Governor Perdue Reaffirms Call for Tax Cut on Retirement Income

ATLANTA – Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that his 2007 legislative package will include eliminating state income tax on retirement income, a promise he made to Georgians while on the campaign trail this fall.

“I’m proud of the fact that we ran on a platform limited to promises that we could keep and that would have a positive impact on our economy for the future,” Governor Perdue said to attendees at today’s annual state Economic Outlook Luncheon. “We will keep our promise to eliminate taxes on senior citizens. This will prove to be a positive factor in Georgia’s long-term vitality.”

The tax cut will completely eliminate state income tax on retirement income, such as pensions or certain interest income, for Georgians 65 and older. This $142 million a year in tax relief will add to the more than $2 billion in tax relief that Governor Perdue has delivered since taking office in 2003.

Because of Governor Perdue’s tax relief, Georgia taxpayers currently have one of the lowest state tax burdens in the nation. Based on 2005 data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau, Georgia has the 9th lowest per capita tax burden of any state in the nation – an improvement from 13th when Governor Perdue took office. This positive business environment has resulted in Georgia having one of the best economic outlooks in the nation.

For Immediate Release Contact: Office of Communications
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Sonny Perdue
GOVERNOR

Changing hearts, one at a time

Gracie Bonds Staples has written a number of wonderful articles in the AJC about disability issues. This article about Cynthia Patterson is a nice story about one of the career specialists at Briggs and Associates...

Associates, she helps others with disabilities find employment. In her spare time, she speaks to youth groups at churches and schools, encouraging them to embrace who they are, to treat others as they want to be treated.

She finds teaching moments — small opportunities to change the way those around her think about people with disabilities.

It happens when children gossip loudly to their parents that she has no hands; at fast-food drive-throughs or in line at the grocery store. She explains she was born that way, instructs that she can handle her own loose change from store clerks and invites onlookers to touch the place where her hands should be.

Senator proposes scholarships for disabled students

By JEREMY REDMON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 12/12/06

ATHENS — A Republican state lawmaker filed legislation Monday that would grant scholarships for disabled children to attend public or private schools of their choice.

"I want the state to give scholarships to any disabled student, whose parents are dissatisfied with their assigned public school, the ability to attend the public or private school that best fits their needs," Senate President Pro Tempore Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) said in a prepared statement.

Modeled on Florida's McKay Scholarship for Students with Disabilities Program, the scholarships would be equal to the cost for children to attend their assigned public schools or the private schools they want to attend, whichever is less. To qualify, students must have an Individualized Education Program.

Florida's scholarship program helped 17,300 students attend private school there during the 2005-2006 school year, according to a Florida Department of Education Web site. And the average scholarship was $6,927 for that year, with 751 private schools participating in the program.

"In a recent study of Florida's scholarship program," Johnson said, "findings show that parents are pleased, class sizes are smaller, the children are victimized less and there are fewer behavior problems."

Go to our legislative section to see the full text of this bill.

Study Finds Barriers in Rural Healthcare for People with Disabilities

A study has emerged highlighting the obstacles people with disabilities who live in rural areas face when searching for primary care physicians. Researchers interviewed residents with varying disabilities in rural Massachusetts and Virginia. They found that, in addition to the challenges already present with healthcare in rural America, people with disabilities face further obstacles. These include difficulties in finding doctors who understood the unique needs of people with disabilities and the necessity to travel large distances to get to medical centers.

Lisa I. Iezzoni, Mary B. Killeen, & Bonnie L. O'Day, Rural Residents with Disabilities Confront Substantial Barriers to Obtaining Primary Care. Health Services Research, August 2006, pp. 1258-1275.

For free abstract or full text purchase: Click Here.

Request for Comments on the Proposed Comprehensive Plan for IDEA Part D National Activities

Source: Federal Register - November 27, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 227) The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services invites comments and recommendations from the public prior to finalizing the comprehensive plan for national activities authorized under subparts 2 and 3, part D of IDEA (Comprehensive Plan or Plan). DATES: Comments must be received on or before January 11, 2007.

For complete information go to the Federal Register.

Governor Perdue Announces November Revenue Figures

ATLANTA – Governor Sonny Perdue announced today that net revenue collections for the month of November 2006 (FY07) totaled $1,278,047,000 compared to $1,208,629,000 for November 2005 (FY06), an increase of $69,418,000 or 5.7 percent. The percentage increase year-to-date for FY07 compared to FY06 is 5.6 percent.

Senate Republicans launch website for public comments

The Walker County Messenger reported today about a new website developed by Senate republicans to make it easier for the public to suggest ideas...

Republican leaders in the state Senate announced a new initiative called “Georgia Speaks” — a program and Web site that lets citizens present their ideas for new legislation. Majority Leader Tommie Williams (R-Lyons) and Senate President Pro Tempore Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) made the announcement during a press conference at the State Capitol on Monday.

“We are looking to give our constituents more input into the legislative process,” Williams said. “We are looking for ideas that will adhere to Georgia’s conservative principals.”

Some of the criteria the Senators will use when deciding whether to consider the potential legislation will include:

Will it reduce the size of government?
Will it strengthen our traditional family structure?
Will it reduce the tax burden for our citizens?
Will it increase personal responsibility?

“We want to see more Georgians get involved in the political process and share their ideas with us,” Williams said. “We are here to serve them and we hope they will use GeorgiaSpeaks as another way to communicate with us.”

Ethics and Intellectual Disabilities

The Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown was created with the support of the Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. Foundation. The Institute has worked for decades on Bioethics issues and has a strong interest in bioethics and people with intellectual disabilities. They have recently devoted a section of their website to such issues, including a periodic newsletter on Ethics and Intellectual Disabilities.

THE 2007 DISABILITY POLICY SEMINAR

SAVE THE DATE: MARCH 4 - 6

New Congress, New Opportunities, the theme for the 2007 Disability Policy Seminar, is a practical vision of the many new public policy opportunities for the millions of people with disabilities and their families nationwide once the 110th Congress commences. Everything from health care and family supports to civil rights and education could be on the table, and the disability community needs to be ready to press for a progressive disability policy agenda.

Democrats control the new Congress with only a slim majority, which will require working both sides of the aisle to achieve legislative successes. Bipartisanship, historically for the disability community, is a key ingredient to our successes on Capitol Hill. Together, The Arc of the United States, United Cerebral Palsy (UCP), Association of University Centers on Disability (AUCD), AAMR/AAIDD and National Association of Councils on Developmental Disabilities (NACDD) will look to our extensive grassroots networks to advocate in a bipartisan manner for national public policies promoting the full inclusion of people with disabilities in our society.

On Sunday, March 4, at 9:30 a.m., participants will begin their two-days of in-depth, intense public policy discussions/presentations that end on March
5 at 6:00 p.m. And, on March 6, we will take our unified message to Capitol Hill.

What will we be talking about at the Seminar and lobbying on Capitol Hill?
We expect the following public policy issues will take center stage:

Developmental Disabilities Act
Family Support
Americans with Disabilities Act
Long-term Services and Supports
Education
Employment
Health
Housing
Budget and Appropriations
Social Security
Capitol Hill staff and our nation's leading public policy experts, disability advocates and association leaders will be on hand to address these and other issues.

SEMINAR & HOTEL REGISTRATION
OPENS ON NOVEMBER 30
COMING SOON - REGISTRATION DETAILS AND DEADLINES

November 2006 Partners in Policymaking Updates

I hope you all had a relaxing Thanksgiving with family last weekend and are looking forward to the holiday season.

By now, you all should have received a phone call from two Partners alums, Susan Farner or Vickie Martin, to update your information and to ask you a few questions about your Partners training and your leadership development needs for the future. Thank you for taking their calls and sharing your advocacy experiences with them. The information you gave them has been put into the Partners database and is extremely valuable as we plan and assess the needs of Partner graduates and their level of advocacy after graduation.

In the surveys we have administered to graduates in the past year, education is one of the top priorities and areas of advocacy of Partners alumni. In response to that, we will be including more information on how to get involved in state level advocacy on education.
There will be stakeholder meetings around the state to get input on state regulations on special education. These meetings will be held during the months of December and January. If you attend, please send me an email and let me know what the experience was like. We will post it in a future blog.

To access the state regulations and dates, look for state rules on the DOE website.

Partner alumni are continuing to bring families out for Unlock’s “Conversations that Matter” with Dr. Steve Hall, director of the Office of DD. Attendance at each event has been excellent. Our next event is December 5 in Roswell from 6:30pm -8:30pm at the Teaching Museum. Contact Jennifer Carroll for more details or to volunteer.

Other dates include:
Macon on January 23 contact: Nalini Isaac
Savannah – February 20 contact: Mary Poncy
The Albany event is being rescheduled for February. contact Rosalyn Horne

Partners Postings:
Don Pollard is looking for interested athletes for power wheelchair soccer in the Conyers area.
Dot Jones is looking to start a networking/social group for all graduates in Athens and surrounding counties. Email rita@aadd.org if you want to contact Dot.

The January session at the Capitol is just around the corner!
Upcoming Advocacy Dates:
February 7th- Advocates Legislative Day at the Capitol. This is a new first time event for disability advocates. Contact Sarah Pike for details and to RSVP.
February 22nd – Disability Day at the Capitol. It is strongly suggested that you register early this year!