in mind there. This is a question and I'll caveat this very first question. It's
actually a year old. We didn't re-ask this question in this most recent survey. But it's around
expectations about income coming in. So the good news is that individuals with disabilities are
more likely than the rest of the population and more likely than low and moderate-income folks
without disabilities to tell us if they expect their income to be stable month to month. So that's
the good news. The bad news is that they are less likely than other folks to expect that their
income is going to be going up over the next year. So for folks who look at these issues, you
know that income volatility can be a real issue among LMI families in general. That doesn't
seem to be a particularly big problem but the lack of expectations on the income growth is
something that we should take seriously. We took a look just trying to understand this at things
like education level, again, on average as a group, lower education levels. Age doesn't seem
to be explaining that. We could talk about if there's causality between education and income
which directions those might go but I'm not going to go into that right now. We also asked
some questions about housing status and living arrangements. There are some interesting
differences. First of all, this tells us that on average, folks with disabilities less likely to be
married or living with a partner. More likely to be divorced or separated, but this is about
identical to the rest of the population in terms of their percentage, never married. So that has
some implications for household income and financial status. We also have a category of folks,
that we ask of folks if they are living with somebody, living with another adult who's not a family
member. So a little over a fourth of individuals with disabilities report this as a category, that's
more almost double the rest of the population. Interestingly, for folks who tell us that this is
their living status, they get a follow-up question because we want to tease out whether or not
this is a financial necessity or whether there is something else driving this. And so we thought
this might be a place where individuals with disabilities might be less likely to say this is
financial because there might be some other benefits, some other assistance or caregiving that
they may be getting from the relationship. But in fact, the trend is actually in the opposite
direction, not by a lot. But nine out of 10 folks with disabilities with this housing tenure tell us
that if they can afford to move out on their own, they would. That's about 82% for the rest of
the population. So clearly, finance is driving a number of key decisions. If you are making
about not only how they're conducting their financial lives but some very basic things like
where do I live and what's my living situation. So that's some, you know, a few basic snapshots
about what's going on. I want to talk, I think especially relevant to this conversation, about
some information that we have in the survey about savings in general and around emergency
savings in particular and the ability of people to withstand financial shock. I think some of this
information may not necessarily be surprising because again, we have data from a number of
other sources. But I think it's pretty sobering. So one of the things that we found overall in
pretty much every measure of saving is that even when we control for income, again, there's
high correlation between lower income and people with disabilities, so that's clearly at play. But
even when we control for income, people are less likely to have savings and less likely to have
the resources that would allow them to withstand financial shocks. So one quick point just on
savings in general, we asked people a question which is in the last year, what percentage of
your income did you save? We give people a few buckets of choices. I'll just present one set of
numbers here which is the percentage of people who responded zero percent. I saved none of
my income in the last year. And you can see that for the population at large without a disability,
it's about one in four. For LMI folks without a disability, it's about half but for individuals with
disabilities, two out of three told us that they were able to save nothing in the previous year. So
clearly again, kind of folks are, you know, seem to be using substantially all of their income on
average to pay their expenses. So it's something that should be concerning. Frankly, this slide
again speaking only for myself and not for my employer, you know, these set of numbers are
pretty sobering in general for the population and there's a real lack of not only saving but
financial preparedness across the board. But I think these numbers for the purposes of today
are particularly troubling. So this is savings in general. We also asked some questions around
emergency savings in particular and some other measures of what we call in the report
economic fragility. So one question that folks get is hypothetic -- well, it's not hypothetical. We
asked people if they have emergency funds or rainy day funds that would be enough to cover
their expenses if they lost their main source of income for three months. This is a fairly
standard survey question in this general space. So if people tell us, said, "Yes, I do," they
move on. If not, they get a follow-up question. And we say, "Okay, well you don't have
emergency funds per se but do you have other savings you could draw on? Is there
borrowing? Could you sell something? In other words, is there some way that you'd be able to
make ends meet even if it's not a rainy day fund per se?" So here are the results to those
questions. This first -- the first few sets of numbers are the first two rows are answers to that
last question. I'll just draw your attention to the highlighted number which is two out of three
folks who have a disability tell us that they wouldn't be able to find a way to cover their
expenses for three months if they had a shock to their income. So again, not a lot of cushion
built in there. Well, okay, that's sobering, as I said. That's also three months and three months
is kind of a long time. So we drill down a little bit more in the survey because we want to know,
okay, well how well are people positioned for something more modest, something that, you
know, some of us might be able to consider a relative bump in the road? So we asked people
a hypothetical questions and this is the question. If you had an emergency expense that cost
$400 and I can tell you that there is no magic $400. It was a little bit plucked from the air. How
would you pay for that? So you know, think about, for instance, for folks with cars, if you had
an unexpected repair. You had to take your car into the shop. It might cost 400 bucks. With my
mechanic, it might cost more [laughter]. But you know, think for yourselves, okay. I have that.
How would I actually pay for that? So there were, we gave people a number of options and we
clustered the answers. So one cluster was I'll just pay for it. So I'd write a check or I'd put it on
the credit card and I'd pay the credit card off next month. There's another cluster of answers
which was something more dire or creative which is I'd put it on the credit card but I wouldn't
be able to pay it off or I'd borrow some money some other way or I'd sell something and do
something else. And then there's a subset of people that just said, "Couldn't pay it at all." So
you can see, these are the numbers. If you look at the first row, individuals with disabilities
pretty unlikely to say, "I'd just be able to come up with the money to cover a $400 expense,"
significantly less than the rest of the population without disabilities and less than LMI folks in
general without disabilities. And nearly four in 10 say, "I just wouldn't be able to pay it at all."
So this isn't losing, you know, income for three months. This is coming with one sort of
unexpected financial bump in the road. So that's a little bit part of the picture. Again, I told you
about how the question was specified as this is only picking up people who aren't in the
workforce. So we thought, oh, this might just be a factor of being unemployed in general and
having lower incomes. But even when we looked at the other folks in the survey who identified
themselves as unemployed, it's still a more significant situation. So that was savings. One of
the other things we looked at in this general space of what we consider fragility is medical
expenses, right, because that's another aspect of all of our financial lives that's relatively
unpredictable. So the good news is that as a group, there's a high likelihood that folks are
covered by health insurance. So 92% of those with disabilities have some form of health
insurance. But despite that, over half of them told us in the last year, when we asked them this
question, in the last year, they had a medical need that they didn't get because financially, they
couldn't afford it. So here's what those numbers look like broken down. For those of you who
are interested, I can barely read them myself because from up here, it looks real small. But if I
recall correctly, I think it's dental care and prescription medicines that are the most common
ones. But these are all folks who told us that in the last year, I needed one or more of these
services but I didn't get it because financially, I couldn't afford it. So again, I think a sign that
folks are not as well prepared as we probably like to be able to meet the sort of predictable
unpredictables about life. So I'm going to wrap things up now and give my fellow panelists
some time to chat and share their perspectives. But just a couple of quick more things on
banking and credit that I think tie into some of the comments from our morning keynote
because I think some of the things that we've seen are fairly similar to what the FDIC has seen
in its studies and that Chairman Gruenberg was discussing this morning. So we also
constructed very similar, nearly identical to the FDIC's construction around definitions of
unbanked and underbanked and we do find that individuals with disabilities are less likely to
tell us that they're fully served by the banking system. So in other words, they're more likely to
be unbanked, more likely to be unbanked. But here's an interesting thing that we find in our
data and this is different from all the data that I've mentioned previously which are robust after
controlling for income. Once we control for income, once we run our regression analysis that
includes people's income, this difference disappears. It's no longer significant. So that doesn't
tell us that there's not an issue or that there's not a difference. Folks are disproportionately
more likely to be unbanked and more likely to be underbanked and that's a real concern. What
this tells us is that it's not clear whether or not this is an artifact of having a disability, whether
it's an artifact of having low or moderate income in general. And so I think that's, you know,
that's an important thing to think about as we think about strategies for pulling more folks into
the banking system is this might be a place where there's something else going on that may or
may not be specific to having disabilities. And likewise, we have a question in the survey that
asked people about access to credit. Folks with disabilities disproportionately are likely to tell
us either they had applied for credit and gotten turned down or they had gotten credit but it was
less than they applied for. But similarly here, once we control for income, this no longer
becomes statistically significant. So there's something else that may be going on here. So
that's a little bit of a snapshot of -- I know, and there's Gail [laughter], of what we see in the
financial lives of individuals, at least of individuals not in the workforce who have disability. You
know, some pretty serious numbers there and I think it really just underscores the importance
of the conversation that NDI has pulled together today. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Good morning!
>> Good morning. A little light here. Mike, let's see if you could send somebody up to light my
notes, I'd appreciate it. I just speak for the CFPB but the Trade Affairs, I have to say what I
promised to say and I got a script [laughter]. So it's a pleasure to be here. I'm Gail Hillebrand. I
serve at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. It's just a real privilege to be celebrating
the 25th anniversary of the American Disabilities Act with so many people here who are
effective and committed advocates and service providers, and members of the affected
community. And I look forward to the full discussion on economic advancement and full
inclusion including financial inclusion for people with disabilities. So thank you for all of you
who are working in your communities to build stronger, help people build stronger and more
stable financial lives. In my time this morning, I'm going to break the first rule of engagement
by spending some time talking about us instead of about you. I'm going to do that because we
want you to know the CFPB so that you will send us complaints, so you'll send us information
about what's happening in the field, so you will make proposals to us about how we can work
together. I'm going to then introduce us through our history and mission and then I'd give you a
closer look at the objectives and approaches to empowering all consumers in the financial
marketplace. And finally, I'll describe some of the tools, programs, and resources that the
bureau has available to serve people with disabilities. And if I could get someone to open this
light, I'd really appreciate it. The CFPB was created out of the financial crisis. And that crisis
was complex but was rooted in people being sold products that they did not understand and
that they could not afford. There was not enough consumer protection about the products and
features but there was also not enough understanding in consumers about what they were
getting and what they were getting into with those products and features. And we all paid for
the financial crisis. And in the wake of the devastation, Congress created the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau. One of the lessons from the financial crisis, thank you. I know
there's a switch or something but I can't see it. Maybe not! One of the lessons from the
financial crisis is that consumers need a safe transparent marketplace and also the financial
capability to navigate that marketplace effectively to serve their own goals. And that brings me
to the mission of the CFPB. So our mission is pretty simple. It's to make markets for consumer
financial products and services work for all consumers. We do that by making rules more
effective, by consistently and fairly enforcing the rules, and by empowering consumers to take
more control over their economic lives. And these goals support each other. Rules and
oversight help to shape a better marketplace and maintain that marketplace. I now work with
NDI with many of you in this room and with many more of you in this room in the future, we
hope. Helps to [inaudible] obtain and sustain financial capability, a form of human capital so
that they can get the most out of their own financial lives and effectively navigate that financial
marketplace. I'm going to show you but not read you our statutory objectives and just highlight
that the first one is informed financial decision making followed by competitive marketplace, a
fair marketplace and one that supports both access and innovation. So -- oh, thank you very
much. In your oversight, a key role for the CFPB is evenhanded compliance and enforcement
of the existing laws and regulations. And I'm very happy to show you a slide that's totally out of
date, $5 billion in consumers' pockets. This one is about three months' old. Yesterday, we
announced the new number is 11 billion. Some of that -- yes, some of that is money that went
straight back to consumers. Some of these other kinds of relief such as work-outs, debt
forgiveness, and loan modifications, and the part you can't quantify are all the entities that we
regulate who have decided not to engage in a practice because they have seen somebody
else have to give money back to consumers. And we think that is also incredibly important.
You know what enforcement is. That's kind of a noisy public thing. Supervision is a quiet
process of opening the books with a financial services provider bank or non-bank, mortgage
companies, payday lenders, student loan servicers, debt collectors, consumer reporting
agencies, and international money remitters among them. But when we see a problem in
supervision, we try to bring it to the attention of the whole industry and we did this in both
March and May of this year in an issue involving the consideration of public assistance income,
public benefits income, in underwriting for credit. So if you'd like to know more about that, you
can see it in our supervisor highlights dated March of 2015, and in a follow-up guidance of May
of 2015 where we reminded creditors that they cannot simply blanket ignore or fail to consider
public assistance and public benefits incomes so they have to look at it in the context of how
it's being received and whether it would be an ongoing stream of income to repay that loan. I
also want to talk a little bit about complaints. We take complaints at the CFPB. And we turn
those into both action for consumers and internal knowledge for us as we draw our work and
knowledge for the public about what's going on in the field. We've handled more than 650,000
complaints and our age is four years and a half-a-day, almost half-a-day. That's how long
we've been in business, four years yesterday. These complaints inform the work of the bureau
and they help us identify things we should look into enforcement, things we should look at
when we're doing an exam, ways we should think about consumer education. And that means
that every single complaint makes a difference. It means that if the people you serve are not
bringing their financial services complaints and problems forward to the bureau, we don't have
a full picture of how we should be protecting them. So I encourage you to tell consumers about
855-411-CFPB or to encourage them to come to our website at consumerfinance.gov. Keep
looking at information there as well as complaints in a variety of language and non-language
basis. We make that information available to the public in a complaint database. I'm not going
to go into that now. Maybe we'll get to it in Q and A. And then, I'd like to turn to some of the
tools, programs and services that we offer for consumers including consumers with disability
and for intermediary groups that serve the public. Our Division of Consumer Education and
Engagement has the mission to create opportunities for people to make better choices about
money, to serve their own life goals. We're the government. We don't say what you should
want. But we know that life goals are very hard to achieve without good money management,
money skills, and we believe that's really a lifetime activity. Our offices include an Office of
Financial Empowerment which is specifically addressed to low-income consumers. I'd like to
give some credit to Jackie Welk. When she was hired in that office, the first thing she -- I think
that was about a week and she came in and she said, "Low-income and economically
vulnerable, what are we doing for people with disabilities?" And that was the beginning of what
became the ROADS project. Too often in America, as we've already heard, the economically
vulnerable include people with disabilities. And we also have a special population offices that
serve students, older Americans and their caregivers, service members, and veterans. You
can learn about all those things at consumerfinance.gov. I'm proud to say that we both provide
tools and information directly to the public at consumerfinance.gov. We're also collaborating
with non-profits, cities, libraries, and others to get financial information and more importantly,
financial capability services right into community service locations. We're looking for ways.
We're a small agency. We'll always be a small agency. We're looking for ways to effectuate
systemic and lasting change by bringing financial capability building supports right into places
where other social services are provided. So I'm going to highlight a couple of things we have
now for the public. And if you're in the service business, I hope you will make sure to get out to
the people that you serve. I can't see these slides so I hope they're in order. The first one is the
Ask CFPB. Our research on financial well-being shows that asking questions, making plans
and answering them with plans are really key contributors to people doing well in their financial
lives. So we have the Ask CFPB, 1000 questions and answers about financial services, money
decisions. We even have some questions and answers about how to talk to your kids about
money and we're very pleased with our partnership with the FDIC to go deeper on the parents
and kids front. You can find this at consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb. We have it in Spanish as
well and we find that at the Spanish language site, the number one questions are about home
ownership. And I'll show you pictures of the Spanish page. We also offer a set of web tools that
are addressed to consumer's biggest life steps that have a money component. We have them
now up on paying for college and owning a home. And the owning a home tool is grounded in
the idea that we should all be shoppers, that we should be askers of questions and choosers
rather than supplicants in the credit market. We found that nearly half of home buyers don't
engage in any significant shopping about the loan itself even though that's got as big a
financial impact on people as the house that they choose. So our web tool is designed to help
consumers understand those many steps in the home financing process and to identify where
shopping around will save them some money. I'd like to turn now to two programs that worked
to integrate financial capability into other types of social services -- programs and services.
The first one is Your Money, Your Goals. This is a program, a nation-wide effort we started
several years to build infrastructure and support for low-income consumers who want to
improve their money decision-making skills and who are receiving social services. People are
already going to social services organizations for help whether it's job training or a foster youth
transition, a home, variety event. So we started talking to social service case managers about
what it would take for them to feel good, feel comfortable about bringing the money issues into
the services they are providing and having that conversation even if it's talk and refer or if it's
talk and assist, depending on how ready they felt. So the Your Money, Your Goals toolkit is
designed to help social services case managers be ready to open that conversation and have
a serious talk with the people they serve about how money issues may help them advance in
the other program goals. The program gives tips, training and tools to frontline social services
workers to help them have the conversations. I'm just going to show you a couple of samples
of some excerpts from the program. It covers topics like daily budgeting, managing debt,
building a credit record, looking at available benefits to supplement income. It provides
conversation guides, work sheets and information so that frontline social services workers can
deliver the service. We believe that it will be something people will do not because it's the right
thing, not because we ask them to, not even because we make it easy for them to but because
if you're running a social services program, people are trying to solve the problems in their
lives, sometimes money complicates and adds to those problems. And so, we believe that it
will, in fact, improve program goals for these entities. We field tested the program in the pilot
phase with 1400 case managers across the country and they shared with us what they needed
us to do to make it better. And you can find the materials, the trainer guide and how to seek
training for local social workers at consumerfinance.gov/your-money-your-goals. Or reach out
to our Office of Financial Empowerment at empowerment@consumerfinance.gov and they will
be happy to set up with this. I could talk about a lot more but I decided to close with our
ROADS program. I'll be brief because there's a whole panel about it later. In June 2015, we
were pleased to launch the ROADS to Financial Independence Program. It's a first of its kind
initiative aimed at improving the financial well-being and the economic security of individuals
with disabilities who are working or transitioning into the workforce. The initiative integrates
financial coaching and counseling into support services such as services for employment and
independent living that individuals with disabilities are already getting in local providers. And
people who participate in this initiative will have the opportunity to work with financial coaches
and counselors and get tailored information and approaches to help them achieve their own
life and financial goals. We are doing this through -- we're not a [inaudible] agency. We're
doing this through a competitive contract, a procurement and I'm pleased to tell you the
National Disability Institute won that competitive process and is matching this initiative. And in
2015, we'll be operating the initiative in Birmingham, Austin, Seattle, the Finger Lakes Region
of New York, the State of Delaware and the Greater Washington DC Metro Area. And you'll
hear more about that. I'd like to close by just reflecting a bit on financial education and financial
capability. This work must include building infrastructure and supports because none of us can
do it ourselves. Many of you are already leaders in the work of empowering people with
disabilities to achieve financial stability and independence. We'd like to hear from you about
what the bureau can do on the policy side, on the outreach side and on the program side to
assist in that process. And all of us have a role to play in making financial inclusion more
available to people with disabilities. We believe at the bureau that consumers with disabilities
like all consumers, the need for consumer protection will benefit from savings. I want their kids
to be offered financial education to help them get a good start in life. So please take away this
information, 855-411-CFPB for complaints, the Your Money, Your Goals program and the
ROADS Program to serve people through intermediaries. We have a program with libraries to
bring materials to local communities. And if you'd like to look at what we have that you might
be able to use in your own programs, please come to consumerfinance.gov and look at the
CFPB [Inaudible] Act. We have there a summary of all the materials we have for the public and
all the programs we have for intermediaries and it's designed to keep financial educators up to
date on what's happening to the bureau that they can actually use every day. We've all
benefited from the first 25 years of the ADA. Now let's make significant progress toward
creating equal access and a full and healthy financial life. And let's it do it before another 25
years go by. I look forward to working with all of you to meet that challenge.
[ Applause ]
>> I'm checking my watch to make sure it's still morning. Good morning, everybody. Well first,
let me begin by saying that my name's Julie Garcia and in the federal government, you know,
we love our acronyms. So although my title is spelled out which, by the way, the C stands for
Customer but I was wondering if NDI was trying to give me a new job as a consumer. What the
heck? But it doesn't matter what the letter stands for. How cool it is to be at the IRS and my job
is the Director of CARE. IRS and CARE, doesn't that go very together?
[ Laughter ]
I also want to begin by giving a shout out to Michael because when we sat there in his opening
remarks and mentioned that the IRS was one of the first federal agencies, I think there were
others that were mentioned, that partnered with NDI. I was looking at people's reaction and
people were like, "Huh?" You know, I noticed that [laughter]. So I'm here to tell you about the
IRS and what we do to help persons with disabilities. First, at the IRS, we understand the
growing need for ensuring that people with disabilities receive equal access to tax assistance
and financial planning information. We know that taxpayers with disabilities face unique
challenges when attempting to meet their tax obligation. To meet this need, we've established
guidance programs and policies to support individual taxpayers with disabilities. Part of the IRS
that is under my -- that I oversee, it's under my jurisdiction, that works with the communitybased partners is the SPEC organization. And I'll say it one time because of what it stands for,
Stakeholder Partnership Education and Communication, known as SPEC. And I will say that
one thing; I was the former director of SPEC when I was out working with the communitybased organizations. That's the one time that I enjoyed being out there because when you said
you work for IRS and you're the SPEC Director, you got hugs. Everybody hugged me and I
loved that. Now that I'm Director of CARE, nobody hugs me. But that's okay, other than my
husband. But when I did come into today, I just want to give a shout out to all the partners that
I've worked with. There are many of you that are here today that are advocates and I'm just
humbled and honored to be standing here in front of you to commemorate the 25th
anniversary of the American Disability Act. And to you, all of you, you're truly heroes. And as
the federal panel, we thank you and applaud you for what you do. But the SPEC, getting back
to the topic at hand and that is the SPEC organization in IRS, is a part of the Wage and
Investment Division. And the Wage and Investment Division is the largest operating division in
the IRS. We support outreach and education for the 130 million individual taxpayers. Now the
SPEC business model integrates tax education and free tax preparation with other strategies
to increase income, build savings and gain and sustain assets for low-income individuals,
senior citizens, Native Americans, people with limited English proficiency and those with
disabilities. In 2004, SPEC started a program to assist people with disabilities using these
strategies and the National Disability Institute became our lead partner in this endeavor. In a
few minutes, I'll share some stats about some things we've done since the inception of this
wonderful partnership that we have with the NDI. The Volunteer and Income Tax Assistance
and Tax Counseling for the Elderly, the VITA/TCE Program offers free tax preparation to
people who generally make less than $53,000 a year or less. IRS-certified volunteers provide
this free service along with electronic filing to qualified individuals. The VITA/TCE Program is
an integral part of reaching taxpayers with disabilities. Community partners host events and
we'll talk about the number that we had this past filing season to prepare tax returns. So along
with the outreach and education and the big thing we'd like to do is reach out, speak out about
earned income tax credit and the child tax credits that are available. Just to share a couple of
stats, last year -- well EITC is one of the largest anti-poverty government programs today. Last
year, almost 28 million people received over $66 billion in EITC. The average amount of EITC
paid out in 2014 was 2047 and lifted an estimated 6.5 million people out of poverty including
3.3 million children. We estimate that 20 to 25% of Americans who qualify for the credits do not
claim it. So research also shows there are approximately 1.5 million people with disabilities
that do not file a tax return each year but may be eligible for the credits. All right. So last year,
in 2015, our filing season results, you could see I keep calling it last [inaudible] because I'm
already planning for next filing season. But this is wonderful. We have over 3000 communitybased organizations that we work with that support over 12,000 VITA/TCE sites. And I have
453 employees that work with those 3000 partners in over 12,000 sites. And I will say, we have
nearly 91,000 volunteers. And one thing about being a volunteer especially for those who
prepare returns because our volunteers also our readers, they do the interview and intake
sheet. But the volunteers who prepare returns have to pass a test with accuracy of over 80%.
And this year, we prepared over 3.7 million federal returns of which a half-a-million returns
were people with disabilities. And we also prepared the 2.7 million state returns. We achieved
a 98% electronic filing rate which is wonderful because if you electronically file, you get your
refunds faster and deposit it quicker into your bank accounts. And of course, those numbers
brought in the refunds. Those returns we prepared brought in over $4 billion in federal refunds.
Isn't that astounding? Okay and when IRS speaks, nobody claps. Thank you, yes.
[ Applause ]
It's like a hug. Nobody claps either. But anyway, I think this is great news [laughter].
Remember Director of CARE. I care. Now I do want to applaud, as I said, our relationship and
our wonderful relationship with the NDI. As I mentioned, we started back in 2004 but in 2005,
we partnered with NDI and we went across 11 cities in SPEC to prepare returns. That's 2005.
We completed 7600 returns for taxpayers with disabilities. That's 2005, 10 years later, where
are we? Close to half-a-million returns. I applaud our advocates. I applaud our local partners
on the ground. It is absolutely, absolutely fabulous that we have taken a program and a
partnership so powerful. And then we're here to tell you, we're here to say, "We don't take any
credit for this." We look to NDI. They've grown the program. And I just wanted to say, it's
wonderful, a half-a-million but guess what? There's a stat I mentioned earlier. There are still
1.5 million people with disabilities each year who do not file a tax return because if income is
below the filing requirement but yet they can qualify for the credits like EITC, child tax credit
and do not. And I'm here to say we still have work to do. We still have 1.5 million people with
disabilities that we need to get them to get these credits and the way you get the credits is by
filing your tax returns. So you still go back three years and our VITA sites, our TCE sites are
there to help you prepare those returns for free especially if you cannot afford to pay a
preparer. Another little stat I'd like to give you this past filing season that is very astonishing
and we're very proud of, is the fact that 18% of the taxpayers with disabilities used a self-help
option to prepare their own returns. And I want to give a shout out to Lee Davenport. Lee's
over there. Because Lee, when I was a director of SPEC, really challenged me because we do
have -- I mentioned the volunteers who helped prepare returns. But Lee, in partnership with
NDI, opened up our eyes at IRS to say we need to help these taxpayers along with people with
disabilities and low income, the elderly, limited English proficient taxpayers, to prepare their
own returns. And he opened up a facilitated self-assistant option which is taxpayers learning
how to prepare their own returns. So that in the future, you can go onto your computer from
home and prepare your own returns. And I'm very proud to say the 18% of taxpayers with
disabilities used the self-help option. And we'd like to move more taxpayers to that because
even though we helped 3.7 million taxpayers, there are still more out there that meet our
criteria to help prepare returns for free that aren't able to get into our program. And we need to
move people out, those that can do it, prepare their return so we can get others into help you
free tax preparation. So thank you for that work. Through our partnership with the NDI this past
year and also the National Association of the Deaf and several other organizations, we
identified a need to provide more information on free tax return preparation services to
taxpayers who are deaf and are hard of hearing and use American Sign Language as their
primary language. So we created a series of videos this past year in American Sign Language
that described the free tax preparation process at VITA and TCE sites. So I want to make you
aware of this because there are some great videos out there. This was something that
obviously our customers told us we needed to do. At IRS, we felt it was a thing we needed to
do and we worked collaboratively to put these videos on our website. The information in the
videos is beneficial for the volunteers who serve at ASL interpreter sites across the country
and for anyone who wants to become familiar with the free tax preparation process. So as you
can see, you can access the videos on the IRS, the American Sign Language YouTube
channel. As you could see, its www.youtube.com/IRSvideocast or excuse me, videoASI. In
2015, we piloted an American Sign Language Tax Day in 12 cities in the United States and we
encouraged deaf and hard of hearing taxpayers to take advantage of this free service. So
through the combined efforts of VITA volunteers and American Sign Language interpreters,
deaf and hard of hearing taxpayers were provided free federal and state tax preparation
services. I want to pass that. I know you're going to have -- I was going to touch a little bit on
the ABLE Act but you're going to have a speech on that or a workshop on that later -- or a
panel, excuse me. IRS as an employer for persons with disability, the IRS hires through
traditional competitive hiring processes or by means of non-competitive or special appointing
authority. In addition, the IRS is committed to providing reasonable combinations throughout
the hiring process and employment. The IRS Accessibility Office works with external partners
and other agencies to increase hiring of persons with disabilities within IRS. Partners include
the [inaudible] -- excuse me, Veterans Employment Program, the Council of State
Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation, Operation War Fighter, The Wounded Warrior
Project, Goodwill and the Easter Seals Society. Working with partners that I just listed, the
Accessibility Office within the IRS finds candidates who are veterans or who have disabilities to
help develop diverse inclusive candidate pools for predictable annual hiring needs. Once hired,
the IRS ensures all employees and managers are equipped with the tools and resources
needed by providing an internal website to service a centralized source for disability
information. And just one -- the last bullet on the slide. I think we're very proud, the readers of
CAREER rmal and the disABLED rmal magazines selected the top agencies in the country for
which they would most prefer to work or believe provide a positive working environment for
people with disability. IRS ranks seventh on this year's 23rd Annual Top 20 Government
Agencies in CAREER rmal and the disABLED rmal magazine.
[ Applause ]
Oh, one other thing I'd like to highlight are some of the resources we have available and I'm
also proud to say that the Alternative Media Center, the first bullet up on the top of the side is
actually works, it's part of my medium [inaudible] organization and that is -- we call it AMC. It
supports the laws designed to enhance access to government information by members of the
disabled community. The Alternative Media Center works diligently to provide alternative
media resources to customers with disabilities through the irs.gov website. The irs.gov website
has many tools available specifically for taxpayers with disabilities. The accessibility link on the
home page of irs.gov takes taxpayers through a variety of accessible tax information online. It's
the gateway to hundreds of valuable tax products in Braille, large print, accessible electronic
files, videos in American Sign Language, resources for veterans with disabilities, information
on tax assistance, tax benefits and much more. Taxpayers with disabilities that require special
accommodations for service at our local taxpayer assistance centers, that's our face-to-face
locations, can simply go to the help and resources page on irs.gov to obtain the email address
to schedule an appointment. So with, if anyone is interested in learning more about the SPEC
organization, you can go to partner@irs.gov or you can see, I think, Nell. Nell Hardy, where are
you? He is my Senior Manager Relations -- oh, Senior Manager over the DC territory but he's
here to also help out and answer and field any questions. So finally, in close and I just like to
say -- okay, well [laughter]. I had a slide. Thank you! You make a difference. Thank you for
indulging me these few minutes to speak about the wonderful things we do at IRS. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Many of our panelists will be with us throughout the day so I'm going to forego my
questions in the interest of time and go to our community responders, let them share their
thoughts. Wendy, you want to go first?
>> Sure. Is my mic on?
>> Yes.
>> Can anybody hear me, hello?
>> Hello.
>> And that you want me to hurry up so you can go have lunch, right? I kind of want lunch too
so I promise I'll be quick. First of all, I just want to say thank you to each of you for all the work
that you've done in the past and what you plan on the future. It really, really makes a difference.
I have a website for women with disabilities and I hear it all the time, the needs. So it's very,
very important. I also want to thank Michael for inviting me. Am I talking [inaudible], sorry. At
the age of 19, I landed my first international modeling assignment. And on the way to the
airport, my career was actually starting to take off but it came to a halt. On the way to the
airport, my car was rear ended by a driver who had been drinking and within a fraction of a
second, I became paralyzed and so I went through rehabilitation. And I just thought if I got
back to my work that my life would get back to normal. So when I went to go back to work, I
found that there was no work for me anymore. That I no longer looked like the woman in the
magazines anymore because I was in a wheelchair. I was devastated. I felt invisible. And I felt
like I didn't fit in society's mold anymore. Oh, sorry. I'm losing my voice here. But here we are,
over 30 years later and we're inundated even more so with images on television, on the
internet and magazines yet rarely do we see a person with a disability, especially a woman.
Now these women have overcome obstacles that most would find insurmountable yet, still
many of them still struggle with their appearance because they look different than what we see
in mainstream media, basically our society's wallpaper. I'm the co-chairperson of a project
that's trying to change that. It's called the Raw Beauty Project. And we are celebrating the lives
of women with disabilities, trying to redefine beauty and really unleashing potential for all
women. What we do is we find various women with disabilities and we ask them to create a
narrative of their story but also talk about what makes them feel powerful. Then we partner
them with -- we partner them with a professional photographer and they're to create a photo
based on three words, beauty, power, and passion. And what we have found is that -- and I
just want to say, by the way, before I forget. One of our beautiful models are here today,
Donna Walton. So Donna, just say hi. Okay.
[ Applause ]
She's a remarkable lady and you can see her photo outside and I'm sure she'd be willing to
talk to you. But we noticed that the models including myself because I went through the
process, underwent a transformation and maybe not all but I think most of them, if not all, went
through this transformation and for many, it was the first time that they were ever
acknowledged as a beautiful woman. So I want to give you one example and her name is
Deborah Mellon that you see in that photo there. And Deborah was injured when she was in
her 20's. She became paralyzed due to a motor vehicle accident and she also had to undergo
multiple reconstructive facial surgeries. Deborah kind of lived her life, you know, in the
shadows and after becoming one of our models, she said, "I can't believe how much this has
changed my life." Deborah now has a foundation and she sails around the world, empowering
people with disabilities and showing them what they can do. And recently, Deborah spoke in
public for the first time at the age of 60 years old. The project is much bigger than just the
experiences of the models. The project also -- it teaches people about women's disabilities but
it also affects the photographers and the people that view it. Not only do they learn about one
disability but they also learn about themselves. And often, they start to see their own strengths
and start to look at their own challenges in life and how they can overcome them. So you're
probably wondering how does a photography exhibit of women's disabilities relate to economic
empowerment. Well, we envision a world where people's disabilities are integrated into every
aspect of the media. A blind actor, a quadriplegic newscaster, a fashion model who may have
Down syndrome, why not? Our civil rights -- and okay, this part I'm reading because you guys
are going to be all over me. With this crowd, I don't want to make a mistake [laughter]. Our civil
rights prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation,
disability, or national origin. You know, people with disabilities are seldom seen. The unspoken
rules and unrealistic standards of the fashion and beauty industry would be non-existent. And
beauty would no longer be limited to a certain size, age, color or ability. Uniqueness would be
celebrated and we would also be more confident and more empowered. Visibility in the media
would create a society more cognizant of people with disabilities. Those unfamiliar with
disability would gain a greater understanding. And that, in turn, would create more
opportunities. They may see commonalities with a population that before seemed so distant.
It's when we don't really know a group or we can't relate to them that we feel disconnected.
And these barriers when they're broken, it changes how things are and it inherently causes the
need for advocacy to disappear. And then we become one with common goals. Fortunately,
the Raw Beauty Project has resonated with mainstream media and ignited a global
conversation. We have been featured -- I'm just going to give you a few but in Oprah Magazine
rmal, Today.com rmal, Elle.com rmal, Huffington Post rmal, Huffington Post UK rmal, we've
been in countries all over the world in their media. And women with disabilities and many of the
models have been so inspired that they are creating new exhibits and there are studies with
new models and new photographers. So we have one coming up in Los Angeles, Philadelphia,
Charlotte in North Carolina, possibly Toronto, possibly Nashville and other places if we can just
get more people to help. One of our models, Danielle Sheypuk, was one of the -- actually the
first woman with a disability to be on the runway for New York Fashion Week. And since then,
yes --
[ Applause ]
And since then, models are starting to appear on the runway with disabilities and I know for a
fact there are going to be quite a few in this coming New York Fashion Week in September.
And also, women with disabilities are landing contracts with major retailers and companies and
one of our models, Andrea Dalzell, just landed a contract where she's going to be the new face
for Gillette Venus. So we're really excited about that. Yeah!
[ Applause ]
I'll actually be more excited when this isn't a big deal anymore and this is standard [laughter].
But for now, I'll take it [laughter]. So through our actions and shifting perceptions, I think that
our wallpaper of society is changing and I'm happy to say that I don't feel invisible anymore so
thank you very much.
[ Applause ]
>> My name is Lex Frieden and I direct the independent living research programs at TIRR
Memorial Hermann in Houston, Texas. I direct the Southwest ADA Center at TIRR Memorial
Hermann in Houston, Texas and I'm a professor at the University of Texas Health Science
Center at Houston. I hold an adjunct professorship at Baylor College of Medicine. And I came
this morning prepared to do a 45-minute presentation [laughter] complete with slides and data
that no one else has seen. So I've altered my plans so I've kept the presentation down to 30
minutes [laughter]. And I'll not be using the slides and talking about the new data because if
you're interested, tomorrow there will be a press conference at the National Council on
Disabilities Meeting which is at -- being held at the U.S. Access Board, 1331 F. Street at 12
noon and we will be revealing the results of a nationwide survey of people with disabilities.
Some of those results, by the way, I was going to preview today but in the interest of time, I
won't do that. I'll just invite you to come to the press conference tomorrow. I will say, however,
that some of the data we've collected, opinions from people with disabilities is relatively
consistent with the data that you've heard from some of the federal agencies here today, which
is very interesting. Instead of talking about data, instead of giving a scientific presentation, I'd
like to say a few things about the Americans with Disabilities Act. In January 1986, I had the
responsibility, the opportunity and the great honor to meet then Vice President George Herbert
Walker Bush in the West Wing of the White House. That meeting was occasioned by a very
sad event in American history and that was a few days before my meeting with the Vice
President, I was scheduled to meet with President Reagan. However, on the day of that
meeting, the Space Challenger -- the spaceship Challenger exploded. And of course, the
President's schedule was altered significantly. But I was invited to meet with the Vice President
about whom the Washington Post rmal, the week before, had written a feature article entitled
"Where is George?" And Vice President Bush made reference to that in our meeting. The
purpose of my meeting was to present first to the President and then the Vice President on his
behalf, a report that had been done by the National Council on Disability. I was the first
executive director of that independent federal agency and our job was to produce a report to
the nation to be given to the President and the Congress about the policy needs of people with
disabilities in America. Our council were 15 presidential appointees and a staff of six, worked
for two years to prepare this report. And the principal recommendation in the report was that
there should be a law protecting people with disabilities from discrimination. It was a significant
statement at that time. We had a number of proposals backing that up and the Vice President
seemed to be personally interested in it. He told us that he had one daughter with a disability
who died early. He had another son with a learning disability, and another son with a
colostomy. And he said that he and Barbara Bush had discussed the proposal we were about
to make because unlike you all, he was given a preliminary copy before I met with him. The
Vice President said that Barbara and he had read the report the night before, and he could
identify with many of the issues that we raised about people with disabilities in America. And
he was concerned about those issues and he wanted to do something about it. He told us that
he would report to the President but that if he ever had the opportunity in the future to do more
to help us, he would do so. In July the 26th, 1990, President George Herbert Walker Bush
signed the Americans with Disabilities Act.
[ Applause ]
But perhaps more significantly with respect to this particular meeting, there was another
subplot in the report that we gave the Vice President. And we can entitle that subplot,
disincentives. The disincentives to employment in the United States today almost equal the
kind of optimism that people have when we talk about employing people with disabilities. We
know now that nearly 80% of people with disabilities in the United States who want to work,
who are trained to work, who are able to work are not employed. Now we say that we are 25
years past, nondiscrimination on the basis of disability. In some respects, we might conclude
that discrimination has just altered its ugly face. No longer is it overt. I don't want to make any
speculation about that. I don't want to draw any conclusions about that but I do know
thousands of people with disabilities are employed today but many, many more thousands of
people with disabilities are looking for work today. And it's not because those people aren't
trained, aren't willing to work, aren't able to work, aren't eager to work that they're not
employed. Now obviously, there are a number of other economic aspects to this question. And
frankly, I think the demographics of the baby boom generation may help to solve some of
those economic problems. As older people retire and go out of the workforce, there will be
more jobs in the workforce and people with disabilities will be prepared to meet the challenge
of the workplace. But that's not the only problem that we face. Go back to the question of
disincentive. We heard that people with disabilities, many of them don't have bank accounts.
They don't have the money to pay their bills. They don't have enough savings to deal with a
crisis. Why is that? Because many of them are encouraged by the system not to earn money,
not to save money. Why? If they do, they will lose whatever little benefit they have from the
government because they have a disability. There are thousands of people in the United
States today living independently in the community who are not working but they're able to live
in the community because we have some modest federal programs that enable them to do so.
They provide them with some housing assistance, some personal care assistance, and so on,
even healthcare assistance. But if those people go to work and if they work very long and if
they earn very much, they are not eligible for those benefits anymore. And when that happens,
some of the economists will call that a cliff, people with disabilities literally fall off the cliff. Every
hour they work, every dollar they earn means nothing to them because they're having to use it
to replace the dollars that they formerly received from the federal benefits program. It's a
perverse kind of a system and I don't have all the answers. But I can tell you that if you want to
solve the economic problems of people with disabilities, first find them jobs; at the same time,
remove the disincentives to work. And I'm not suggesting that we stop providing federal
benefits because many millions of people with disabilities would die if we did that. I'm
suggesting we need to find ways to transition people to employment to give them an
opportunity to work without sacrificing so much if they do. With that, let me give you a phone
number.
[ Applause ]
800-949-4232, that's the National Technical Assistance number for the ADA. We have 10
centers around the country you can call that number if you have a disability or you have an
issue pertaining to the ADA and get technical assistance about it. And in the meantime, if you
want to send me an email, my address is lfreiden@bcm.edu. I really appreciate the opportunity
here today.
[ Applause ]
>> I think this has been a very exciting way to have the first panel between our representatives
from government and then our community responders. Let's give them all a round of applause.
It was great.
[ Applause ]
>> We will not be taking a break [laughter]. In the interest of time, we got to keep moving on
but if you do feel you need to contact your office, or check your email, or just take a break, just
do it on your own and just be considerate of the people who are going to stay in the room
because we have to keep moving on. We have so much great information to share with you.
And so at this time, we're going to invite the second panel to come to the stage.
>> Good job.
>> And while they are coming, those of us who will stay in the room at this time, would you do
me a favor? We just take a deep breath. Come on, let's take a deep breath so we don't have to
take a break. Take a deep breath. Now let it out very slowly [laughter]. All right, now let's move
on with our next panel. All right.
>> You're on.
>> Our second panel --
>> Okay.
>> Oh --
>> Oh, you're welcome.
>> Okay.
>> Coming up. All right? Got everyone?
>> Thank you.
>> I want to make sure everybody is here.
>> I want to get a picture of that [inaudible]. They get a picture of that.
>> Let me flip this [inaudible] here.
>> Have you [inaudible] paper?
>> I don't know.
>> Have you [inaudible] to rush this?
>> Here.
>> Around?
>> Have you done anything to rush this stuff?
>> No.
>> Yeah, I could create another [inaudible].
>> I'll be right back.
>> Oh, okay. Michael has my contact info.
>> All right, so I'll go.
>> All right? You need the numbers here?
>> Let me see.
>> You need the number here? We're short of staff, just stay here for me. You want to grab a
chair?
>> Oh okay, good. Yeah. Okay, oh, that's great.
>> We should have [inaudible] from up here. So, yeah.
>> Can you order it?
>> It's kind of tight.
>> Sorry.
>> No, it's okay.
>> Got it. Is this fine?
>> That's fine.
>> All right.
>> Oh, all right. Oh, let me just do this so your [inaudible] is going to be [inaudible]. Okay.
>> Okay. All right, we're going to move on with our second panel. We're going to ask those in
the back if they can just be a little quiet. All right. All right. Okay.
>> Okay, great numbers now.
>> We're so excited that our second panel represents some of the exciting work going on, on
the community level to include and increase financial inclusion for people with disabilities. And
we have three outstanding community programs that would be represented today. We will be
talking and get a presentation about Bank on Louisville represented by Tina Lentz. She is the
Executive Administrator. Did I say that right? Okay, of the Louisville Metro Community
Services. We will also find out more about ROADS to Financial Independence represented by
Rich Petersen, the Executive Director Capitol Area Asset Builders and Christa Cenoplano? I
hope I said that. Censoplano, thank you! Thank you, and she is a customer and consumer.
>> Right.
>> We will also hear about CareerSource Broward.
>> Yes.
>> Yes.
>> All right, fantastic. And they will be represented by --
>> Melanie?
>> Melanie Magill? I got it. Melanie Magill and Samora Cunningham. Did I get that right?
>> Yup.
>> Fantastic. We're going to let them all come to you in their own way.
>> Yeah.
>> Okay.
>> Well, good afternoon, everyone. My name is Tina Lentz and I'm from Louisville, Kentucky. I
hope you all can say that correctly the next time you're in front of anyone. You know, Louisville
is the home of the Kentucky Derby. It's the home of very tasty bourbon and it's also home of
the Ohio Valley Crud of which I am experiencing right now. So I'm not quite not sure how long
my voice is going to hold out but I also have my little throat lozenges here so hopefully we can
get through the day. I've been asked to come by Michael and the Department of Labor to come
talk about our work and partnership in Louisville, Kentucky that's based on the foundation of
our Bank on Louisville initiative. And I'd focus on Bank on because it's not -- in 2010, when we
launched the Bank on project, we launched it in partnership with the Louisville Metro
Government between my department which was then a housing and family services and the
Economic Development Department. Simply because and I think the harder or the more
primary reason was because in order to bring industry, businesses to our low and moderateincome neighborhoods, we needed to be able to demonstrate something other than the cash
economy to convince people to come. And you have to get people connected to the banking
mainstream using credit cards and that sort of thing to get out of the cash economy. So what I
want to talk to you a little bit about is that when we started Bank On, it really was, as I said, our
municipally-led financial empowerment strategy that moved our department from the culture
shift of just meeting on the crisis level to moving them to long-term stability. So one of the
major results of that shift was the creation of the Advocacy and Empowerment Division, which I
run. And that is really Louisville's version of the Office for Financial Empowerment. So we
pulled together one team to lead the financial empowerment initiatives, financial education
programming and microbusiness development. What happened since we launched Bank on
[inaudible] really is a testament to how one initiative can reach an array of strategies and
actions that go well beyond the local impact. Our Bank On initiatives and activities have grown
into a community-wide strategy to leverage resources, expand on services and improve
outreach to an at-risk population. Once such strategy that we are particularly proud of is our
work to increase the capacity of service providers to integrate financial empowerment into their
service delivery models. We started out with a premise that as case managers became more
confident in their own financial decision making, conversations around managing money,
leveraging resources and building on assets would happen more often and more effectively.
We focused on increasing the knowledge base around financial empowerment concepts such
as behavioral economics and began to introduce new tools, practice models and resources.
Thus was formed the idea of valuing this increase of knowledge and skills with community
recognition. We call that the Louisville Community Financial Empowerment Certification and
Training Program. Today, we have what I think is a pretty impressive list of national partners
including the National Disability Institute and the Department of Labor. With these national
partnerships come opportunities to bring additional resources and expertise to our local efforts
and an expanded network of colleagues who often contribute to the success of our work. I
think it [inaudible] the outcome. Our partnership with Department of Labor and NDI started a
little more than a year ago with a community convening to learn what was happening at the
national level around the integration of financial empowerment into workforce development
services. Then we reviewed local efforts and resources and identified the action steps that
would move our community forward. And as a bonus, 20 individuals representing 14 agencies
stepped up to form the Workforce Development Financial Empowerment Integration
Collaborative. This collaborative focused on two main goals, integrate financial empowerment
strategies into our workforce development system to improve employment goals and financial
behaviors for individuals with disabilities, and establish a community-wide culture for
inclusiveness. The group developed a work plan that included mapping out current
relationships and opportunities, increasing awareness and engagement, improving information
sharing and compiling resources. This month marks one year of the existence of that
collaborative and we have much to celebrate in the ways of accomplishments. We have
enhanced existing financial empowerment resource and referral guide to now include
workforce development services for individuals with disabilities. We've developed a new
disability and accessibility resource guide that we hope will ensure that everyone can have
better access to all available resources in our community. We have expanded the certification
and training program to include topics that increase understanding around social security
disability benefits and employment. And we are beginning to hold conversations around how
we can move forward on this demonstrating collective impact. Nearly two-thirds of our
collaborative members directly serve individuals with disabilities. This newly formed network
has fully embraced the community-wide financial empowerment strategy and represents nearly
two-thirds of the graduates of that certification program. In addition, we now have 32 newly
trained facilitators who can directly provide access to basic banking and credit building
instruction to the clients their agencies serve at the time they need it most. By championing the
need for further integration of asset building strategies, we set goals of improving the financial
stability of the community and the clients we all serve. Addressing the ever-increasing demand
on public resources and as well as the creation of a model that can be replicated by other
social service providers to generate a much more broader system-wide change. All of this is
resulting in a win-win-win situation. More individuals and families can access resources that
will help them build assets effectively. Neighborhoods and communities grow stronger when
families are stable and begin to invest in the long term. And partners realize new opportunities
to strengthen their agencies and accomplish their missions. Part two, well, never mind that one.
Our Bank On local network continues to foster new opportunities as we celebrate our fifth
anniversary. Our youth financial education work continues to grow. We continue to explore
ways we can help folks build their credit files in a positive way and we are determined to find a
way to give children that most important start on their future with a children's savings account
program. So that's Bank On Louisville and our work in a nutshell. Thank you very much.
[ Applause ]
>> Wait for the slide. This [inaudible]? That, okay. Well, good morning or afternoon, almost. I'm
Rich Petersen, Executive Director of Capitol Area Asset Builders. And in the interest of time, I'll
just talk about the ROADS to Financial Independence Program that has been referred to a
couple of times, a partnership with the leadership of the National Disability Institute with a
contract through the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau. CAAB's mission is financial
prosperity and security for all. And we really take the for all very seriously and that's why we're
so glad to be invited by the National Disability Institute to participate in the ROADS Program.
And I'm trying to find the ROADS slide, Michael. Okay. So here it is. So this is ROADS. It was
referred to earlier, Reach Outcomes Achieve Dreams and Succeed. And what's exciting about
this program, this is a six-city effort and what we're really going to learn from this is in a group
of practitioners, so for instance, here in Greater DC, CAAB has been for 20 years providing
financial education capability information to the community. However, frankly, we've had very
little occasion with the disability community. So now in connection with our partner
ServiceSource at Oakton, Virginia, we've joined together to provide very intensive group and
one-on-one financial coaching services to people with disabilities in the DC region. And what
we hope to learn from that is lessons from the ground and conversations and engagements
with our customers and with our colleagues on how to make sure that we're including everyone
in America with access to non-biased financial information to services and products. And again,
in the essence of time, I'll defer to our -- Christa, who can tell you a little bit about it as a
participant in the program of ROADS. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> First, I'd like to say thank you. My name is Christa Censoplano and I just -- I have a rare
chromosome syndrome called 18q deletion, and it affects me in several different areas
including cognition and speech. As a result of this syndrome, I have some difficulty with
executive functioning which is very important for, you know, math and budgeting. So I originally
came to ServiceSource for a Microsoft Office certification course. Afterwards, ServiceSource
helped me with finding employment opportunities. Now, ServiceSource saw my potential for a
receptionist employment. And I became a corporate receptionist at ServiceSource in March
2013. One of my goals is to live independently. Both of my parents are eventually moving out
of Virginia and I want to stay here. And my father helped me with starting to understand
budgeting and having checking and then savings account. ROADS is helping me to reach the
goal of living independently by continuing to develop my budgeting skills and saving towards a
security to profit. I appreciate all the help and I'm so grateful to be invited here to speak. Thank
you.
[ Applause ]
>> Last but not least, before lunch. Oh, there we go.
>> We got it.
>> Good afternoon [laughter].
>> Good afternoon.
>> My name is Melanie Magill. I am a Senior Quality Assurance Analyst at CareerSource
Broward. We are the administrative entity for the Local Workforce Board in Fort Lauderdale,
Florida. We are also an employment network serving Ticket to Work customers. We are proud
to say that we are the number one Workforce EN in the country. We have earned over
$915,000 in Ticket to Work revenue. So we are placing people with disabilities into jobs.
[ Applause ]
And out that $915,000, over 60% of it is in outcome payments. So those are those people that
are maintaining and retaining their jobs. We are a part of the USDOL's DEI, Disability
Employment Initiative.
[ Applause ]
So we thank you DOL for awarding Florida the grant. And our grant ends in September so we
hope to continue [laughter]. So when we first got the grant, we knew we were doing a really
good job at serving people and it's a good program. And NDI is a part of this DEI initiative and
when Michael Roush from NDI came out and did our first asset development training, the light
bulb went off. And I knew that this was a piece, the financial education was a piece that we
were missing. So we made that paradigm shift and we're very proud to say that we're doing
one of the -- something that a lot of people have not done. We have hired a financial education
success coach to work with people with disabilities one on one, and anybody that comes into
the American Job Center. We have led the process of gradually implementing the financial
capability over the past two-and-a-half years. So some of the strategies that we offer, is we
took our intake form and we've added a whole financial health questionnaire into it, to be able
to start that conversation with the customers. We have now developed financial education
workshops that we will be beginning in August. We have budget worksheets. We have menu
planning tools. We have shopping lists for the customers to be able to start budgeting their
money. We have developed our financial stability workbook to use in our new workshops. We
have free tax preparation services. We have mobile units at our American Job Centers. We
have Samora Cunningham who is now our, like I said, our new Financial Success Coach who
is also going through the [inaudible] training to be able to do benefits planning with our
customers one on one. We work a lot with our community-based organizations. The Urban
League of Broward County has a Ways to Work Program where one of our customers with a
disability who got employment was able to buy a car. We've created a referral system. We are
also working with employers, teaching employers how to hire and retain people with disabilities
because we know that a small percentage of people are born with disabilities, a lot of them
acquire them over their lifetime. One of the workshops that's coming up is teaching employers
how to integrate financial stability into their workforce. That's coming up in September so we're
very proud of that. So we've trained all our frontline staff in the American Job Centers on
financial education and financial capability strategies. So they can have those conversations
with their customers in the Welfare Program, in the SNAP Program, in the Veterans Program,
in the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act Program. I'm still getting used to saying
WIOA. And one of the great parts of WIOA was we have financial education. So we've
developed these workshops. We look forward to continuing our relationship with NDI and I'll be
here to answer any questions you have.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you, panelists for really trying to kind of form us back into the timeframe. And I want
you to stay right here. But I do want to introduce next, first the person who will introduce our
next special guest and that is Sarah Weir, the President of the National Down Syndrome
Society. NDSS, as many of us know it, Autism Speaks and NDI have forged quite a
relationship in working on implementation of the ABLE Act. And Sarah, I turn it over to you.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you, Michael. It's a real honor for me to introduce one of our special guests this
afternoon. But before I do that, I just want to tell a very brief story. It's a story that started
around a kitchen table about nine years ago, about 25 miles away from where we're sitting
right now, with five parents. Cel, Christina, Rick, Jen and Steve, Steve Beck were casually
venting their frustrations about the inequities that exist in the system specifically, how they
weren't able to save for their children with Down syndrome like they were for their other
children. There was a light bulb moment and one of them suggested the idea of creating a bill,
a bill that would just change this. One thing led to another, enters in Congressman Ander
Crenshaw from Jacksonville, Florida. He immediately loved the concept of ABLE and he has
been one of our House champions ever since. The power of the people, real people can make
a difference. This is what we did with the ABLE Act and we couldn't have done it without the
leadership, tenacity, and dedication of Congressman Ander Crenshaw, and of course, his
amazing staff. So since 2000, Ander Crenshaw has represented Florida's Fourth
Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Congressman Crenshaw has
worked in the private sector as an investment banker, served as an elected official in the state
legislature. His life in public service ultimately led to Florida State Senate where he served as
the first Republican President in the Senate. It is my pleasure to introduce a true champion for
people with disabilities and my dear friend, Congressman Ander Crenshaw.
[ Applause ]
>> Well, thank you so much, Sara and thank you all, for inviting me to be here today to talk a
little bit about the ABLE Act. Michael Morris, the Disability Institute, thank you all for hosting
this. And as Sara mentioned, this kind of grew out of a conversation that took place at a
kitchen table near the home of my then Chief of Staff, a fellow named John Ariale, that some of
you all had worked with us over the past 10 years remember. And it was easy for me, I've met
a lot of you all over the years as we worked on the ABLE Act and you know about my
involvement there. But one of the -- one of the reasons it became so easy to get involved with
this -- I have a daughter who's 35 years old now. And for 20 years she has struggled with
something called ulcer colitis and Crohn's Disease and [inaudible] where the immune system
that's supposed to protect your body turns around and attacks your body. And so for 20 years,
we've known what agony that can bring and what hope that can bring. They still don't know
what causes it. They don't know how to cure it. But I know a little bit about what you go through
to rush to the emergency room from time to time and see a series of operations and
sometimes being on life support. And so when somebody came to me and said, you know, we
got an idea about how we can help people that face these problems that most people don't
even know exist. I have a friend who has a son who has Down syndrome. His name is Garrion
and I used to love to just hang out with Garrion and I used to wonder -- I talk to my teams and I
said, "Isn't there something maybe we could do to help -- these are folks with disabilities that
are facing challenges that we don't really understand?" Might be medical, might be educational,
might be transportation. Sure enough, this family had been meeting a group of folks and they
came together and they said, maybe we could use the tax code to help people save for these
kind of situations. Because already we -- we let people save money for their college education.
They call them 529's. You set up a tax free savings account and the money grows tax free. If
you want to retire, we have something called an IRA or a 401K where the tax code allows you
to set money aside, let it grow tax free to use it in those situations upon retirement. So why not
create a tax free savings account, to let that money grow tax free, as long as those proceeds
are used for qualified expenses. Maybe they're educational, maybe they're transportation,
maybe they're medical. And that's how the ABLE Act was born -- 2006 we filed a legislation. I
think at the time it was called Disability Income for whatever, it didn't have a very fancy name.
And it became known as the ABLE Act, achieving a better life experience. What -- what can be
better than that. But when we started out, we found out how difficult it is when you deal with
the tax code, because nobody likes to tamper with the tax code. Everybody wants to reform it,
but they don't want to touch it. They just want it to happen. And so, they said, "You'll never be
able to figure out how you even define disability under this proposed bill." And we overcame,
they said, "You'll never be able to get all the different groups together and to figure out how to
work together to deal this." And that all took place. And meanwhile, we're making the
legislation every year get a little bit better, a little more understandable, a little bit easier for
people to see. And more and more people got involved. I'm sure a lot of you all here recognize
what we were trying to do over the last 10 years. And every year, more people, more people
would say, "I'd like to be a co-sponsor of that legislation." I would have people come up to me,
members that I hardly knew from states around the country and say, "Hey, Ander, I just signed
the ABLE Act, man, that's a great piece of legislation." I said, "How did that happen?" They
said, "Well, some people came to see me that live and work in my district and they said this
would help us and our families." And it grew and grew and every year we would come together
and more and more people would come together. And I would tell you very honestly because
of folks like you all that came to Washington, to sit down with your individual senator, your
individual member and to say, "Let me tell you about the ABLE Act. It can go a long way
toward leveling the playing field; allow people with individuals a way to save for some kind of
emergencies." And also along the way as most of you know, we have historically, and here we
are celebrating 25 years after the first American with Disabilities Act, but we still -- we almost
have a forced impoverishment. If somebody's eligible for government assistance, they can't
have more than $2000 in their own name and you'd find grandparents who said, "Well, I
wanted to give my kids a little something for Christmas and I -- I couldn't give them because it
would put them over the line and then they would lose their eligibility." And so we made sure
that the ABLE Act doesn't count against that $2000 threshold. But every year it got a little bit
better, and every year we got a few more people. At the end of the day, we had 374 house cosponsors and in the Senate, 74. And one of the other things they -- yeah -- and it's all because
of so many of you all. And people said, "Well, you'll never be able to pass this legislation, this
partisan bickering that goes on here in Washington. And so that's when I sat down with
Senator Casey, who I think is going to be here today. And I said, "Let's make this bipartisan,
you're a democrat, I'm a republican. Let's make it [inaudible]. You're a senator, I'm a House
member. Let's really broaden this." And he went to work in the Senate and with an awful lot of
his friends and I went to work in the House with a lot of my friends that came alongside. And
here we are at the end, after 10 years, but here's what's interesting. You know, we have
something in Washington called the congressional budget office. And they have a lot more
power than most people realize because they're the ones that when you file a piece of
legislation, they tell you -- they don't tell you how or why, they just say, this is going to cost x
dollars. And when they looked at the ABLE Act they said, "Well, we're going to lose some
revenue and this and that, and so this is going to cost $2 billion over a 10 year period." And if
you want to pass this legislation, you got to figure out a way to find $2 billion to offset or
replace that revenue that we're going to lose. Well, it happens that one of my best friends is
chairman of the Ways and Means Committee in the House. His name is Dave Kemp. And
Dave is a wonderful guy and I would talk to him over and over again about the ABLE Act. And
he said, "Listen, what I want to do is reform the tax code." He said, "I don't want to do
individual deals because I want to have a all-encompassing tax reform, everybody wants to
reform the tax [inaudible], right?" But after three years of working on this, when he came out
with this proposal, it was met -- there's so many reasons not to like tax reform, it didn't happen.
And so, Dave said I'm going to go to work, I told you we're going to get the A block done and
his staff went to work, and they found $2 billion, then we could offset. And that was kind of the
final hurdle. And the last piece of legislation that passed out of Congress was the ABLE Act
and the president signed it, and now 30 states have implemented that. In Florida, I'm proud to
the fact that -- that our governor just signed the ABLE Act, the implementing legislation just last
week, 30 states have done that now. So that's -- we're on our way. And there's another kind of
good fortune. One thing you have to do when that kind of bill becomes law, the Internal
Revenue Service, the Department of Treasury, they have to write rules and regulations to
implement that, so the states can implement it. And quite frankly, the IRS and the Treasury,
they've not been the most responsible agency in government. From time to time, you read
about the scandals that took place with IRS and it just so happens that the IRS and the
Department of Treasury come under the jurisdiction of the subcommittee that I chair on
appropriations. In other words, we control their [inaudible]. And while they've made some
mistakes and done some poor management decisions over the years, when I made it clear
how important the ABLE Act was to me and to so many people all around the country. Then in
six months, they drafted the rules and regulations that ordinarily might have taken a year or
two years, no [inaudible], so they're done. And right now they're going through a process and
they came out and like a lot of rules and regulations when they come out, they're a little bit
onerous and burdensome, and I told the commissioner that. I said we want to work together
and there's a comment period and some of you all and I know the institute is going to make
suggestions about how to ease the administrative burden so that we can make sure this
happens. And that's all taking place now, so I would say by Christmas of this year we will have
ABLE Acts that are open, up and running, and helping -- helping the people that need the help.
Because let me tell you something, you know, this is -- this is -- this is -- it's easy, this is -- this
is what public service is all about. To help people that can't always help themselves, to speak
out for people that can't always speak for themselves. Now we -- we have an opportunity for
individuals with disabilities to realize their hopes and dreams, to -- to achieve their full potential.
And that's all we've asked for. So I want to say thank you to you, all of you who have helped to
make this dream become a reality. It's going to be the law of the land, the ABLE Act and as we
celebrate 25 years, we've come a long way. We got a long way to go. And I'm ready to
undertake the next project. So thank you for having me here today. Thank you so much.
[ Applause ]
[ Silence ]
>> Okay, so Michael's going to let me introduce our next special guest. I often say to pass the
ABLE Act, we needed everyone and everyone to play their parts. And I think Congressman
Crenshaw just diluted to that right now. For the last eight years, four congresses, we were like
a football team. NDSS, Autism Speaks, NDI and many of you in this room. We were like a
football team preparing for that big Super Bowl. In the 112th Congress, we thought we were
going to make it. And we ran out of time in that last quarter. When it came to the 113th
Congress, we knew it was our time and we put everything on the line to make it happen.
Senator Casey was our quarterback in the Senate. And his greatest coach was a woman
hailing from his home town of Scranton, Pennsylvania, Sara Wolf, who just happens to have
Down Syndrome, and also, one of my bosses. Sara and her family's story resonated with
Senator Casey. Sara lost her mom suddenly to cancer a few years ago. And her father and
siblings, like many other families in the United States, remain worried about what this meant
for Sara's future. Like a great coach, Sara helped call a lot of the plays behind the scenes. She
authored a change.org petition that garnered the support of 300,000 people, it's actually one of
the most popular change.org petitions of all time. And that change.org petition called on
Congress to join Senator Casey and Congressman Crenshaw to help us pass the ABLE Act. I
was able to witness Sara's greatest pep talk to Senator Casey during a press conference in the
capital where we were with Senator Burr, immediately following the House vote, which we
ended up passing four four to 17. Sara was asked by Senator Casey and Senator Burr, "Are
you nervous about the passage in the Senate? Are we -- are we going to get there?" She
encouraged everyone, including Senator Casey, Senator Burr, Congressman Crenshaw and
others in the House that we had to stay popped. And that became our mantra over the course
of those last few weeks leading up to the Senate vote, which was the last vote of the 113th
Congress. The ABLE Act stands for Achieving a Better Life Experience. Because of the
leadership of Senator Casey, so many in the United States will do just that, achieve a better
life. As you know, our work is not done and Senator Casey understands that and we're lucky to
have him on our team. It's my distinct honor to introduce and welcome my friends, Senator
Casey.
[ Applause ]
>> Well, thank you very much everyone. I want to -- I want you to know first and foremost that
it's almost lunch time. So I'm in a very difficult position. So that means I'm going to cut my
remarks short because I just walked through where the food is. And it smelled really good. I
almost didn't get here because I was hungry. So I won't -- I won't delay it any longer and I
know you have a program to get to and I'm grateful to -- to -- I hope this isn't an interruption,
but -- but if it is, I'm -- I'm sorry about that. They gave us some time, I want to make sure that
we take advantage of it because in Washington if you get invited in front of any group of
experts a second time and for some people in the room I've seen you along the way, that's a
big deal. You can't always get re-invited, so I'm grateful. But if I had to summarize the success
of the ABLE Act as it relates to the Senate, I could probably do it by just pronouncing a few
names -- Sara, Sara, Jennifer, Natasha. I'll just give you those four. Your Sara, our Sara who's
with us today and her great leadership. Let's give her a round of applause for her work. And
her -- and wonderful introductions, I'm grateful that she -- she spoke about the other Sara,
Sara Wolf from my home county of Lackawanna County. If it weren't for the ABLE Act and if it
weren't for Sara Wolf's engagement and advocacy with me, to me, on behalf of me and with
others, A, I don't think this would've gotten done, B, I don't think I would've met her. So I'm
grateful for that. So we have two Sara's, Jennifer was on our staff, Jennifer McCloskey, at the
time. She's since left the -- the Senate and we're -- we're happy she's in the private sector. I
hope she makes a lot of money because she -- she deserves it after -- after government
service. But she was so essential and again, this -- my work wouldn't of been possible without
her. I mentioned Natasha because that's Senator Richard Burr who led the effort in the Senate
with me and so grateful to work with Richard Burr on this issue over many years. And Natasha
work -- still works with -- with Senator Burr, so I want to thank her and Senator Burr and
Congressman Crenshaw, who just preceded me. Really honor to work with him because at the
time, democrats controlled the Senate -- no longer, but we were in control at least until the end
of last year and of course, republicans were in control of the House. So you needed to start
this with a democratic member of the Senate and a republican member of the House. And
that's where the Congressman and I came together, and I'm grateful for his leadership, his
determination and I just told him backstage that he did a good job of explaining any of the
details of the policy. And I can skip that, but I'm grateful for his -- his work. And working with
him in the House [inaudible], someone I came to know much more so because of the ABLE
Act. I do want to commend everyone in the room, not only for your work, if I can use a passage
from scripture, laboring the vineyards. So many people here have been in -- in these battles,
on these issues that relate to individuals with disabilities for a lot longer than I have. So I'm --
I'm grateful for your work and your advocacy. But this day just happens to be one of those
days when we can celebrate 25 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act. And -- and I know
that my friend, Tom Harkin, who just left the Senate at the end of last year will be joining you
as well. So I want to commend and salute his great work. If -- in terms of his work in the
Senate, he was the leader of the United States Senate, in my judgment on issues that relate to
individuals with disabilities. And if I can just carry his bag for a couple years and never -- never
ever seek to replace him, but -- but to try to continue his good work. Let me be -- be brief. The
-- this legislation and your work on this legislation and other work, is I think grounded or
founded in the belief that we all believe that people with disabilities have a lot of ability. That
they can not only contribute substantially to our quality of life and the -- the success of our
nation, but if we give them some tools, they can lead as full a life as possible. And one of the -the -- that's the belief, but one of the concerns that undergirded this effort was the concerns
that a lot of families had, especially parents who might have a -- might have a child with a
disability and they could -- they could see themselves getting that child through their childhood
and through young adulthood, but they worried. And I know a lot of people in this room
understand this. Worried that years later, maybe when they weren't around that -- that no one
would be there to take care of that individual. So one of the tools we should put in place and
now we have is a savings account, it's -- you can -- you can draw from for healthcare needs or
education. So if you're -- if you got a disability and you have a job and an apartment, you can
use -- and you have to get on the bus or you have to travel to work, you can use that account
for a whole range of -- of expenses in your life. So that's what this is all about, that's why we
did this work. We're not done yet, there's more work to do. As the congressman said, there's
more work to do at the state level. And there's more work to do in disability, still a lot of battles
to fight. And I look forward to joining you in those -- those battles along the way. I have to say
though that this effort was remarkable in a number of -- in a number of ways. The
congressman outlined how difficult it was and that what we -- what we had to overcome, but it's
also noteworthy that in a time when everyone laments, and sometimes justifiably so, how
grass roots don't seem to result in a -- in a big one for -- for folks across the country, that
sometimes a special interest seem to win and the rest of us don't. Right? That's the -- that's the
lament of the concern. But I'll tell you, this was a grass roots victory. This wasn't become -- it
wasn't because a couple of folks in Washington got together in a room and it all worked out.
This came from the people and the congressman referred to that. I had members of the United
States Senate coming to me, not saying I'd like to talk to you about the ABLE Act, they came to
deliver a message. I'm going to be on -- I'm going to be on your bill because I have to be
because I was told by my constituents that this is what I should do, and I'm going to do it.
Okay? So that's what your work did. I didn't care how they got there. I don't care, as long as
they signed on, that's all we were worried about. But I want -- I want you to know that because
there -- there are so many reasons right now to be cynical. So many reasons to be frustrated
with what doesn't happen in Washington. And believe me, I can cite chapter and verse. But
this was one of those moments where all of that was off to the side. This was a grass roots
victory. It came right from people, right from advocates and activists on behalf of folks with
disabilities, came right from folks with disabilities being advocates themselves, Sara Wolf and
so many others. I cite one of the -- the families that I came to know, the -- two little girls, the
Rayer twins, Susan and Meredith. Just watching those little girls with Down Syndrome run
around our office and engage with me and talk to me, I -- I know for certain -- for certain if -- if
we give little girls like that just a tool like this, the ABLE Act and other support as well, those
girls can do whatever they want. They're bright, they're active, they're smart, they're -- they're
ready to take on the world and there are certain parts of our law which were holding them back.
So we have more work to do and more battles to fight, but whether it's with Sara Wolf or
whether it's with the Rayer twins, Susan and Meredith or whether it's with all of you in this
room. We've got more to do because this really is about, in so many ways, what kind of
country we are and what kind of country you want -- we want to become. And the promise of
this country is rooted in those children. The promise of this country is rooted in some of the
stories that you could tell in this room today. How far some of you have come a long, long road
to get where you are today. And we're grateful for that. And we do believe that people with
disabilities have a lot of ability and it is our job, those of us who are elected to help -- help folks
get down that road together. So, I'm grateful for your work, grateful for your advocacy and look
forward to working with you and I hope you have a great lunch. Thanks everybody.
[ Applause ]
>> Okay, we -- we want to thank Sara, we want to thank Senator Casey and Representative
Crenshaw for being here today. Let's give them a round of applause. It's fantastic.
[ Applause ]
Now, this does tie into the work that we were talking about, so we'd like to continue our -- our
discussion on some innovative community programs. Who is next? Was anybody?
[ Multiple Speakers ]
We're moving faster than I thought. Forgive me. I got so taken away with all the exciting
information going on. I don't know about you, but I'm just inspired, you know, I think so often
we have so much negative things to talk about, we -- we fight these battles in the trenches.
And by the way, I believe in financial freedom fighters and I think that each and every one of
you are financial freedom fighters for the disabled. Give yourselves a round of applause. But
I'm just so excited to hear about the victories, especially on Capitol Hill because so many
people feel as though they're disenfranchised and they never get anything out of Capitol Hill.
So many people don't know about these exciting work that's going on in our community to
make sure that each and every American is included in economic success in our country. So,
we're going to take a break for lunch. We're almost back on time, but we're going to have lunch.
There's a beautiful buffet in the next room. We invite you to partake of it, bring your food back
in this room and continue to dialogue, continue the conversation on making sure that all
Americans are included in our economic liability of this country. Thank you very much. We had
a great morning and very exciting. A lot of great information, a lot of inspiration I believe. And
believe it or not, this afternoon is going to be even more powerful, more informative and more
exciting. We'd like to begin our afternoon session by showing you a short video about the ADA.
Can we show the video? All right.
>> I now left my pen to sign this Americans with Disability Act and say, "Let the shameful wall
of exclusion finally come tumbling down." God bless you all.
>> For 25 years, the Americans with Disabilities Act has removed barriers and empowered
people. At his office in Houston, President George H.W. Bush recently sat down with Tom
Ridge, chairman of the National Organization on Disability and America's first secretary of
Homeland Security for rare and intimate conversation on the occasion of the 25th anniversary
of the ADA.
>> Mr. President, you have no idea what a great pleasure it is for me to have the chance to
have this conversation with you. You have been so kind to the National Organization on
Disability to serve as our honorary chairman for 25 years and I've been privileged to follow
your lead. I've been chairman of the board for 10 years. I got 15 more years to go and I'll still
be catching up with you, Mr. President, but I'd -- I'd really like to take you back to the South
Lawn, White House, July of 1990.
>> My golly.
>> You signed what many people have said was the most extensive piece of Civil Rights
legislation in America's history. And I -- I looked at your remarks that day, Mr. President, and
you said if I might quote, "This act is powerful in its simplicity. It will ensure --
>> It will ensure that people with disabilities are given the basic guarantees for which they
have worked so long and so hard, independence, freedom of choice, control of their lives, the
opportunity to blend fully and equally into the rich mosaic of the American mainstream.
>> -- the rich mosaic of the American mainstream." Twenty-five years ago, you've had many
achievements in your life, do you have a sense of how important this was to you personally
because it's been very important to Americans since that time.
>> Well, I believe we were doing the right thing back then and I think it's true, it still is. So it's
one -- it's something I can take pride in.
>> That legislation talked about nondiscrimination, accessibility, inclusion and it was sweeping
in its impact. Now there's one more barrier and I presume you agree with me that the next and
perhaps the most important barrier is to see that people with disabilities get a chance to go to
work.
>> You just can't take the word disability and disqualify someone. And I also want to say a
special word to our friends in the business community. You have in your hands the key to the
success of this act, for you can unlock a splendid resource of untapped human potential that
when freed will enrich us all.
>> Getting people to work is something that we've discovered, Mr. President, when we finally
created a culture of acceptability that these employers learn that the men and women with
disabilities sometimes are the best and most effective employees they have. That probably
doesn't surprise you, does it? > No, just so they get a chance. That's the main thing.
>> Again, as you take a look at that scene 25 years ago and you reflect on how important it
was at that time, you had a lot of people involved in promoting it. Wasn't it wonderful that you
had republicans and democrats laying out that platform for people with disabilities?
>> Very important. If it had been just one party kind of thing, you know, it would have been less
effective, so no, I think -- I think it's very important. It's something I'm very proud of, perhaps
proudest of when I was president.
>> Well, you know, Mr. President, I know you are an optimist by nature, I know you're an
optimist by nature. Anybody that flew 58 combat missions and who thought it was a good time
jumping out of airplanes is obviously optimistic. But do you see a time when Americans will just
accept disability as just a natural human condition?
>> You know, I think people have a wrong impression sometime. They see disability and they
think, well that person with disability is less able to do this -- this job. And that's not fair, that's
not right.
>> I guess at the end of the day, there are 40 to 50 million Americans who have far more
opportunity today than they would've had without -- without your -- your taking the leadership
on that issue. And -- and on behalf of the -- the National Organization on Disability and as a
great friend, you've been an inspiration to a lot of us, Mr. President. I'd like to think that I take a
bit of your leadership and try to extend your commitment to people with disabilities within this
organization. And so we thank you for your leadership and your friendship, Mr. President.
>> You're a good man.
>> Thank you, sir.
>> And then the organizations, so many dedicated organizations for people with disabilities
who gave their time and their strength and perhaps most of all, everyone out there and others
across the breadth of this nation, are 43 million Americans with disabilities. You have made
this happen, all of you have made this happen.
[ Applause ]
[ Music ]
>> We'll now hear from our leader, Mr. Michael Morris.
[ Applause ]
[ Silence ]
First [inaudible], I want to thank our friends at the National Organization on Disability and Carol
Glazer for sharing that video with us. It's -- it's extraordinary just on two months ago in Houston
with former Governor Ridge and -- and President Bush. Well, in -- in keeping moving forward,
we do want to go a little bit back and -- and get the opinions and views and thoughts of
probably one of our nation's most distinguished leaders, who for almost 40 years was the
protector, the advocate and activist related to people with disabilities first in the House of
Representatives and then in the United States Senate. On the democratic side, Senator Tom
Harkin from Iowa and Senator Ted Kennedy from Massachusetts were the leaders. I worked in
the US Senate for Senator Lowell Weicker, who didn't quite make it to the day of -- of the
passage of the ADA. He was -- he was defeated, but he was in the late 1980s working with
people like Lex Frieden, who you've heard from earlier who was one of the key architects and
Senator Harkin picked up the ball and kept running with it and -- and was -- was absolutely
essential to securing the bipartisan support that -- that took us across the top in 1990. I also
want to thank Senator Harkin for his leadership in the last few years he spent in the Senate
chairing the Senate Health Education Labor and Pensions Committee. For years, the Senate
had been -- and the House had been at an impasse in trying to modernize our workforce
development system. And with his leadership in those last couple of months of leadership at
the Senate Health Committee, he working with others did manage to get bipartisan support for
the passage, the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which has particular sensitivities
around access for job seekers with disabilities throughout that law. That would not have
happened without Senator Harkin's leadership. Senator Harkin retired from the US Congress,
really it seems like a few months ago, but obviously at the end of 2014. We are so pleased to
bring to you Senator Tom Harkin.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you, Michael. I'll just set this down here. Michael, thank you very much for that very
kind and generous introduction. Thank you all for having me here. Looks like you've had a
good morning. And I thoroughly enjoyed watching that video. It's absolutely true that without
the leadership of George Herbert Walker Bush, this would never have become law. Yeah, I'm a
democrat saying that, okay folks [applause]. I can tell you lots of stories about it, about his
involvement in it and stuff. The -- the 25th anniversary of his presidency was held -- was it last
year or the year before, can't remember -- down at College Station, down at the Bush Library.
And I was very proud, I was one of only two democrats invited to celebrate down there with
him, but it was a great get together of a lot of us who had been involved in -- in the passage of
the ADA. I also appreciate Michael mentioning the first sponsor of the Americans with
Disabilities Act. Now it's my name on the bill, I'm the chief sponsor, that's -- I got all that. I led
the effort at the end because I chaired the Disability Policy subcommittee. But it was Lowell
Weicker who introduced the first Americans with Disabilities Act. Now, l lay some claim to the
fact that I was his chief co-sponsor, anyway, at that -- that -- because the republicans were in
charge and the democrats were the minority at that time. And then, as Michael said, Lowell lost
election, which I wish he hadn't of going back. But remains a tremendous friend of mine
through all these years, but he was just a great leader on -- on this issue among -- among
others. My -- my main focus on disability policy started in the House on deafness, though I had
a very narrow focus on that. And I'll tell you why. I'm going to -- I'm going to tell you three
stories and sort of wrap it up by showing how they all kind of intersect with what you're here
about today and that's financial security for people with disabilities. The first story, many of you
have heard me tell before, but I keep telling it because it's true and I think it indicates both
where we've been and sort of kind of where we need to go. It has to do with my brother, Frank,
who became deaf at small -- at a young age. We lived in a small town in rural Iowa. And of
course, he was taken from his home, his family, his relatives, his church, his friends, sent
halfway across the state to the Iowa School for the Deaf, which at that time they called the
Iowa School for the Deaf and Dumb. And my brother said two things to me, well, he said a lot
of things to me in his lifetime, but two that I just really burrowed in in my thought processes.
First one he said, "You know, I may be deaf, but I'm not dumb." But that's what everybody
referred to it as, deaf and dumb. So he stayed in that school. When he was in high school, they
asked him what he would like to be when he got out of school. He -- he would -- they gave him
three choices, he could be a shoe cobbler, a printer's assistant, or a baker. My brother said, "I
don't want to be any of those." They said, "Well, okay, you're going to be a baker then because
we got some places here for bakers." So that's what he did, he became a baker, which he
didn't like at all, but that's all -- that's the only thing that was available to him. So he'd been a
baker for a few years, a small bake shop in West Des Moines, Iowa. There was a man who -you would come into the bake shop sometimes in the morning and I guess get a donut or a
coffee or something, I'm not clear what -- struck up a friendship with Frank, who by that time in
the morning was out of the back room of baking and just sort of out front. And so he asked -he found out a little bit about Frank, just back and forth, mostly just writing notes out that my
brother would -- to him. And so, he asked him how he liked his job, how he liked being a baker.
Of course, my brother being completely honest said, "I hate it." "Well, why are you doing it?"
He said, "That's all I can do." He said, "Well, what do you want to do?" My brother said, "I want
to work with machines and equipment. I like to do that kind of stuff." So this guy turned out to
be Mr. Delavin, and he owned a plant that employed somewhere between two and 300 people
in Des Moines and they made jet engine nozzles, nozzles for jet engines. And so he said,
"Frank, why don't you come work for me?" Frank took off his apron and walked out the door.
This is true, he took his apron and [inaudible] wanted to hire him that day. And so, so he
walked out and -- and so, Delavin took him down, had no people with disabilities there and got
the foreman and said, "Hey, I've just hired this guy. Teach him, see if -- see if you could teach
him how to run this machine and stuff." Well, several months go by, Mr. Delavin, a wonderful -wonderful person, I met him later on in the course of these events. Delavin asked his foreman,
Frank's boss, how this -- how was Harkin doing? The guy said, "Oh, my God, this guy is great.
We taught him how to run this machine, it didn't take long at all. The boy picked it up right
away. And he's the most productive worker I've got. He -- he never makes mistakes, more out
-- more parts per hour than anybody else, he never comes late, and never leaves early and
never is sick." He said, the guy is amazing. Well, Delavin [inaudible] this is interesting that he
would be so much better than the other workers. So, he and this foreman and others, I guess
start looking at this and they finally figured it out. This was a very noisy place, a lot of clanging
and banging and bells and people yelling and machines going. My brother, it didn't bother him
a bit, he just sat right there and just kept right on doing his job. And now this is also true.
Whereas Mr. Delavin probably hired my brother out of the goodness of his heart, and took a
liking to him, he then went out and hired more deaf people because he knew it would help his
bottom line. So, two things I take from that. One is people with disabilities have a lot of abilities,
that may be hidden, may not have been brought in school or other places, that needed to be
tapped into. So if I hope, if one thing, what the ADA has done over these years is start to
change people's attitudes. So when you see someone with a disability, that doesn't define that
person. You know, what defines that person is the whole person. What are they capable of
doing? What do they want to do? How do they live their lives? What are their abilities, not their
disability? So, Frank showed he had a lot of abilities other than just being a baker. The other
thing I think it shows is the importance of a job, a good job. Now while he was a baker, he was
making I don't know, a little bit of money, not much. So he went to work for this plant, became
a member of United Auto Workers Union, proud of his union card and he got benefits, paid
vacations. He never had a paid vacation in his life. Now he's got paid vacations, got a pension
built up, so when he retired, he had Social Security, he had a pension, a defined benefit
pension that would last him until he died. And he had some savings. A good job, right, a good
job, not some minimum wage dead end, but a good job. The second story I'll tell you is about
Emily Hillman. I met Emily a couple years ago. Emily was born with an intellectual disability
and after she got out of school, she got pipelined into a subminimum wage job, which she later
told me was very boring, and she didn't like it and she wanted to do something else. Well, she
had very good parents that were kind of willing to give her more rope. And so they said, "Well,
what do you want to do?" She said, "I want to open a coffee shop." So, her parents said, "Well,
how's that work, you know, how do we do that?" Well, they scraped together some money and
sent her to barista school in Minneapolis. I didn't know there was such a thing, Michael, but
you can -- you can go to barista school, I guess. And Emily came back, they went to the bank,
her parents cosigned, got some money together, there was an empty space on Main Street in
Independence, Iowa. How about that, huh? In Independence, Iowa. And so she opened Em's,
E-M, Em's, Em's Coffee Shop in Independence, Iowa. Em now employs five people, two of
whom have disabilities, three who don't. It is the gathering place in Independence now. People
come in for coffee and tea and now she's got ice cream there. And it's -- no one -- they had
never had this before in Independence, on Main Street. Well, there's only one street, so Main
Street. What the heck. And she sells the t-shirts and Em's coffee and -- and Emily, she has this
wonderful personality. People just love to talk to Em. And she remembers your names, she
knows everybody who comes in that door. So this has become a great success story for the
community and for Emily Hillman. Think about that, a person with an intellectual disability,
pipelined into a dead end job at subminimum wages, now owning and running her own small
business. So, what I take from that, don't just think about people with disabilities as getting a
job, which I'm going to get onto a little bit more. But how about small business owners, a lot of
them could be small business owners, running their businesses, whether it's a physical
disability, an intellectual disability, or a combination of both. So we got to think about that
[applause]. So the third story I'll you, it has to do with a large company called Walgreens. I
have a -- I won't go anywhere but Walgreens anymore, I'll tell you why. A few years ago, I ran
into Randy Louis, who was a senior vice president for -- for Walgreens. And he was telling me
about some of the things they were doing to hire people with disabilities. And so, his CEO was
Greg Wassun, at the time. He no longer is because Walgreens is now joined with some
company out of England, I can't -- I don't even know the name of it now. But we went up to
their distribution center outside of Hartford, Connecticut. And it's one of the largest distribution
centers in America. I happen to be there, just -- just me and one of my staff. And -- but he had
invited other CEO's like Proctor and Gamble, Best Buy, Home Depot -- oh, I mean, big shots
came there. They all flew in on their private jets. I flew commercial, coach to get there. That's
all right, just aside. But anyway, so he wanted to show us his plant and take us on a tour, and
before he started he said, "I want to tell you why I wanted you to come here, I wanted you to
see what people [inaudible] can do." He said, "Forty percent of the people who work in this
plant are people with disabilities, 40%." He said, "Now as you go through some you'll
recognize they are disabled, some you may not, and you'll see that we made minor
adjustments here or there to accommodate someone with a disability." Forty percent. And he
said, "I want you to know I'm not doing this out of the goodness of my heart, this is my most
productive distribution center in America." Think about that. Bottom line. Bottom line.
[Applause] So we went on a tour, looked around, saw some people there. I'll never forget the
one person, a young woman, Down Syndrome, working there. I mean working, not at subminimum wage, I mean the same pay that the other people that were getting that worked the
same, okay? So she had this station -- and I don't know if you know about a distribution center,
but what it is is these baskets come by on a -- like a conveyor belt type of thing, and you have
a station. And so Walgreens Store #362 or something, someplace, sends it in and they want
five toothbrushes and six of this and seven of that and whatever. Well, at each station they just
have so many things they can put in the basket, then it goes on to the next station. So she's at
this station, and I found out that she could not understand numbers, had no idea about
numbers. So if it said five toothbrushes, she knew what the toothbrush was, but she didn't
know what five meant. But she remembered animals, and so they put this big board, it's
electronic, you know, board, like a checkerboard type thing, and compared to -- you know, sort
of like their station there. And so if she saw three alligators, she knew to put three of these
toothbrushes in the box. And if there was five alligators, she put [inaudible]. And if there were
four elephants, she put four Republicans in the box.
[ Laughter ]
I could use donkeys, also, if there was donkey's she put Democrats in the box [laughter]. She
never showed up late for work, never left early, never got sick, and never made a mistake.
Think about that. So it indicates to me that we all are losing out if we're not tapping into the
abilities that so many people with disabilities have, and sometimes they're not obviously,
sometimes they're not obvious. I see my good friend, Bob Williams, here. Now it's kind of hard
to carry on a conversation with Bob, but you got to have patience. I remember when I first met
Bob back in -- working on ADA, never one of us had gray hair then, Williams.
[ Laughter ]
But I got to tell you this, Bob Williams is one of the best writers you'll ever encounter in your
lifetime. I mean, writers. I mean, he is just -- how he writes is just magnificent. Plus he also
wrote me a poem once, which I take to hear, but I'm -- as a writer, you can't find a better writer
than Bob Williams. Hidden talent, you wouldn't know that by just talking to Bob, but what a
great hidden talent he has. So 25 years later, I think we can say we've come a long way with
the Americans with Disabilities Act, especially in the built environment, we have ramps, we
have moving walkways, and we have widened doors, and curved cuts, and accessible buses,
and trains and subways, and on and on and on. Although there's -- and mobility was so
important, transportation was so important. But there's still one little thing that we haven't
accomplished and it's been stuck in my craw and that's taxis. Do you know, Michael, if you go
to London, England today, or tomorrow -- if you go to London, England today, every taxi that
you hail is 100% accessible, every single one. Not true here. Now, New York City recently just
committed itself to having 50% of their yellow cabs fully accessible by 2020. Chicago is moving
ahead in that direction, because there's a few other cities kind of moving ahead. It seems to
me a shame that here in the nation's capital we don't have 100% accessible taxi cabs.
[ Applause ]
And I don't meant to promote one company over another, but MV-1, I think they're Ohio based
or Indiana, what is it, Ohio? I think one of those two -- anyway, they're making a very nice
accessible taxicab. It's a little bit more expensive than a old beat up jalopy, well, sure it is. But
that's where states and local governments got to come in and give them tax benefits. Tax
write-offs and stuff, you buy one, they last a long time, they're very well built. And I'll tell you
this, I would -- I'd bet a lot of money, take any random sample of two or three, four, people
without disabilities and they hail a cab, and they have a choice of the accessible cab or one
that's not accessible, and I'll bet you they'll pick the accessible one every time. Easier to get in
and out of, better headroom, better leg room, and if they got suitcases, the suitcases fit in there.
So, again, like we found in the last 25 years, when you build things are of universal design,
and accessible, it helps everybody. Curb customer design [inaudible] people in wheelchairs,
how about people wheeling baby carriages, people with walkers, things like that. I was the
author of the bill called the Television Circuitry Decoder Act, it actually passed before ADA,
which mandated that every television set in America with a size 13 inch screen or bigger had
to have a chip in it to automatically decode that line, whatever that line is, 21 or whatever it is.
Obviously my intent on that was so that people like my brother and people who deaf and hard
of hearing could follow what was going on. To my great surprise and joy I found later on that
one of the biggest users of this are sports bars [laughter]. All this noise and everything, and all
the different sports, they just keep those things running underneath the screen. And I also
found that myself, sometimes I'm -- I'm watching the news or some program and I get a phone
call I don't want to miss, I just punch that mute button, just like that, and I can just follow
everything and I can multitask. I can listen to somebody and continue to watch the program.
So my point is that we've come a long way. I don't know many of you know this, there were
four goals of the ADA, four goals; full participation, equal opportunity, independent living and
economic self-sufficiency. On the first two we've done pretty well. Full participation, you can go
to sports stadium and theaters now, travel with your family, that's pretty good. Equal
opportunity, a lot better. We've come quite always in equal opportunity. Independent living,
again, we've come a long way, but we haven't fully implemented the Olmstead Decision. I don't
know if you know what I mean, the Olmstead Decision. The Supreme Court over here decided
in 1999, which said that people with disabilities have a right to the least restrictive environment,
not the nursing home, but in the community. Now states and others have been a little slow in
implementing that, but we're making progress. It's the last one, it's the last one that has been
the biggest problem and that's what you're about here, financial security. I will state the
obvious first and foremost, you can't have financial security unless you got a good job, unless
you're working, that's the most important element of it. So I suppose if you're a son or a
daughter of a trust fund family, or something like that, with a lot of money, okay, I get that, but
that's a minority of people. So economic self-sufficiency, it is a blot on our national character
that today 60% -- over 60% of adults with disabilities are not in the workforce, 60%. And you're
talking about we have 5.5% unemployment, in this country, we're talking about 60%, folks, are
not in the work -- and these are people who can work and who want to work and are not in the
workforce. Well, we may not be able to go out and solve everything tomorrow for everyone
who is an adult, who's in their 50s and 60s, that type of thing, but we shouldn't let this time
pass without setting in place structures to ensure that young people with disabilities will enter
the workforce in competitive, integrated employment from the very beginning. From the very
beginning.
[ Applause ]
So last year, to that end, the last bill I got through, the Workforce Investment and Opportunity
Act. I think you mentioned that [inaudible]. Michael mentioned that. So we made a nice change
in that, and it took us a long time, it took several years, but we got it done, and here's what it
does. It sets aside 15% of the money for VR, voc rehab, to be used for young people who are
in school to provide for summer jobs, internships, job coaching. And it sets up a system so that
when that young person gets out of school, say they've been under an IEP, for example, they
get out of school, they have to first seek competitive integrated employment. No longer can
they just be pipelined into a sub-minimum wage job, which is dead end, like happened to Emily
Hillman [assumed spelling], for example, and others. The default position now is that, default
position is competitive integrated employment. Now, a lot of times, I know when I had all these
hearings people said, "Well, [inaudible] you're awful rough on these people." You see, there's
still a lot of people that think that you have to have pity on people with disabilities, you just
have to have pity. I'm not there. I'm not there. What I want is to make sure that they have
accessibility. That people with disabilities can follow their dreams, and that we break down the
artificial barriers that society has constructed, and give them opportunities. I always say about
the ADA, [inaudible] talking about a ladder of success. People have to climb the ladder. And I
always say, you know, I always use a ladder, not an escalator. Escalator is a free ride, I don't
believe in free rides. With a ladder you still have exert energy and effort and initiative to get up.
And I say, well, but back in 1990 and before there were millions of Americans that no matter
how hard they tried could never climb that ladder, people with disabilities. Okay, so what we
did, we built a ramp and we called it the Americans with Disabilities Act. And I always use that
analogy of the ramp, it's not a moving walkway. Not one dime, not one nickel in that build goes
to a person with a disability. The whole idea behind it is to break down the barriers, equal
opportunity, full participation so that people with disabilities can follow their dreams and try
different things. So people said to me, "Well, [inaudible], you're awful tough on these young
people. Some of these young people maybe can't do that, maybe they can't get in there,
maybe they can't do that." I said, so you're telling me that some of these young people are
going to fail, young people with disabilities. "Oh yeah, they're going to fail." I said, so what's
wrong with that? Isn't that a normal part of human activity, to try things and sometimes you
fail? I don't about you, but I failed at two or three things in my life before I finally figured
something out that I can do, and that's just a part of the human experience, to try something
you think you might want to do and you can't do. Okay, well, try something else. Why should a
young person with a disability be denied that human experience? It's not being hard hearted,
it's saying, we want people to have this -- be a part of this human experience. And, plus, you'd
be amazed that people you don't think could do something, what do you see, there's a lot of
Emily Hillman's out there, and other people, Bob Williams and others, who if just given the
opportunity could do a lot more than you think they can do. So that's why we changed the
Workforce Investment Opportunity, to get a new cohort of people going, young people. I call
them part of the ADA generation because they're not going to sit back and take a back seat
and say that pity is enough or caring is enough. The caring, we should care for one another
our whole lives, but caring that will transmit itself into making sure the structures don't
discriminate against somebody, and that's the whole essence of the Americans with
Disabilities Act. So as President Bush said, I believe it's doing its job, but like any piece of
legislation, any Civil Rights bill, it's not self-enforced. It has to have people who are out there to
help it come alive, and so I'm here to ask all you young people who are here, a lot of young --
everybody's younger than I am these days [laughter], to make it come alive in your daily lives.
If you're an employer, ask yourself, do I have an Affirmative Action program to go out and try to
find people with disabilities who -- I would never ask any employer to hire a person with a
disability who is not qualified for that job. But find somebody who is qualified for that job, you
can find them out there. Lean on voc rehab, people like that. And if you're an employee and
you're in a company or place, look around. If you're working with 100 people, how many are
disabled? People with disabilities we know are about 20% of our population, so out of 100
people you only got two people with disabilities, they're not hiring people in accordance with
the distribution in our society. And of course that's what the Civil Rights Act said in 1964, they
said discrimination against what? Race, color, sex, national origin, religion. That you can't, in
any mix, it has to proportionate to their numbers in society. You can't have a place that hires
1000 people and hire one woman and say, hey, you fulfilled it. No, you can't do that. And so it's
a constant struggle to make sure the ADA is both enforced and lived up to. And if you'll help do
that in the next 25 years, I have no doubt that 25 years from now in the 50th anniversary, when
people look back, and they take stock of where we are, you will see people with disabilities in
all kinds of jobs, CEOs, and others, people on assembly lines, people in fast food, distribution
throughout society. Hopefully you'll even see some that are United States senators. Thank you
very much.
[ Applause ]
Thank you all very, very much.
[ Applause ]
I shouldn't do this, I should never [inaudible], and I took too long away. I told Mike, that's when
I do when I don't have a written speech. You know, I learned sign language when I was
growing up, and there are a couple of signs I'll teach you, okay? I want to teach you all sign.
One is this one. A lot of times I do that and people think, is that a bad thing, what is he doing?
It's comprised of three letters, I, L and Y, which means, "I love you," in sign language. The
other sign I'll teach is one that I think is one of those beautiful signs, and I think you'll see what
I mean. If you take your hands and put your hands together like this, like your fingers together
like this, okay, and sort of put your thumbs together like this. And take your hands and go in
front of your body in a circle, in a circle, okay, got it? You know what that's a sign for? America.
It's a beautiful, beautiful sign. Think about it. America, we're all locked together, everyone
together, no one is left out in this constant circle of life in our country, that's the America we
had always aspired to achieve. Thank you.
[ Applause ]
>> Thank you, Senator Harkin, and hard to top that, but we'll switch gears. We're going to go
towards second phase, which is small group discussions at roundtable. We're going to talk
about how that's set up and what we're going to be trying to do. But I first want to bring Kelvin
Boston back up because he's going to depart, but he has been an inspiration this morning and
kept the continuity going, and I know you wanted to say one or two final words.
>> All right. Thank you. Well, let's give it up for Senator Harkin. That was amazing. Is this
yours or Senators?
[ Applause ]
Michael, before I leave, I just wanted to thank you again for allowing me to be part of this great
event. And also share, I think like what Senator Harkin just did was to share a few thoughts
that might help in your afternoon discussions. I first I want to tell you a quick story about Melvin
B. Tolson, who was an African-American poet laureate, and he used to like to tell the story that
when he was a child he had to walk through a graveyard every day to get to school. And one
day while he was walking through this graveyard he came across a tombstone and the
tombstone read, "I am dead, as all can see, prepare ye all to follow me." Well after thinking
about these words for a few moments, the young poet laureate said aloud, "To follow you I am
not content until I know which way you went." [Laughter] I just want to let you know how
inspired I was to be here today and to see the work that Mike and his team is doing, and I want
you to know that I'm prepared to follow you. You can clap on that.
[ Applause ]
The information that I've learned over the past few months, working with Mike and his team,
about what's going on in the Disability Movement, and the information I learned today will
impact my work for years to come. And now when we start producing Moneywise television
programs I will think about people with disabilities.
[ Applause ]
When I crisscross the country, talking to African-American churches about economic
empowerment [inaudible] I will remind them about ADA. And when I champion the cause for
retirement security for all Americans, now I will make sure that we talk about [inaudible]
accounts and the work of NDI. My friends, I hope that something you learned today will inspire
you to continue to fight when you leave here for this great cause. There's a great discussion in
our country today about closing the wealth gap, and indeed we have a wealth gap that we
must close, but eventually in order to close the wealth gap we're going to have to close the
ownership gap between those that own a lot and those that own too little. And I'm talking about
closing it from an economic perspective. Eventually we have to make sure that all Americans
have more savings, that they have more equity in their homes, that they have more retirement
accounts, and that they own more businesses. That's how we close the wealth gap. And
eventually this conversation that you're going to have today will have to get to that point. What
are the solutions that low wealth and low income people can have and use to close the wealth
gap that they're going to need in order to participate in our society fully? Now, [inaudible] will
say that's kind of a challenging, you know, proposition. And I want to share with you what we
share with people all around America to help them understand and get the importance of
ownership, because one thing that, I think it was the second President Busch said, that indeed
we do live in an ownership society, and eventually we have to help everybody increase their
ownership. But sometimes the people we serve don't get it, and so we started sharing with
them something we call the philosophy upon ownership, and I'll just share it with you and
hopefully it will help your conversation this afternoon. I learned about pond ownership when I
had the privilege with being Reverend [inaudible] one day and he shared with me the parable
about the hungry man and the fish. And maybe some of you have heard this parable before. It
says that if you give a hungry man a fish you will feed him for a day. If you teach a hungry man
how to fish, you will feed him for a lifetime. Well the good Reverend, I think, took this to a while
new perspective when he said, "If you show the hungry man how to buy the pond that is filled
with fish, then he'll never worry about being hungry again." And get this, neither will his
children, or his grandchildren, or his great-grandchildren. My beloved, I think the work you are
doing is important because you're helping people own the pond. And this is so important
because as Booker T. Washington once said, "At the bottom of education, at the bottom of
politics, even at the bottom of religion, there must be economic independence." What you're
going to talk about this afternoon is so important because you're going to help people with
disabilities secure their economic independence in America. As you leave here, go back to
your work, go back to your homes, go back to your community and continue this great work. I
know from time to time you will face challenges, and when those challenges come, I hope you
will remember the spirit of our meeting today, and I hope you will remember to consult not your
fears but your hopes and your dreams. That you'll think not about your frustrations, but about
your unfulfilled potential and that you won't worry about those things that you have tried and
failed in, but consider only what is still possible for you to do. Thank you so much for allowing
me to be here with you today.
[ Applause ]
>> I want to ask for Alex and Ari. Ari, you're there? Okay. To come up on stage. And as I said,
to sort of put the perspective, ADA@25, these two individuals, they can tell you how old they
were in 1990 [laughter]. They I think were toddlers. They were born, I know that, but they were
very, very young. And we thought, what a -- what a great way to sort of last two commenter's
to reflect on both from a personal way about how the ADA has affected them, because they
are the ADA generation. They didn't live in a world pre-ADA. And where do they see it going.
This whole focus, Senator Harkin said it so well, that fourth goal, advancing economic selfsufficiency, well we really have just scratched the surface, that's got to be our focus for the
future. So I'm going to ask -- I know you're not -- either of you have microphones?
>> I have a microphone.
>> You have a microphone.
>> Then you're first.
>> Then you're first [laughter], how about that. We'll call on Alex first. I do want to say that Alex
has -- currently is with the Taproot Foundation, where they have the wonderful opportunity to
pair up for profit companies and expertise with not for profits in all kinds of areas, from
fundraising to technology support, management consulting, marketing, and a great job. And
they have multiple offices, New York City, Washington D.C., San Francisco. I know you hate -probably every time I talk about it, but we first met when you were the reigning Ms. Wheelchair
America, National Disability Institute did -- had a partnership that went multiple years, and
today you are the vice chair of the NDI Board of Directors. So with that, let me turn it over to
you.
>> Thank you so much, Michael. What a day. This has been quite an inspiring and visionary
day, and those are two words to describe NDI and Michael Morris, and so thank you so much
for having me here, having us all hear for this day.
[ Applause ]
Part of what I've been thinking about throughout today is something that I think about pretty
much every day of my life, which is, damn, how lucky I am. I think that might be sort of
surprising to you all, seeing me here. I've experienced muscle weakness due to Muscular
Dystrophy for most of my life. I started using a wheelchair when I was 19. But I am incredibly
lucky and that's because I'm financially stable. I have a great job, as Michael mentioned. I'm
married. I pay my bills on time. And while I'm certainly not the only person with a disability in
this situation, as you heard with the many statistics today, the deck was certainly stacked
against me. So part of what I want to share today is what it took to get me to this point of
financial stability. And the way that I see we can all work together to get other people with
disabilities to this place as well. So there are two main points about what it took to get me here,
and I'll give you a spoiler alert, I had nothing to do with either of them. First and foremost, to
put it bluntly, my parents are very wealthy. I am lucky because I won the lottery in terms of my
parents. They're graduate school educated, they're smart, they're white, and they knew it was
important to make good financial decisions for me. They ensured that I went to the best
schools. They ensured that I had the best care, that I understood implications of making good,
sound financial decisions. They were there with me when they opened my first bank account,
my first savings account, and they've ensured that I've paid taxes and had a job since I've
been 16. Now, I'm incredibly grateful for all of that they've done for me, particularly financially,
but they couldn't have done it without the Americans with Disabilities Act. I was three years old
when the act was passed, and while we didn't know I would need it then, boy has the world
changed, and boy am I grateful to the fact that it exists. I know that that's part of the reason
many people in this room today have made that come to fruition. The act's not only set higher
expectations personally, and also financially, for me, but for the millions of others with
disabilities, and we've heard a lot about that today. I could not have gotten into that bank to
open that first checking account with the Americans with Disabilities Act. In many ways I'm a
success story for ADA@25. I think if Justin Dart were alive he would say, as we saw that quote,
"I have the good life." I have a great job, I have great relationships, I'm integrated in the
economic mainstream, I'm integrated in the social mainstream, I love my life. But still I face
financial strain and stress. I've had ever advantage in many ways, but to share and give a little
sense of how I could be also experiencing this financial strain, I want to give a breakdown of
some of the costs that are associated to my having a disability. Per year I spend about $5000
on at home care. I spend about $6000 on wheelchair repairs and maintenance. To live in New
York City, in an accessible apartment, I spend about $2000 more than I would otherwise, per
month, so that's about $24,000. I spend about $2000 on physical therapy. So all told, because
I have a disability, I have additional costs of about $37,000, $37,000. That's near the median
income in the U.S. for a household. So thank goodness I've had every advantage. My husband
and I make about $150,000 a year. With the additional cost due to my disability, it's hard to
meet our expenses, so I'm incredibly grateful and reliant on my parents for setting up a special
needs trust for me. I don't think that's good enough. I'm sorry, I don't think that because I have
a great job, have economic stability, but it's only due to my parents, that shouldn't be a
prerequisite for being financially stable for people with disabilities. And I haven't even included
some additional costs. I haven't included what every five years I need to spend about $60,000
on a new wheelchair. That I have private insurance and so that covers a lot of the cost that I
incur. And one of my most expensive costs, time. Time to set up access needs for a world that
is not meant to necessarily help me out. So I want you all to imagine for a minute what it would
like for you if you had an additional cost of $37,000. What would that look like for your day-today expenses, for your investments, your retirement, your financial futures? And it's worth
noting that my disability is on the cheaper side. I don't take expensive medicines. A lot of my
personal care costs are negligent because I have great friends and my husband who help me.
I say this all not to be in a place of frustration and I think, Kelvin, if he were here, would not
want me to do that, but I say it to top into that unfulfilled potential that he was speaking of. This
is the opportunity that we have in front of us. This is a challenge that we have in front of us, but
it's the opportunity. And so what I want us to think about is all of the solutions that we've
described here today. This is where we're headed in terms of where we should be over the
next 25 years of the ADA. It shouldn't be a prerequisite to have wealthy parents in order to
succeed in this country, it absolutely should not. And so what will it take to make sure
[inaudible] is implemented in the way that it should be, to make sure the private and public
partnerships are happening so that people with disabilities have access to the capital that they
need for loans [inaudible] technology, etcetera. As you go back to your office today I want you,
or tomorrow, hopefully you're not going back today [laughter], I want you to think about me and
think about the challenges that I've described and the opportunities. And I want you to know
that truly my financial future is in your hands. I want you to also think about the millions of other
Americans with disabilities who have not had the leg up that I have had. I've had every
advantage and still I'm in this position. And I want you to know that they're ready to join the
economic mainstream, it's up to you all to implement the solutions here today to make that a
reality. So at the next anniversary of the ADA, and I mean next year, not 25 years from now,
we can make financial achievement for people with disabilities an attainable goal and not
something that's just a matter of luck. Thanks.
[ Applause ]
>> Our second commenter is Ari Ne'eman. For many of us who work in Washington D.C., I
think Ari is one of a family of quadruplets, because he's everywhere [laughter]. You see him on
Capitol Hill, you see him represented on the National Council on Disability as one of the
presidential appointees. You see him at the Department of Labor as a appointee on the
advisory committee for employment related to people with significant disabilities. I try to reach
him and he says he's in Australia, speaking, and then he's in Europe, speaking, then in
England. Ari Ne'eman represents the new generation in terms of the ADA. You can tell us how
old you were when the ADA was passed into law. But Ari is a self-advocate. He is a CEO. He
is a founder of a movement that is in its earliest stages of evolution. People with autism, the
Autistic Self-Advocacy Network, no one ever dreamed of any such thing back in 1990. I'm not
sure if people dreamed much about it 10 years later or 20 years later, either. It took his
persistence, I'm sure, as well, like Alex, an incredibly supportive family, but Ari Ne'eman is a
force to be reckoned with. Do no cross him [laughter]. He has the intellectual capacity and
verbal skill to wrap rings around all of us. Ari Ne'eman.
[ Applause ]
>> Knowing now that there are no expectations for these remarks whatsoever [laughter], let
me begin by expressing my sincere gratitude to Michael and the National Disability Institute,
not only for convening this great event, but for the opportunity to partner with NDI on any
number of key issues related to the economic advancement of people with disabilities over the
course of the last several years. This event puts me in mind of one of the great stories of July
26th, 1990. When President Bush -- when the first President Bush called together the disability
community for that famous signing ceremony, and people from all over the community,
members of Congress, leaders from across the country came together, there's a moment -there's a story that I absolutely love. Senator Ted Kennedy, may he rest in peace, leaned over
to talk to Pat Wright [assumed spelling], long-time disability rights advocate, and this was just
as President Bush was about to begin his remarks, and Senator Kennedy leans over and says,
"Ah, Pat, listen, I have a question for you." "What is it? What is it?" "What if he reads it before
he signs it?" [Laughter] And I've always loved that story because it illustrates that the Disability
Rights Movement has always been about pushing the boundaries of society's understanding of
disability. Most people involved in the passage of the ADA, most of the people who voted on it,
most of the people who worked on it, most of the people who advocated for it, could not have
envisioned how far we would come 25 years later. Would not have seen the promise of what
the ADA could bring about, of what could come out of the ADA. The Supreme Court's
Olmstead Decision, the focus on bringing people with disabilities out of institutions and into the
community. The opportunity to open up the American workforce. The promise of the ADA has
been extraordinary over the course of the last 25 years. But as we all know, because we are
here today, it is still not enough, because we are asking for nothing less than full equality of
opportunity. And as many illustrious speakers and I have mentioned today, we still have a long
way to go towards achieving that. People with disabilities are still significantly locked out of the
American workforce. We still have access to a state of affairs in which, if you are fortunate, if
you have access to a family with resources, or the ability to navigate a complex and
bureaucratic service provision system, you have one set of opportunities. And if you are in the
great majority of Americans with disabilities who experience poverty, who experience isolation,
who experience being locked out of the American dream, you have another very different set
of opportunities. And we need to ask ourselves, with all of the progress that we've made in
realizing part of the dream of the ADA, why haven't we seen the rest of that commitment, the
rest of that promise that America made to its disabled citizens 25 years ago realized in the way
we thought it would? One of the great challenges of the Disability Rights Movement has been
that we have always seen greater progress in our policy and our legal victories than we have
with our social and our cultural victories. There are any number of rights that people with
disabilities have today that are not recognized and understood by the general populace. When
we talk about the idea that people with disabilities have a right to live in the community rather
than in institutions, this is not something that the average American thinks about or has the
opportunity to be familiar with, or has heard of the Supreme Court's landmark Olmstead
Decision in 1999, emerging from the ADA. When we talk about the idea that people with
disabilities should have the right to be subject to the same labor laws, to not be paid as
hundreds of thousands with Americans with disabilities are today, less than minimum wage,
this is not an issue that is on the agenda of the vast majority of Americans. And unfortunately
there's a reason for that. If we go back a hundred years to the very beginning of the 20th
Century, and America's initial foray into the topic of disability policy, we see that in the early
20th Century, and some of the first discussions about disability, we saw a process of
segregation, of isolation. In 1927 the Supreme Court, in the landmark decision Buck v Bell,
infamous decision, Buck v Bell, ruled that Americans with disabilities could be subject to
involuntary sterilization as a result of the eugenics movement. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes
[assumed spelling] is infamously noted three generations of imbeciles is sufficient. And as a
result, tens of thousands of Americans were deprived of their bodily integrity. Today's efforts to
remove people from institutions and sheltered workshops are efforts to recover from the legacy
of the eugenics movement and the legacy of that segregation put on people with disabilities of
an earlier generation, long before we were ever born. Now I was, if memory serves, two,
maybe two and a half, on July 26th, 1990, and so, as you say, Michael, I have been
extraordinarily fortunate, extraordinarily fortunate to have always known that the Americans
with Disabilities Act covers me, and gives me access to certain basic rights and legal
protections. But I also, growing up, faced a great deal of isolation and segregation. As an
autistic student I was sent, instead of having the opportunity to go to my local neighborhood
high school, to a segregated special education school an hour and a half north of where I lived.
Where the school bragged about having a vocational program, instead of learning how to
pursue the careers we wanted, we were told that we would work in the kitchen as a means by
which the school would save money on having to hire kitchen staff for our cafeteria. I
remember being told, when I complained about this, that there were far worse places that they
could send me, and knowing that they were absolutely right. Knowing that even experiencing
that, there are countless people with disabilities who are in far worse settings and don't have
the opportunity as I did to advocate for my right to return to the general education classroom.
To advocate for the opportunity to pursue my dreams, to eventually go on to college, to
eventually start an organization and connect with other people like me, and work on civil and
human rights for autistic people and for all people with disabilities. But the existence of the
ADA, the existence of the knowledge that the law of the land said that these things were wrong,
even if that law was not fully realized, not fully implemented, gave me the strength, and gave
countless other people with disabilities of my generation the strength to do more, to fight for
more. To work towards greater inclusion and greater opportunity for our people. You know,
one of the flagship activities of the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network is we run a series of
leadership development programs for emerging leaders with disabilities throughout the country,
many of whom are college students, or young adults, and are being exposed for the first time
to an understanding of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act, the Developmental Disability Act, laws and programs that have impacted their
lives for throughout their years, but who are for the very first time having the opportunity to
have explained to them in a way that they will be able to impact and they will be able to change.
And I think the thing that gives me the most hope, the most excitement about the future, about
the next 25 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act, is that generation has higher
expectations still. They are not going to tolerate a world in which disabled people are
segregated in separate schools, in institutions, in sheltered workshops. Are subject to a
different set of labor laws. Are subject to a different set of protections. They are not going to
tolerate a Disability Rights Movement that does not recognize the full diversity of the disability
community, and how we connect and interrelate with others communities. And they are going
to be the generation that is going to be your partners, our partners, in opening up the
workforce and creating the opportunity that we all seek. Your presence here today, your work
with the National Disability Institute, and with countless other organizations dedicated to the full
civic, legal, and social inclusion, and economic inclusion, of people with disabilities will make
that dream a reality. Thank you so much for having me here. Thank you so much for
participating in this conference. And good luck with the work we have before us.
[ Applause ]
>> Hard to -- what a dynamic duo, actually. I think we should -- just interesting.
[ Applause ]
What perspectives. I wish I could remember when I was two and a half [laughter] or three. I
had a little red wagon, but you don't want to hear about it. Just a few closing comments. I think
back to what seemed like yesterday, but we've been here all day, what a day. I want you to
remember this day. I want you to remember this day because you chose to be a part of the
conversation. You chose to stay to the end, to not only listen to all kinds of famous people, but
also to stay here and give your own ideas, your thoughts, your view of how do we create that
path to a better economic future. I want you to remember the people at your table. I want you
to remember the people across the room. I want you to remember the enthusiasm, the passion,
the declaration of intentions, and commitment. I want you to remember the sense of
empowerment. I want to leave you with, as Tom Harkin said, may be the most gifted writer of a
generation of people with disabilities. Bob Williams and I first started working in the halls of
Congress back in the early 1980s together for the same senator. Bob would ricochet -- oh, you
were a terror. You would ricochet down the halls, people would run, because they were sure
you had no control of your motorized chair [laughter], and they were right. You always flung in
front of us your green board, prior to the use of technology, and made us sit and listen to you,
one point at a time, at one letter, crafting words together. But as Senator Harkin said, and I
know, you are a gifted poet and a gifted writer. And in your book, the 25@25, I'm going to have
to go closer to the screen to read this. I can't tell [inaudible] you can see it here. This is what
Bob Williams said [inaudible]. "The ADA stands for the proposition that the American dream
must be accessible to all, and within the reach of those who seek it, and are willing to work
[inaudible] hard to achieve their slice of it. It equips us with the opportunity, tools and
obligations to make good on this principle, the rest is up to us." Thank you, Bob.
[ Applause ]
I leave you with those words, but first just a last round of appreciation to all of you in this room,
but most importantly the incredibly passionate and creative staff of National Disability Institute.
There once was just three of us, Michael Morris, Johnette Hartnett -- where are you Johnette?
Johnette. And Sharon Brent. Sharon has retired and gone back to live with her family, and her
son with significant disabilities in California. I'm not going to tell you how many people we have
now, but it's many more. And we are on the ground, toiling every day in extraordinary
partnerships with all kinds of community players in I believe 35 states right now. We began
with the asset development, we changed the language, as others did, to financial capability,
financial inclusion, doesn't matter the words. It is, as Senator Harkin said, it's about advancing
economic self-sufficiency and all its various components. This staff, and I want them to stand,
are extraordinary. Many people don't realize, we have many staff with visible and invisible
disabilities. We have staff that were raised by parents with disabilities. We have staff whose
siblings, whose sons and daughters have disabilities. We are our own melting pot of interests
and passion because of family experience, again, as Alex shared about her family and I know
from talking with Ari about how significant his family was in his life. But can I ask the NDI staff
to -- that are here, still in the room, to just stand and let's express a round of applause for them.
[ Applause ]
I want to express a last thank you -- I hope not the last ever, but a last thank you today for the
wonderful people from JPMorgan Chase that made this possible.
[ Applause ]
I told Rodney -- I think Rodney had to leave, but I told Rodney, this will be the event, that's a
capital T-H-E. People will be talking about this event the rest of the week and on into the
weekend, the anniversary date, and next week, where there are still more celebration events.
And they'll be talking about this event next year and the year after because this is not just
celebration, this is about a declaration of intentions around economic equality and economic
inclusion. Thank you for being with us and have a great trip home. We will look forward to
working with you in the future. Take care.
[ Applause ]