Hello, everyone,
I hope this finds you well. I want to address recent comments in the media about people with disabilities, as well as explain a little about recent directives from the White House and Center funding.
First and most importantly, our hearts go out to the families and friends who lost loved ones in the tragic plane crash in Washington D.C. Any time a disaster like this occurs it’s natural for people to want answers and assign blame. That said, CDCI strongly pushes back on any narrative that implies people with disabilities were responsible for this tragedy.
People with disabilities are held to the same standards as people without disabilities and are required to meet the same qualifications to perform the job. This is true for the FAA and all other federal agencies. People with disabilities are valuable employees in every branch of government, and the private sector. People with disabilities contribute to the wide array of human experience and beauty.
Second, the White House recently ordered a freeze on federal funding. This order was cancelled; however, some groups cannot access federal funds and there is a lot of confusion.
I want you to know that CDCI applies for and receives federal funding. Federal funding makes up 13% of our total budget. Most of those funds come from the Administration on Community Living (ACL) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The U.S. Congress allocates our specific amount of funding each year.
The federal funds are authorized by Public Law 106–402: the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (many shorten that to simply say “the DD Act”). This law is the latest version of legislation dating back to the 1960s. In the law each state is supposed to have a University Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities Education, Research, and Service. Every 5 years we create a work plan and apply to ACL to serve as that Center in Vermont. By accepting these funds, we agree to complete our work plan and uphold the DD Act. And at CDCI, these funds are used, in part, for administration, human resources, financial management, and communications work.
We do not yet know what the change in administration means for our Center work plan or the work of our projects. We have not heard about any changes for our work from ACL or other funders. As such we will continue our work plan as approved. That plan focuses on improving the lives of people with disabilities so everyone in our country can enjoy the same rights and quality of life.
If you have questions about our Center or project funding, please reach out to either me or Assistant Director Rachel Cronin. We are happy to talk with you.
If you have broader concerns or questions, you can contact your Vermont legislators. Their job is to listen to citizens in Vermont and to know what you want them to do.
In Vermont, our members of Congress are:
- Rebecca Balint, U.S. House of Representatives. Phone: 802-652-2450
- Peter Welch, U.S. Senate. Phone: 802-863-2525
- Bernie Sanders, U.S. Senate. Phone: 802-862-0697
Please know we are actively engaged with people at the university, our federal funders, and with our partners to learn more. We will let you know if and when we learn about anything that affects our work.
Thank you for your interest and support for our work, and I wish you all my best,
Jesse C Suter, Executive Director
