Policy Corner: October 6, 2023
Categories: Policy Corner Archives
President Signs CR to Continue Government: House Speaker Vacated
Last Saturday night, President Joe Biden signed the Continuing Appropriations Act, 2024 and Other Extensions Act, H.R. 5860, to keep federal government funded through Nov. 17, giving Congress additional time to work on spending bills for fiscal year (FY) 2024. The continuing resolution (CR) funds government starting Oct. 1, the beginning of the new fiscal year, at the same level as the previous fiscal year that ended Sept. 30. Congress passed the measure that afternoon to avoid a government shutdown and to ensure that military service members are paid; no federal workers will be furloughed; food assistance programs will continue uninterrupted; national parks will remain open, and that travel will not be impacted. The House passed the CR by a vote of 335-91 with only one democrat voting in opposition along with the 91 Republicans. The CR sailed through the Senate by a vote of 89-9.
The bill also included $16 billion for disaster relief for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help with recovery efforts in Maui and Louisiana due to wildfires, and in Vermont and New York due to flooding. The bill also extended other programs set to expire September 30, including the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), community health centers, and Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital (DSH) Payments. The CR did not include additional financial assistance for Ukraine.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, eight Republicans and 208 Democrats voted to vacate House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) from his office, leaving the House of Representatives without a Speaker of the House – the first time in history. The office is established Constitutionally and the Speaker is second in line after the Vice President upon an elected president’s death, resignation, removal from office, or incapacity. Rep. Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) was appointed as the acting speaker without much authority. The House has recessed until next week when, hopefully, the Republican conference can elect a new Speaker. In the meantime, without a Speaker, House business is not being conducted, including committees and deliberations on the FY 2024 appropriation bills, which will need to be passed and agreed to by the Senate and President by Nov. 17 to avoid a government shut down.
Senate Swears in New California Senator
Vice President Kamala Harris swore in Laphonza Butler as the newest member of the Senate on Tuesday, replacing California Senator Dianne Feinstein who died last week. California Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Butler, a democrat, who was the head of Emily’s List, a national organization that raises money for women candidates who support abortion rights. Senator Butler was born in Magnolia, Miss., May 11, 1979, and graduated with a B.A. in political science from Jackson State University in 2001. She was previously a union organizer and served on the University of California Board of Regents from 2018-2021.
Senator Butler will serve in an interim role until a senator is chosen through a special primary to fill out the duration of Feinstein’s term, which is up on Jan. 3, 2025. A date has not yet been announced for the special primary. Reps. Barbara Lee, Katie Porter and Adam B. Schiff are running in the regular March 5 primary for a full six-year term, along with fellow Democrat Lexi Reese, a retired Google executive, and several Republicans.
On Thursday, the Senate closed the floor on so that members could attend Sen. Feinstein’s memorial service in California. At the age of 90, she served three decades as a senator, making her the longest-serving female senator in American history. Prior to being elected as senator, Feinstein served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, was board president and became acting mayor in November 1978, when a supervisor assassinated Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk at City Hall.
Senator Casey to Introduce the HCBS Relief Act
Senator Bob Casey, Jr. (D-Pa.) has announced that he is introducing the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Relief Act of 2023 or the HCBS Relief Act of 2023 to address the need for additional Medicaid HCBS funding to states for two years to stabilize their HCBS service delivery networks, recruit and retain HCBS direct care workers, and meet the long-term service and support needs of people eligible for Medicaid home and community-based services. States would receive a 10-point increase in the federal match (FMAP) for Medicaid, which could be used to increase direct care worker pay, provide benefits such as paid family leave or sick leave, and pay for transportation expenses to and from the homes of those being served. The additional funds also can be used to support family caregivers, pay for recruitment and training of additional direct care workers, and pay for technology to facilitate services. The funds can help decrease or eliminate the waiting lists for HCBS in the states. The HCBS Relief Act of 2023 will be introduced during the fourth week of October. A House companion bill is expected to also be introduced.
The Brain Injury Association of America (BIAA) joins other national organization in supporting this legislation in recognition that many people with brain injury, as well as older Americans, need help with daily activities, such as eating, dressing, traveling to work or school, and managing finances to support their everyday needs and desire that the services be provided in their own home. States offer HCBS services for people with brain injury in separate Medicaid brain injury HCBS waiver programs; other waiver programs for individuals with disabilities that include people with brain injury; and/or through other options authorized under their Medicaid State Plan.
Lawmakers Introduce Bills for National Resource Centers for Expressive Communication Disabilities
Last Friday, Senator Bob Casey, Jr. (D-Pa.), along with Senators Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), John Fetterman (D-Pa.), and Ed Markey (D-Mass.), introduced S. 2904 to support national training, technical assistance, and resource centers, to ensure that all individuals with significant expressive communication disabilities have access to the augmentative and alternative communication options necessary to interact with others, in order to learn, work, socialize, and take advantage of all aspects of life in the United States. The purpose of the Augmentative and Alternative Communication Centers of Excellence and National Technical Assistance Act or the AACCENT Act is to work toward eliminating the continued discrimination, isolation, marginalization, and denial of equal opportunity of individuals with significant expressive communication disabilities to improve access to a full range of augmentative and alternative communication; access to equal opportunity; awareness and implementation of relevant laws, policies, and practices; leadership and self-advocacy skills; and national statistical data.
The legislation authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award three grants in geographically diverse locations through an open competition to eligible entities to create, maintain, and administer a network of National Resource Centers on Augmentative and Alternative Communication. One of the centers shall be designated as the lead administrative center. The resource centers shall collaborate with national organizations; federal agencies; state assistive technology programs; state educational entities; and other professional organizations. Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) has introduced similar legislation, H.R. 5705. Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-Calif.) is a co-sponsor.
SCOTUS Considers “Tester’s” Rights to Sue Hotels on ADA Compliance
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) heard opening arguments Wednesday in a dispute on whether a self-appointed “tester” of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has the right – known as standing — to sue hotels over alleged violations of its provisions regarding accessibility. Deborah Laufer, a disability rights advocate, has sued hotels that she has no intention of staying at, alleging they are not in compliance with ADA rules requiring hotels to disclose information about how accessible they are to individuals with disabilities. She filed suit under the Justice Department’s regulation 28 CFR § 36.302, which requires hotels to provide enough information to an individual during the reservation process to determine whether the hotel meets that person’s accessibility needs.
The justices accepted the case earlier this year to consider whether Laufer has standing to bring lawsuits like the one she filed. (In October 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held Laufer did have standing to sue.) Laufer who uses a wheelchair said in her 2020 lawsuit that the hotel’s website did not identify accessible rooms and did not provide other relevant information. The hotel’s lawyers argued that she had failed to show that she suffered an injury, a requirement necessary to establish standing. However, since the filing of the case, the case has been dismissed by the plaintiff and the defendant’s website is now in ADA compliance. The Assistant to the U.S. Solicitor General Erica Rossi argued that the justices should not decide the standing issue in this case, but instead leave it open for further discussion in future cases.
NIDILRR Seeks Input on Its Long-Range Rehabilitation Research Plan
The Administration for Community Living’s National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR) seeks stakeholder feedback on its draft Long-Range Plan for Fiscal Years 2024 – 2028. Mandated by Congress to develop a Long-Range Plan every five years, NIDILRR’s Long-Range Plan provides a five-year agenda that seeks to advance the vital work being done in applied disability, independent living, and rehabilitation research and development. NIDILRR aims at improving outcomes among people with disabilities in one or more of the three interrelated life domains of (1) community living and participation, (2) health and function, and (3) employment. NIDILRR categorizes its grants into the following nonexclusive target populations: developmental, cognitive, sensory, psychiatric, and physical disability.
NIDILRR will continue to invest in three areas that support outcomes across these domains: technology for access and function; disability statistics; and a nationwide network of technical assistance, training, and research centers to support ongoing implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Across multiple decades, NIDILRR’s Model Systems grantees have been creating and maintaining invaluable longitudinal datasets that describe the characteristics and life trajectories of people who have experienced spinal cord injury (SCI), traumatic brain injury (TBI), or burn injury. These publicly available datasets are the largest longitudinal datasets in the world that focus on their respective populations and have been used to generate hundreds of publications that provide information for people living with traumatic injuries, their families, and the clinicians and others who provide them with services and supports. NIDILRR and its grantees will promote the public’s access to and use of these rich data sources.
The plan proposes a new national health goal focused on TBI recovery, which reflects the Healthy People 2030 objective to “increase the percentage of adults who can resume more than half of their preinjury activities 5 years after receiving acute inpatient rehabilitation for TBI.” The NIDILRR-funded TBI Model Systems database is the approved data source for monitoring progress toward the goal.
NIDILRR held a series of six virtual listening sessions from August through October 2022 and received written comments via email inbox from August through November 2022. At this stage, NIDILRR requests that comments focus solely on general showstopper feedback, such as providing overarching recommendations or noting any significant inaccuracies in the document. To download NIDILRR’s draft 2024-2028 Long-Range and for additional information, please visit the following web page: https://neweditions.net/nidilrr-draft-2024-2028-long-range-plan. Comments are due before October 13, 2023, and should be sent to NIDILRRFuture@neweditions.net for consideration.