People with disabilities face unique challenges in their everyday lives that many of us take for granted. I want to do everything I can to help New Yorkers who are living with disabilities triumph over the challenges they face and ensure they’re treated with the respect they deserve.

On May 29, this year’s Legislative Disabilities Awareness Day, my Assembly colleagues and I passed a package of bills that strengthen the rights of New Yorkers with disabilities and ensure their access to critical resources. Among the measures passed was one I co-sponsored to help individuals with disabilities pursuing a higher education learn in a way that best suits them. The bill would require publishers of printed material for college students to provide them in electronic formats and make them available for purchase for students with disabilities at a price comparable to the printed version (A.7251).

To help people with disabilities and their families overcome financial burdens, we also passed a bill to increase the allowable maximum account balance for the New York Achieving a Better Life Experience (NY ABLE) Program to an amount equal to the federally authorized level for the 529 College Savings Program (A.7473). The NY ABLE Program allows New Yorkers with disabilities and their families to save money in tax-advantaged accounts without impacting their eligibility for federal benefit programs like Supplement Security Income (SSI) and Medicaid.

Further, the legislative package includes a measure to establish a small-business tax credit for the employment of people with disabilities (A.7475). This bill not only helps these individuals be financially independent, but also works to combat discrimination. The unemployment rate for people with disabilities is more than twice the rate of those without disabilities.^[1] Too often, these individuals are seen only for their disability and turned down for a job even if they have the proper qualifications.

To further help fight discrimination, we also passed a bill to allow state employees to sue if their rights are violated under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 and the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (A.1092). Additionally, I helped pass measures to re-establish the Office of Advocate for People with Disabilities (A.4737) and require public officers and bodies to provide interpreters or assistive listening devices for deaf or hard of hearing individuals at public hearings (A.3385-A). The legislation also includes a bill to ease the voting process for people with disabilities by requiring the state Board of Elections to post a copy of a sample ballot on its website prior to each election (A.163).

The legislative package also supports people with disabilities with necessary public assistance and health care provisions, including a bill to ensure access to complex rehabilitation technology (CRT) products, such as specialized wheelchairs, through Medicaid (A.7492). Another bill would require local social service districts, after considering certain factors, to give controlling weight to a recipient/applicant’s regular physician’s opinion when determining potential work limitations or exemptions due to a disability (A.4236).

Additionally, we passed several measures to allow New Yorkers with disabilities to live their lives independently, staying close to their families and in their own homes. To ensure individuals with disabilities are safe during emergencies, one bill would require counties with local emergency management plans to maintain a confidential and voluntary registry of people of all ages with disabilities who may require evacuation assistance and shelter during a disaster (A.3923). I also helped pass a bill that would create a tax credit for either new or retrofitted principal residences that are universally designed to be accessible and adaptable housing (A.2493).

New Yorkers with disabilities play an invaluable role in communities all across the state, and they deserve every opportunity to follow their dreams. While we’ve made progress, the push for equality is far from over, and I’ll continue fighting for the rights and respect of all New Yorkers.

As always, if you have any questions about this or any other community issue, my door is open. Contact my office at 315-452-1115 or StirpeA@nyassembly.gov.
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[1] www.bls.gov/news.release/disabl.nr0.htm