NYSILC



New York State Independent Living Council (NYSILC)September 14, 2018Troy Hilton Garden Inn, Sage Ballroom8:30 am to 3:30 pmAGENDA1. Call meeting to order - Doug Usiak, Chair. 9:10 amA. Roll call.B. Open forum.2. Review and approval of Full Council Meeting (FCM) minutes. 9:20 amA.Review and approval of updated draft minutes for the FCM of April 27, 2018.B.Review and approval of draft minutes for the FCM of June 15, 2018.3. Executive Director’s report – Brad Williams. 9:30 amA.Significant issues/major goals and deliverables (April-June 2018).Staff updates:Amy Wink, Program Coordinator and Jonathan Serrano, Administrative Assistant.B.NYSILC Committees.Refer to NYSILC Committee materials:. Discussion about: 1) Vice Chairs, 2) How to proceed with review of committee descriptions (purpose, membership, goals).4. Treasurer’s Report – Roger Benn. 9:50 amA.Quarterly Fiscal Report (April-June 2018).B.Finance Committee minutes (August 8, 2018).C.NYSILC 2019 Fiscal Year Budget (October 2018-September 2019).5. Executive Committee Report – Zach Garafalo, Vice Chair 10:10 amA.Executive Committee minutes (June 8, 2018, July 13, 2018, August 8, 2018)B.Action on Recruitment Committee /Executive Committee AppointmentRecommendations.COther advocacy issues/updates.NYSILC letter to Governor Cuomo requesting enactment of the small business tax credit A.1369 (Cusick) and S.3688 (Addabbo).6. Discussion/Issue Forum 10:30 amA.Presentation of NYSILC 2018 Statewide Needs Assessment Report:Refer to separately attached document prepared by Alan Krieger of Krieger Solutions, LLC. Presented by Brad Williams, Doug Usiak, Chair of NAC, and othermembers of the NAC.Break 10:50 amB.Presentation by DRNY: 11:00 amProtection and advocacy for beneficiaries with representative payee’s program, Ryan P. Williams, Esq. Staff Attorney and Forest Cotton, Analyst.Refer to separately attached Power Point presentation. C.Update about issue: 11:30 amOPWDD independent youth transition from school to world of work.Need to meet again/reach online consensus about goal(s) for council on issue. Pursue in 2019/20.8. Lunch 12:00 pm9. Committee & Subcommittee Reports 1:00 pm(Minutes have been provided for review. Reports should focus on new activities. activities. Questions can be related to the reports or minutes. Updates will be provided by committees that haven’t been recently active.)A. ACCES-VR SRC report – Lindsay Miller (March 7-8, 2018).B.ACCES-VR report – Ray Pierce, ACCES-VR.C.NYSCB SRC report – Cliff Perez.D. SPIL Committee – Doug Usiak and Laurel Kelley, Co-Chairs (June 7, 2018).E. Public Policy – Aaron Baier, ChairJuly 19, 2018 – Discuss of public policy issues.August 23, 2018 – Podcast taping on talking with elected officialsF. Youth Leadership – Zach Garafalo, Chair.G. Emergency Preparedness – Daniel Fuster, Chair.H. Development, Brad Williams, Acting Chair – Brad Williams (June 26, 2018,July 24, 2018).I. Database Workgroup – Roger Benn, Chair (August 8, 2018).J. Recruitment – Lindsay Miller, Chair (August 6, 2018).Appointment recommendation made to the Executive Committee.K. Monitoring & Evaluation – Chad Eldred, Chair (June 12, 2018).1. NYSILC Quarterly Contract Report (April-June 2018) – (Refer to separately attached SILC Monitoring Document).2. SSAN Annual Report (April-June 2018) Quarterly Report - (Refer to separately attached SILC Monitoring Document).3. TRI demonstration project serving veterans with disabilities (April-June 2018) – (Refer to separately attached SILC Monitoring Document).10. Adjourn. 3:30 pm2. Review and approval of Full Council Meeting (FCM) minutesUpdatedFull Council MeetingApril 27, 2018 Troy Hilton Garden Inn, Sage Ballroom8:30 AM to 4:00 PMMembers Present: Robert Meek, Esq., Crystal Rivera, Zach Garafalo, Henry Nixon, Joe Bravo, Lindsey Miller, Aileen Martin, John Zick, Daniel Fuster, Chad Eldred, Kathryn Carroll, Esq., Vernon Bonse, Edith Prentiss, Doug Usiak, Maria Samuels, Robin E. Jones, Lynn Drucker, Ann Scherff, Jan Lynch, Cliff Perez, Aaron Baier, Denise DiNoto, Marc Rosen, Ray Pierce (ACCES-VR), Rookmini Mangal (ACCES-VR), and Roger Benn (on phone) NYSILC Staff: Brad Williams, Amy Wink, Jon SerranoThe new member orientation was held from 8:30am-10:50am. The new members are: Kathryn (Katy) Carroll, Esq., Jan Lynch, Robin E. Jones, Maria Samuels, Chad Eldred, John Zick, Vernon Bonse, and Lynn Drucker. Brad Williams and members of the Executive Committee participated. A few of the council members sat in. Doug Usiak, as the new chair, called the meeting to order. He thanked Brad and his team at NYSILC for their hard work at the Hall of Fame, which took place the previous evening. All council members introduced themselves, along with the staff.During Open Forum, no one wished to speak. Brad Williams mentioned that council meeting members will be automatically booked into the hotel from now on, and people will cancel by exception to address the over-booking issue experienced last evening.Brad Williams introduced Michael Gilberg, Esq., an attorney from the Hudson Valley, as a guest speaker to talk about the work he does to address special education issues for students with disabilities in the Hudson Valley. As an individual with a disability, he spoke about how the education system impacted him. His comments included his views about the current failures of the system. Council members engaged Michael on several issues and fronts, challenging him several times. Break for LunchReview and Approval of Full Council Meeting Minutes: Aaron made a motion to approve the minutes, seconded by Bob Meek, 19 yes votes; four abstentions. Motion passed.Executive Director’s Report, Brad Williams: Brad gave an update regarding meeting with Chancellor Rosa et al on the issue of transitioning young adults and IL services. He mentioned the schedule for future 2018 Full Council Meetings will be June 15th, September 14th, and November 9th, all noted on the NYSILC website: . It was recommended that when we move to a video conferencing platform, the council should use Zoom instead of Skype. It is highly recommended and accessible. Brad mentioned the continued work to address the accessible transportation with the hotel. Edith talked about problems she had with the transportation service – the wrong vehicle came, and when the right one finally came, the driver couldn’t operate the ramp. Brad will have a post-event meeting with the hotel. Amy and Jon introduced themselves to the council and spoke about the work they have been doing. Amy worked mostly on the Hall of Fame. Jon provided online support for the event. Jon also worked on media projects and the LDCEP. Brad spoke about the NYSILC committee structure and where the greatest need was for members. Public Policy is shifting and changing its focus to support the LDCEP and deciding subject matter for future LDCEP podcasts. This might prompt some members to leave or join the committee. The Monitoring & Evaluation and Development Committees need members. Several committees need chairs: Monitoring & Evaluation, SPIL, Emergency Preparedness, and Consumer Satisfaction. Brad shared the feedback from the Monitoring & Evaluation Committee, recommending that committees should have Vice Chairs to address chair absences and succession. Brad will make sure that he adds the selection of a vice chair to future committee agendas. Daniel Fuster agreed to be chair of the Emergency Preparedness Committee. Treasurer’s Report, Roger Benn: Roger was not present at the time of the report, so Brad spoke in his stead. First item discussed was the 2017 audited financial statement. It was addressed in February 2018 as noted in the minutes. It was an unqualified audit, which is the desired result. This was the first year working with Ken Claflin from Cusack & Co. We emailed the statement to everyone earlier this year. Motion to accept the audit was made by Aaron and seconded by Joe Bravo. All in favor. In the review of the NYSILC quarterly fiscal report for October to December 2017, Brad mentioned that for this quarter, we had a net of $95 and explained how the quarterly monies are typically spent. He read the notes from the report. Aileen Martin motioned to accept the quarterly fiscal report. Seconded by Joe Bravo. All approved.Executive Committee Report, Zach Garafalo: Zach described current NYSILC office tasks including a personnel change, the creation of LDCEP’s first podcast, the public policy agenda/focus shift, the 704 Report, audit, modification of the new member orientation packet, and expiration of the NYSILC 5-year lease, which was renewed at the current location. The new SILC standards and indicators will not be addressed until sometime this summer. The council successfully concluded its HOF dinner, so priorities will shift toward outreach for the LDCEP.Brad then spoke about Omnibus federal funding increase and the continuing resolution process. This was signed by the President on March 23rd and is effective through the end of the fiscal year (9/30/18). Numerous human service programs received increases, including Independent Living, the recipient of a 12-million-dollar increase. Out of this increase, 10 million is targeted for the Part C funds, which will go directly to the federally funded centers. 2 million will go to increase the Part B funding for the whole country. This is the source of funds connected to the IL state plan. The funding is determined by a formula largely driven by population. New York is one of the top ten states to receive funds. It is a matter of finding out the exact amount of our increase from ACL.As a result, Brad presented a recommendation from the SPIL Committee related to action on the increase to the Part B funds. This recommendation was facilitated by Brad online in a ten-day period prior to the council meeting. Since it was acknowledged that it would be impossible to amend the current projects funded with Part B monies in a reasonable timeframe to expend the increase by the end of the current fiscal year, the SPIL Committee recommended that the council exercise SPIL section 1.3 (B) 4 on the use of unexpended funds. The committee recommends moving the unexpended Part B increase amount to the 2019 fiscal year and utilizing the monies for the SPIL priority of “scholarship funds.” Efforts will be made to inquire at a higher level at ACL about the exact amount of the Part B increase due to New York, and or an anticipated time frame for such a communication. When the exact amount of the Part B increase is known, a small work group will be convened to identify the opportunities for the “scholarship funds.” This will include the amount(s), the contract(s) optioned, and the outcomes and deliverables expected. Summary updates will be sent out when significant progress has been achieved. As state plan partners, NYSILC will first need to approve this action, followed by the Federal CIL Directors. As noted in section 1.3 (B) 4, so long as this procedure is followed, there will be no need for a public hearing or need to amend the SPIL.Questions were asked to seek clarification about the scholarship funding. Brad summarized the process again to communicate next steps. Zach Garafalo motioned to approve the SPIL Committee’s recommendation for general scholarship funding and Joe Bravo seconded. All approved.Brad mentioned we sent a letter of support to the Governor regarding the Pooled Trust Notification Bill; the governor signed the bill.Review and approval of NYSILC 2017 SPIL Evaluation Report, Alan Krieger: Alan is the council’s SPIL evaluator. He praised the formation of a Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) committee. Alan provided a review of the evaluation report, which represented the first year of the current 3-year state plan. There were 6 objectives with 4 or 5 different goals in the new SPIL; each objective has several performance targets. All objectives were at least substantially met. Alan recommended the objectives have a more measurable outcome. He believes goals should be visionary and long-term, whereas objectives should be action items with tangible, concrete results. He discussed intentions vs. outcomes, stating that writing the objectives must be more than an afterthought. The M&E committee can help create clear and measurable objectives with more detailed reporting of the results, as well as to monitor the process itself. We are not going to change the SPIL at this point but look forward to the formulation and development of the next plan.As an example, Alan noted the outcomes and goals for the systems change objective are largely activity oriented. We must ask ourselves what we want to accomplish and then review whether or not that has happened. Cliff mentioned that some intangibles are difficult to measure, and Alan responded that we can monitor intangibles by asking narrative questions related to one’s experiences and emotions etc. during conferences, meetings, etc. We can also change what outcomes they pursue (instead of action alerts, response to action alerts and impact, or the number of volunteer recruits they each have in their network - gained each quarter and total number).Alan mentioned the 3-year needs assessment process. We ask four questions related to Independent Living and the people served. Two questions are largely answered by existing data and the other two by collective survey results. We conduct a survey of center directors and consumers. We share preliminary results with NYSILC staff so that they can use it during the SPIL formulation hearings. The draft report should be completed in July and the final report ready by August. Alan discussed specifics related to the surveys and what to expect when they are distributed to the field in June. Aileen Martin motioned to accept Alan’s report, Lindsay Miller seconded, all approved.ACCES-VR SRC report, Lindsay Miller: SRC remains focused on WIOA solutions, waiting on final report. She noted that the peer integration project has lots of support to continue and extend the program.ACCES-VR report, Ray Pierce: ACCES-VR – Ray has been crunching numbers and looking at the data for the peer integration project. Core rehabilitation services will have new contracts in January 2019. Rookmini Mangal mentioned being excited about the peer project and explained they are advocating for funding by demonstrating what services are needed. Joe Bravo asked about IL operations contracts and Ray answered that the budget will remain mostly the same and will be a 5-year budget.NYSCB SRC report, Cliff Perez: There is no real update; the SRC is trying to expand access in general for people who are blind.SPIL Committee, Brad Williams: Next SPIL committee meeting is May 7th at 1pm. The SPIL formulation process will be starting very soon. Details will be forthcoming.Consumer Satisfaction, Brad Williams: This committee will convene in the summer of 2019.Public Policy, Aaron Baier: In December, we started the process to review an annual public policy agenda and we want to consider anything that helps to ensure it fulfills the mission of NYSILC and the SPIL. With the LDCEP, we are content-focused, currently in the form of podcasts. We have been recording live during teleconferences. Podcasts don’t add work, and it is easy to call in during the largely open-forum format.Youth Leadership, Zach Garafalo: Nothing new to report.Emergency Preparedness: N/A.Development, Brad Williams: Brad mentioned the council’s work with the Association Development Group (ADG) and noted what a huge impact they had to assist us with different aspects of the HOF event and awards dinner. In terms of the Development Committee, we will meet again in May to review the overall impact of the event and discuss what went well, what we can improve and how to prepare for future HOF awards/events.Database Workgroup, Roger Benn: In Roger’s absence, Brad mentioned that we are waiting for the budget amendment, which contains the justification and funding for the database project. It is delayed because of the Part B increase.Recruitment, Lindsay Miller: A Doodle will be sent out next week for the recruitment committee meeting. It will most likely be the third week of May. The committee will start the process for our new members needed for 2019.Monitoring & Evaluation, Brad Williams: The committee met on April 16th. Brad noted that NYAIL is moving forward with the SPIL-identified, issue-oriented community education campaign. The campaign is focused on protecting access to Medicaid-funded home and community-based services. ADG is working with NYAIL to pull together an action plan related to the issue. Brad also mentioned that in future committee meetings, an effort will be made to seek chairs for vacancies and vice chairs per the M&E recommendation.Motion to adjourn was made by Doug Usiak.Daniel Fuster mentioned he would like to speak to the issue of emergency preparedness, stating that we had several nor’easters in the Metro NY area this past winter. Wind damage occurred, and several thousand-people lost electricity for several days. Daniel contacted Westchester County, who maintained a steady hourly contact with the disabled/vulnerable community and got electricity back quickly. NYSARC will be holding an emergency preparedness plan webinar on May 15th. He also noted that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is investing more than a million dollars to update the subway system. Yonkers recently set up registry list for people with disabilities to connect with first responders.Edith Prentiss interrupted to speak about the last two issues raised by Daniel. Having expressed concern over registries in the past, Edith first focused on the MTA issue, stating that the list was a major bait-and-switch, and that those who made it were seeking public relations points.Doug Usiak, chair of the council, called an end to the discussion. There was already a motion to adjourn, which was made by Joe Bravo. Seconded by Cliff Perez.The chair ended the discussion because the side discussion was over a regional issue. Meeting adjourned.Full Council MeetingJune 15, 2018 Troy Hilton Garden Inn, Sage Ballroom8:30 AM to 2:00 PMMembers Present: Zach Garafalo, Lindsey Miller, Aileen Martin, Bob Meek, Carla Lewis-Irizarry, Daniel Fuster, Chad Eldred, Vernon Bonse, Edith Prentiss, Doug Usiak, Maria Samuels, Ann Scherff, Jan Lynch, Cliff Perez, Marc Rosen, Ray Pierce (ACCES-VR), Rookmini Mangal (ACCES-VR). NYSILC Staff: Brad Williams, Amy Wink, Jon SerranoAll council members introduced themselves, along with the staff. Doug Usiak, as chair, called the meeting to order. During open forum, Brad said Helen Fang would like to develop a workgroup about the professional career exams (civil service) and offered to help get information to those interested.Doug asked for a motion to discuss the minutes to the April 27th full council meeting. Edith made the motion. Marc seconded. Bob Meek noted he was left off the attendance of the minutes. Doug led a discussion that indicated the minutes should be edited to more appropriately summarize the meeting, particularly at the end of the minutes. Aileen agreed. Carla made a motion to table the minutes. Staff will revise them accordingly, then represent them at the next council meeting. Vernon seconded the motion. All agreed.Brad Williams gave the executive director’s report, noting that the capacity building “how to” manuals have been proceeding very well with a monthly distribution and posting schedule on the monitoring and evaluation web page. Lindsay mentioned the Open Doors project’s “welcome home” boxes. They’ve been filling with household items for those transitioning and said the “how to” emergency preparedness booklet created by the Plattsburgh center were placed inside the boxes as well. Brad noted the LDCEP topic talks were on budget and legislative issues.Staff reports: Amy talked about working on the needs assessment surveys for consumers and center directors. She mentioned a site visit she, Brad, and Jon did at the Marriott Courtyard in Schenectady and the Landing Hotel and described positive aspects of both hotels. She described accessibility and details of these properties compared to the Troy Hilton Garden Inn, as consideration for both board meetings and the Hall of Fame 2019 event. Staff also participated as exhibitors at Disability Legislative Awareness Day.Jon talked about covering media for anything NYSILC related. He is putting the finishing touches on the Hall of Fame video he created, making it more accessible before he moves into future projects. One upcoming project is the creation of videos for each of the Hall of Fame 8 inductees. He is also working on the LDCEP topic talks noted earlier.Brad reiterated that a final decision will need to be made about where we are going to have our 2019 council meetings and Hall of Fame event. He spoke about transportation and shuttle accessibility issues surrounding these meetings. Cliff opened a discussion about how often we should hold the Hall of Fame and how many people should be inducted. Brad indicated no more than five, which has been mentioned previously. The inaugural class was the only exception. Vernon talked about the importance of accessibility for all kinds of disabilities. Edith mentioned the importance of accessible shuttles and educating hotels and other businesses about the ADA.Brad said chairs are needed for three committees: Development, Monitoring and Evaluation, and Consumer Satisfaction. There is a need to work on committee descriptions, goals, and active participation. Doug talked about the responsibilities of council members to be involved in committees and proposed eliminating committees for which there are not enough people to lead or participate. He urged people to volunteer.Vice-chair, Aileen Martin, gave Roger Benn’s report: Finance Committee met May 3rd; revenue doing pretty well, and expenses are below budget. Spending needs to meet current patterns in order to stay in in line. Employee benefits were under-expended. Telephone under budget; travel over budget due to SILC Congress participants. We also have a savings account. Details are in the meeting packet.Executive Committee report – Zach Garafalo: The committee had two meetings reflected in minutes. In April, they talked about the new orientation manual and the Omnibus Federal funding and what it provides. In May, they reviewed the executive committee council member agreement form and made changes re: adequate directors and officers insurance. As of May, the majority of the Federal CIL Directors said yes to the NYSILC-approved plan for the increased Part B funds. They also discussed the HOF and the enhancement of an online application.Brad updated the council on the Part B increase. He explained that some of the Part B increase will be used to offset a deficit in funding. Rookmini said there is an upcoming meeting to talk about the budget amendment process, and she explained how the contract works. She confirmed the ACCES-VR did see itself as a partner with NYSILC, in particular to pursue the database. Brad expressed the need to discuss future resource plans for the SILC to reduce dependence on Part B funds. Brad and Doug fielded questions.Brad talked about DRNY and a new group challenging the NYS Board of Elections about the use of its $25 million in new HAVA funds. The state wants to improve cyber security (for what, the state has scanner technology), while advocates want improvements to voting access. Cliff mentioned possibilities for spending this money to improve machine access and poll workers training. Zach agreed with the importance of training. Anne related a story about counties where no machines were accessible and agreed with the importance of training. Maria spoke about the situation in Westchester County where accessible machines sit unused. They are spearheading an action and working with the Board of Elections to hold a mock-election in September. This discussion was continued among several board members.Brad opened a discussion about guest speakers and what the council should do when we disagree with them and their issues and or comments. It was proposed that we treat speakers as though they were our guests and take away whatever valuable information we can. Brad asked for suggestions for future speakers. Lindsay offered that we do not necessarily have to have a speaker “for the sake of it.” Only if it has value.Brad asked Ann to start a conversation about OPWDD and youth transition to adult life. Ann said schools are not knowledgeable about how to transition children to adult independent living programs – not workshops. She suggested ILCs be more involved in the transition process and also educate schools about IL supports. Aileen mentioned some small headway in unpopulated areas, which need to expand to other areas. Edith suggested pushing the idea of volunteerism, as well as employment. Zack spoke about a local success helping to transition a young adult with developmental disabilities. Carla spoke about focusing on the importance of educating people at the schools about disabilities.Ann made a motion and Edith seconded to establish an ad-hoc group to meet and suggest a plan of action for the council related to the issue. The group should keep the timing of the next state plan in mind. All in favor of approving committee. Ann, Aileen, Jan, Vernon, and Carla all volunteered to be on the committee.Valerie Brennan, Program Manager, gave a presentation about the statewide Olmstead Housing Subsidy program. Members asked various mittee Reports:ACCES-VR SRC report – Lindsay Miller: No report; their meeting is next week.ACCES-VR report – ACCES-VR (Ray Pierce): They have been very busy getting the notices out to the ILS re: getting the budgets together for the next 5-year contract cycle. They’ve seen good outcomes with the peer integration specialist program in Rochester, helping people with various employment. Looking to expand to more district offices. Rookmini also commented about ongoing project activities.NYSCB SRC report – Cliff Perez. Nothing to report, they meet next week.SPIL Committee – Brad Williams for Laurel Kelley, Chair: Met in May and June to plan for the formulation of the next state plan 2020-2022. The public hearing/input process will take place during July and August at five different CILs throughout the state. Brad has a call with Federal SIL directors next week. The needs assessment consumer and center director surveys are closing, and we’ll share preliminary results at the public hearings.Consumer Satisfaction – Brad Williams, Acting Chair: Nothing to report.Public Policy – Brad Williams for Aaron Baier, Chair: Next meeting is July 19th. The podcast will focus on how to talk with elected officials.Break for lunchYouth Leadership – Zach Garafalo, Chair: Zach left early, so no report.Emergency Preparedness – Daniel Fuster, Chair: First meeting was last week and consisted of introductions and general region reports and updates. Also, they discussed Westchester’s issues developing an emergency plan.Development - Brad Williams, Acting Chair: The committee can use more members, both council and non-council. We’ll be organizing into subgroups and we need help on the committee for next year’s HOF event. Doug asked if there was a need to discuss continuing the HOF on an annual basis. The group discussed pros/cons and decided to take it to the development committee for a decision.Database Workgroup – Brad Williams for Roger Benn, Chair: Based on the movement of the budget amendment, we should get in contact with a vendor and convene the work group to start progress on the database and project. Brad will start by contacting the vendor.Recruitment – Lindsay Miller, Chair: Met in May to finalize the solicitation for new members. There is one vacancy to fill, looking for someone representing NYC/downstate. By next meeting, we’ll have a proposal for who they recommend for addition to the council. Carla will be terming off after 6 years on the council (as an advocate).Monitoring & Evaluation – Brad Williams, Acting Chair: Met earlier this week and has a good committee with new members. They reviewed the M&E process and looked at quarterly reports related to the contracts per the SPIL objectives. The committee will look at the impact of at least one major advocacy outcome as an example to follow for its next meeting. The group also recommended to ACCES-VR that TRI modify its quarterly report for its demonstration project to comment on the progress of its active objectives. This would include updating the status each quarter when necessary. Doug asked if there were any further questions related to the quarterly reports. Hearing none, Aileen made a motion to adjourn. Consensus to adjourn.Meeting adjourned.3. Executive Director’s reportA.Significant issues/major goals and deliverables (April-June 2018)Key Bank Line of Credit (LOC) Renewed: Process to renew the council’s $125,000 LOC was renewed with Key Bank April-May 2018 for two years. The LOC assists us with cash flow between ACH contract payment delays.CBILCO How to Manuals: The NYSILC office will continue monthly Constant Contact distributions of selected Capacity Building Independent Living Center Opportunity (CBILCO) project “How to” manuals. They are then posted to the council’s Monitoring & Evaluation webpage: at Assembly Disability Awareness Day: The NYSILC office had an active vendor table at the event to promote council programs on May 30th, 2018 and networked with peers.Federal CIL Director conference call: On June 20th, 2018, discussed the SPIL formulation process, then shared the audio file with others post call.Major Goals/Deliverables for 2018NYSILC 2018 Work Priorities: Statewide Needs Assessment (NAC): Process completed by committee. Draft report completed by consultant, reviewed by members, and submitted to council at September meeting.Database Project: Commenced phase I of the statewide database project. Members of the Database Work Group met with Rocco Semeraro of ES11 August 3rd to review essentially elements of the system. Members were invited to an online communication board and will participate in discussions, or threads, to provide feedback about key elements.LDCEP: The LDCEP will continue to focus on podcasts, generating items for the calendar, action alerts, connecting to training and other opportunities for members.Development: Comments provided during committee report.SILC Standards & Indicators (S & I): Respectable progress made on draft S&I compliance manual. Work postponed due to competing priorities. Will address in future months.4. Treasurer’s ReportA.Quarterly Fiscal ReportNYSILC Statement of Revenue and ExpendituresSept 2018 FC Meeting????YTD2017-18ACCESApr-Jun 2018BudgetOct 17-Jun 2018$ Variance% VarianceBudgetBudgetREVENUEACCES VRFundraisingHOFTotalACCES Contract102,78700102,787325,457286,934-38,523433,942433,942Fee for Service00007500-7501,000Donations Unrestricted00002,8131,175-1,6383,750Fundraising Events004,1674,1673,75025,44421,6945,000Interest Income028028052520Misc. income05050550?Total Revenue102,787334,167106,987332,769313,610-19,159-6%443,692433,942EXPENSESSalaries and wages43,4850043,485131,175129,253-1,922174,900174,900Employee benefits/taxes9,670009,67036,72930,562-6,16748,97248,972Subtotal, Compensation Costs53,1560053,156167,904159,815-8,089-5%223,872223,872Rent5,176005,17624,00018,374-5,62632,00032,000Telephone1,356001,3569,7503,916-5,83413,00013,000Office supplies333301,0091,3723,9003,816-845,2005,200Contractual Services2,468-1,87605922,8284,2591,4313,7703,770Printing & postage48301,0821,5651,8754,8392,9642,5002,500Travel expenses2,5810532,6348,2509,6551,40511,00011,000Transportation 1,972001,9728,2506,191-2,05911,00011,000Insurance1,008001,0084,9503,036-1,9146,6006,600Dues/Subscription/Sponsorships150001502,4753,2207453,3003,300Interest/bank charges58-772165-548050250200Purchased services19,187079519,98261,27555,207-6,06881,70081,700SILC/SPIL meeting expenses14,806014,09528,90026,25034,6918,44135,00035,000Project Costs03,750500-3,2505,0005,000Miscellaneous5301,5271,58002,0302,03000Subtotal, OTPS49,631-2,61818,72765,740157,553150,234-7,318-5%210,070210,070Total Expenses102,787-2,61818,727118,896325,457310,049-15,407-5%433,942433,942Net Revenue-02,651-14,560-11,9107,3133,561-3,7529,7500Notes:The fiscal report has a new format, extending columns in the quarter for the ACCES-VR contract, fundraising, and the HOF event.For the April-June 2018 quarter, revenues to expenses were even for the ACCES-VR contract. Fundraising shows a profit, although this is not the time of year for donations, expenses previously allocated to fundraising have been reallocated to ACCES in this quarter. The HOF event generated modest revenue as a result of ticket sales and raffles. This was offset by the expenses for the event, creating a quarter HOF loss of -14,937. However, keep in mind the HOF net surplus of +16,894 from the previous quarter. To budget, our revenues and expenses were proportionate for the quarter. In addition, the ACCES-VR contract is under expended. The goal was to achieve a budget amendment for 2018 & 2019. We had to monitor spending for certain lines during the process. A decision was made to do a budget modification for 2018. A spend down plan will be pursued for the final quarter.4. Treasurer’s ReportB.Finance Committee minutesFinance CommitteeAugust 8, 20181:00 PMPresent: Brad Williams, Roger Benn, Aileen Martin, Aaron BaierThe group reviewed the fiscal report. Micki, the council’s bookkeeper, enhanced the report format by extending the columns within the quarter for our commitments (ACCES-VR, HOF, and fundraising). The rest of the form is as usual. Each commitment was at a different level of performance. Brad explained a need to shift some outreach costs that were conducted in the beginning of the year. They were reclassified to fundraising to keep the expenses down because of the expected budget amendment, which did not happen. So, this is a readjustment of the costs to their proper line items.Brad gave a summary of how things led to abandoning the budget amendment. It left the familiar path of the budget modification process. The budget modification is being considered for approval. We now must agree in concept to a spend down plan. Aileen asked if the report is reflective of the budget modification. Brad said “no,” noted that it was our internal fiscal report, pointed out the budget modification process and the ACCES-VR forms involved, and mentioned how he was going to seek approval for the spend down plan from the Finance Committee and the Executive Committee the following day.A question was raised about the current $5,600 underspent in rent. Is this available, or is rent a line item that can’t be used for anything else? Brad explained that rent is in the broader “general operating” grouping. So, any line item and any amount within this grouping can be moved around.Aileen inquired about the attempted 2018-2019 budget amendment. Brad noted some of the goals, which included the shift to a full-time community building staff person for the council’s programs and the statewide database. It just got caught up with other competing business for over a year. Aileen made a motion to accept the NYSILC quarterly fiscal report for April-June 2018. Aaron seconded. All approved.The next subject was the SEFCU statement for [date]. This statement does show activity because of the HOF. There is approximately $51,000 in the account and around $18,000 was withdrawn from the account to cover payables for the event. The group reviewed the draft NYSILC 2019 annual budget. Brad noted the various revenue sources. Amounts available to consult at the national level have been reduced. All other lines are pretty much the same. The ACCES-VR contract lines items were identified along with a projected amount for the HOF. Total amount: $451,000. Net: 8,700. Most of the net may end of being associated with the HOF event. Roger compared the 2019 budget with the 2018 number and inquired about raises. Brad commented that we are going into the third year of the current state plan. We will be able to address some of this in the spend down plan. Otherwise, it will have to wait until the resource plan for the next state plan. Aileen made a motion to accept the NYSILC 2019 annual budget. Aaron seconded. All approved.Brad went into the spend down plan based on the approved budget modification. He went over the process that he performs with the bookkeeper to ensure known bills and potential spend down items are addressed. Brad noted how we have very competent staff. He would like to do performance appraisals for them, bump their base pay, and then provide them with a one-time salary adjustment. Brad recounted leaner staffing periods. Aileen was supportive but asked how it gets divided up over a couple of cycles. He explained the work with the payroll company and just coordinating a one-time salary adjustment so its distributed over a couple of pay periods. Aileen noted at NRCIL their one-time salary adjustments are set. Overall, the group understood this variation.In general operating, we need to adjust around $4,000-5,000 for in state travel, along with some funds for remote captioning and interpreters. Brad noted that the total spenddown will be around $50,000. The council and its database committee completed its due diligence and identified the top vendor ES11. With their proposal, we know the best cost and cost per phases. We can do phase I of the database project and then do phase II in 2019. When the council works on the SILC resource plan for 2020-2022, we can look to include the rest of the project. Brad noted that we would obligate it with one of our singular contractual agreements. Finally, we have some room in purchase services because we ended a relationship with one of our vendors. ADG will be able to create a fundraising/event database for us. It keeps track of sponsors, donors, tickets per event. We have done a cost comparison for similar products. This is a custom-built product. Most products make you pay based on the size of your community. They also may not have all the bells and whistles and often lack direct support. ADG is right in Albany. Brad shared that in the first year, they all used office products to support the HOF event. This was the entire spend down plan. We will leave some monies on the table, like in the fringe line item.The group was very supportive of the spend down plan. They like the short-term nature of it. Brad noted the 30% contractual benchmark for contracts. We come in around 25%. Aileen moved to approve the spend down plan. Aaron seconded. All approved. Brad noted that since the November meeting was early, we would need to adjust our October meeting: Thursday, October 25, 2018 at 1:00 PM.Meeting adjourned.4. Treasurer’s ReportC.NYSILC 2019 Fiscal Year BudgetNYSILC 2019 FISCAL YEAR BUDGETOctober 2018-September 2019REVENUEContract w/ACCES VR433,942Fee for Service2501)Donations Unrestricted1,0002)Fundraising Events23,0003)Misc Income2,500Total Revenue460,692EXPENSESITEMS - Contract LinesSalaries174,900Fringe48,97228%General Operating128,370Equipment0Purchased Services81,700ACCES-VR Subtotal433,942ITEMS - General OperatingRent32,000Telephone/DSL6,000Office supplies5,200Printing & postage2,500Travel expense11,0004)Transportation11,0005)Conference Calls7,000Insurance6,600Dues/Subs/Spons3,300SILC/other meetings35,0006)SPIL projects/PFS5,0007)Contractual3,7708)TOTAL Gen Op128,370ITEMS - Purchased ServicesAudit Services6,000IT Consult Services15,000Payroll Services2,000Webmaster Services5,000Bookkeeping Services6,200Media Services10,000SPIL Evaluation Consult10,000Social Media Services10,000Meet Coord Services2,500Video Consult Services10,000Needs Assess Report5,000TOTAL Purch Serv81,700HOF Event Expenses18,000Total ExpensesACCES-VR433,942HOF18,000TOTAL451,942Net8,750Notes:1) Revenue from potential consulting (SILC-Net, APRIL): Reduced based on last year's activity.2) Donations reduced based on last year's activity.3) HOF event projected revenue based on last year.4) Includes in/out of state travel.5) Includes vehicle lease & parking.6) Includes $32,500 SILC meeting costs and $2,500 other SPIL meetings.7) Reflects $5,000 for Pat Figueroa young adult scholarships.8) Includes funds mostly for the multi-use copier.5. Executive Committee ReportA.Executive Committee minutesExecutive CommitteeJune 8, 201811:00 amPresent: Brad Williams, Ann Scherff, Rookmini Mangal, Doug Usiak.Brad facilitated the agenda in the absence of Zach. The first item on the agenda was the minutes to the May 11th committee meeting, which were attached. There were no questions or comments. Ann Scherff made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Doug seconded the motion. All approved.The next item of business was a review of the agenda highlights for the upcoming Full Council Meeting next week. Brad noted that he will review the NYSILC committees again and identify where we still have a few chair vacancies. We are working on identifying committee vice chairs, as well. At this time, the Development Committee can utilize additional council and non-council members to support the Hall of Fame event. Brad mentioned that we have made some progress since April. Laurel Kelley, Executive Director of CDCI, agreed to be the Chair of the SPIL Committee. While this was appreciated, she is a non-council member. Doug was concerned about council members not stepping up to chair committees, especially the State Plan committee, which is the primary purpose of the council. The group talked about council participation on committees and the ebb and flow of attendance and work. Doug will discuss this at the upcoming meeting. It was felt that Doug and Laurel should be Co-Chairs of the SPIL Committee. Doug is a SILC member and Laurel is a Federal CIL Director. Brad will communicate to Laurel. It was further recommended that we should take time at the next two council meetings to have the committees work on their committee descriptions and goals, then have the committees present out their results. The new information will be used to guide the committees and become a part of the committee materials.Brad reviewed the remainder of the highlights for the council meeting on June 15th. The group clarified the discussion related to a guest speaker and council meeting minutes. Brad provided an update about the Part B increase and related approved action by both State Plan partners to support its use for scholarship funds. Brad sent an email to Bob Williams at ACL. Soon after, we heard from our liaison at ACL that the amount of the award is now available. We are working with ACCES-VR to verify the amount. Rookmini added further details. They are working to sort out technical difficulties to connect to the correct online portal, which will provide us with the updated Part B award. If not, Brad will send an email to request a PDF of the Notice of Award. NYSILC and ACCES-VR will be meeting on July 5th to discuss overall options related to this issue, budget amendment and database project. Timelines are collapsing, and we need to make some decisions related to 2018, 2019, and the resource plan for the upcoming plan.Brad mentioned the effort to update the SEFCU bank documents, timed with the upcoming council meeting.For the work priorities, both the center director and consumer surveys are active for the statewide needs assessment. The center director survey is due June 15th, while the consumer survey is due June 22nd. Reminders are set for the center survey on Wednesdays. Consumer survey reminders are set for Mondays. Amy is conducting follow up calls to encourage participation. Doug asked if the results of the surveys will be available in time to share at the public hearings. Brad confirmed Alan will have preliminary results for us to use during formulation. Brad noted that the rest of the work priorities were the same. Nothing else to report.Meeting to adjourned.Executive CommitteeJuly 13, 201811:00 amPresent: Brad Williams, Ann Scherff, Bob Meek, Doug Usiak, Roger Benn, Rookmini Mangal.Doug facilitated the agenda in the absence of Zach. The first item on the agenda was the minutes to the June 6th committee meeting, which were attached. There were no questions or comments. Bob Meek made a motion to approve the minutes as presented. Ann Scherff seconded the motion. All approved.Brad review the first item – a final update. When Ray gets back from vacation, he will get the last internal review of the brief email that has to go to ACL regarding what the Part B increase will be utilized for in our state. When confirmed, I will send it along to our ACL liaison, Peter Nye. There will be no change to the SPIL. No questions. Comments noted appreciation for the effort. The next item of business, Brad gave an update about the budget amendment. Rookmini mentioned who it was sent along to the fiscal unit. Their feedback will require a response on our part. However, we will be delayed due to IL network contracts. Brad and Rookmini will meet on pm Tuesday. Brad noted the need to talk about the 2019 contract as well, giving the timing (July) of where we are in the contract year. Roger asked if there is a need to help with the process. Brad clarified that maybe we need to rethink where we are at and decide on a different path for the council.Next, Brad talked about how the NYSILC staff will be on the road soon from mid-July through August for our state plan hearing. It includes a pre-trip to Rochester to go to their ADA Gala to meet the Japanese IL delegation. Bruce Darling put out a general invitation to the network. Overall, we will be traveling to the following sites:July 19-20 Rochester, CDR, ADA Gala, meet Japanese IL delegation.July 26-27 Holtzville, SILO, SPIL hearing.August 1-2, Brooklyn, ICS (hosted by BCID), SPIL hearing.August 8-9, Elmira AIM, SPIL hearing.August 13-14, Batavia, SPIL hearing.August 22, Queensbury, SPIL hearing.Brad noted how the staff has been reviewing the facilitation outline and roles the staff will play. Brad will not be at the last two hearings. He will be on vacation. Amy and Jon will learn the process and roles, so they can learn how to do the sessions during the Batavia and Queensbury. Ann asked if staff will learn from the first meeting and adjust accordingly. Brad confirmed, noting that they have gone through a dress rehearsal and equipment checks. He also noted that staff have a plan but need to work with each site. This is more of a facilitated session, not a standard public hearing session. It is definitely interactive. We often build off people’s comments. The center is responsible for advertising the session since they have the connection to the community. We end up having different results. Some end up being like a focus group, other are more like a large gathering. For the work priorities, Brad is reviewing the first draft of the statewide needs assessment. It will eventually be sent out to committee members for comment. The database project – we will have a committee meeting to start the initial process – will a project design board and the online portal. Rocco from ES11 wants to start discussing some of the initial framework issues. The LDCEP continues to work on podcasts. During upcoming SPIL hearings, we will do outreach for new members. For development, there wasn’t as many members on the call. They did have a good meeting. A decision was made to go with the Schenectady casino hotel properties because they have nine roll-in showers. The other hotel on the property (Marriott) will make a good backup. We spoke to them about providing or reimbursing accessible transportation during shuttle hours. This decision was made because despite everything we know the Troy Hilton Garden Inn can deliver, they now say they won’t be able to improve their roll-in showers until 2020. The Schenectady hotel date is for late March, proving for the Hall of Fame with a full council meeting. Doug noted that March was a scary month with the weather. Roger and Doug and others did like the benefits the hotel had to offer. The only concern was the unpredictable factor of the weather. Brad will work with this concern.One last note, Brad asked if he could push the next executive committee meeting, ideally a week ahead to Friday, August 3rd at 11 am. Thursday, August 9th at 1 pm. August 3rd at 11 am worked the best.Meeting adjourned.Executive CommitteeAugust 8, 201811:00 AMPresent: Brad Williams, Doug Usiak, Ann Scherff, Bob Meek, Roger Benn, Rookmini MangalRoger made a motion to accept the minutes to the July 2018 meeting. Ann seconded. All approved. In regards to the update to ACL related to the Part B increase, final wording was agreed to and sent to our liaison, Peter Nye. Being new this year, he requested a little more information for context. We haven’t heard back from him. He may have understood that we are concerned about offsetting the amount of the shortfall. Brad next spoke about updates to the NYSILC contract process. First, we made the decision to stop pursuit of the budget amendment. This shifted to a budget modification, which allows a shift of lines within ten percent. Rookmini informed me that the budget modification has been approved. The new budget levels are ready to be transferred on the next quarterly expenditure report. Last, Brad emailed the 2019 contract materials and mailed in the signed advanced voucher. Based on these items, we have a situation where we need a spend down plan for the final quarter. We were holding back on spending for several line items because of the budget amendment. We had a finance committee meeting yesterday and reviewed the spend down plan. After discussing the details, they approved the plan knowing I would be reviewing it with the executive committee. Spend downs are normal. We just have a sizable spend down because of the budget amendment. Overall, it is around $49,000. There will be some money that we won’t be able to touch – mostly fringe. For the spend down plan, it would be great to provide staff enhancements. They do fantastic work. I’ll do performance reviews. I have some money to bump up their salaries. I’d then like to provide one- time salary adjustments of $2,500 each. Both have stepped up with various duties. They’re needing to learn as we’re talking four years down the road toward my succession. There was a need to shift around $5,000 to cover the increased cost of state plan travel, along with interpreters and remote captioning. We have been considering the statewide database for at least six years. Because we’ve done our due diligence, we can work on phase I of the project at a cost of $25,000. The question was asked if it was allowable. Brad noted that it fits in general operating, contractual. Overall, all contracts cannot have total contracts exceed 30%. With the spend down, we will be at 25%. In purchase services, we want to use an amount currently not be utilized by a vendor to work with ADG/studio 136 to have them build a fundraising/event database for us for around $9,000. It will help for the HOF and annual giving. Last year, we used office products. We investigated comparative products about a year and a half ago. They want either a combination of some money up front or have a scale of what you pay based on the size of your community forever. This product is a flat fee and you get local support. It allows us to generate records for all types of transactions. Right now, we can benefit from the Word documents that we are shuffling. One final item – if we needed to spend down more – under general operating and program supplies. If funds become available, we are at the point to replace our PCs. They are now at the point where they are under the $1,000 threshold, so they are now considered a program supply. If spend down funds become available, we will replace our PCs. Roger presented a motion to accept the spend down plan recommended by the Finance Committee. No second since there were more than two members. All approved.In terms of council work priorities, Brad is trading the second draft of the 2018 statewide needs assessment. It is really taking shape. The goal is to present it at one of the next two council meetings. For the database project, it is exciting to get things moving again with phase I. There is a call today at 1 pm. It should be noted that there will be a spend down again next year, allowing us to do phase II of the project. When we talk about the SILC resource plan with ACCES-VR, we can address the rest of the phases in 2020-2022. Doug recalled the effort put forth to get us to this point, including its value. The SPIL hearings allow us to do additional outreach for the LDCEP program. Related to development, we moved forward with the Schenectady properties and informed them about their responsibilities related to equivalent shuttle services. In the final contract materials/packet, they informed us – this equivalent shuttle service is your responsibility. We responded with documentation to inform them that they are responsible to provide equivalent services. Bob noted that they have probably shared the information with their lawyers. We have a certain period of time to respond back to them. Bob noted that we could respond back and hold them accountable. So, we will secure the contracts, then inform them of our intent to hold them accountable for equivalent shuttle service in a lawyer letter – seek the costs of accessible taxi rides. The cost can be reduced off the cost of the bill. If not, we will seek the damages in court. This allows us to secure the venue and dates. Attorney fees come from the other side if you win. The group discussed the various advantages to move forward with this action. A plan was agreed to. The staff will follow through. Brad raised an item for future consideration – telecommuting. Maybe start with one day a week. We stay on task with a morning meeting. Doug said explore different options, one or two days a week and report back to us. When you look at technology and the federal government, there are increased opportunities to telecommute.Meeting adjourned.5. Executive Committee ReportBOther advocacy issues/updates.NYSILC letter to Governor Cuomo requesting enactment of the small business tax credit A.1369 (Cusick) and S.3688 (Addabbo)August 6, 2018The Honorable Andrew M. CuomoGovernor of New York StateNYS State Capitol BuildingAlbany, NY 12224Sent via electronic mailRe: Requesting enactment of A.1369 (Cusick) and S.3688 (Addabbo) regarding the Small Business Tax Credit for New Yorkers with DisabilitiesDear Governor Cuomo:The New York State Independent Living Council, Inc. (NYSILC) is a non-profit, non-governmental, consumer-controlled organization comprised of 26 appointees from around the state, the majority of whom have disabilities. NYSILC is responsible for jointly developing, monitoring, and evaluating the 3-year Statewide Plan for Independent Living (SPIL) with the statewide network of Federal Center for Independent Living (CIL) directors.We strongly suggest you sign A.1369 (Cusick) / S.3688 (Addabbo). This act will amend the tax law in relation to establishing a small business tax credit for the employment of people with disabilities. Almost 30 years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the employment rate of people with disabilities is still at an unacceptable level and needs a focused effort to reverse the trend. Based on data from the 2017 Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, the following facts can be ascertained for New Yorkers with disabilities among the civilian working-age population (18-64):The employment rate is just 33.1% (Table 2.1).The employment gap is 42.4% compared to people without disabilities (33.1% versus 75.5%) (Table 2.9).The median earnings gap is $13,953 compared to people without disabilities ($36,831 versus $22,894) (this item is for ages 16 and over in 2016, inflation adjusted) (Table 4.1).The poverty rate is 29.4% (Table 3.1).The poverty rate gap is 17.4% compared to people without disabilities (12% versus 29.4%) (Table 3.3).Advocates have pushed for several initiatives to improve competitive, integrated employment opportunities for New Yorkers with disabilities. The concept for a small business tax credit was recommended during the formulation of your Employment First policy (Executive Order # 136).The Employment First Report issued by the Commission included a recommendation to create a cross-disability tax credit similar to A.1369/S.3688. While other tax credits exist, this particular cross-disability tax credit is needed because the present opportunities have limitations (such as forcing a peer to navigate through a specific service system and complete training within a two-year time period, as well as focusing only on individuals with specific disabilities). There is great value to a tax credit that applies to all people with disabilities who are trying to pursue integrated, competitive employment.In addition, the small business tax credit will act as an incentive for small businesses to hire qualified individuals with disabilities. The State Comptroller noted in a 2016 report, “Businesses with fewer than 100 employees account for 98.2% of U.S. businesses and 97.4% in the state. In this group as well, small businesses employed a slightly larger share of all private sector workers in New York than in the country as a whole – just less than 36% in the state compared to 34% nationwide.” This large number of small businesses presents the perfect opportunity for more people with disabilities to be productively employed and self-sufficient. And because small businesses will benefit more from a tax credit than big businesses, they are more likely to hire workers with disabilities.I urge you to sign A.1369/S.3688 into law and create a win/win opportunity for both people with disabilities and the small business sector in New York State.Respectfully,Brad WilliamsExecutive DirectorCc:Shelly Weizman, Assistant Secretary for Mental Hygiene Tanisha Edwards Esq., Assistant Council to the Governor John B. Allen Jr. Special Assistant to the Commissioner, NYS OMH9. Committee & Subcommittee ReportsA. ACCES-VR SRC reportState Rehabilitation Council (SRC) March 7-8, 2018 Quarterly Meeting Minutes Day One – Hilton Garden Inn235 Hoosick St. Troy, New York 12180Topic/PurposeNew Member Orientation:Tonya Robinson-Meyer Melissa Struffolino Chad Underwood Committee ChairsDiscussion/OutcomeDay 1 of New Member Orientation Travel Guidelines: Questions regarding travel and support should to be addressed to Michelle Barlow instead of Melissa. Discussed Acronyms to know SRC Mission and Vision SRC Roles and Responsibilities Stakeholders Guiding Principles 4.2 Recommendations Committee Structure, functions and priorities, past accomplishmentsTopic/PurposeNew Member Orientation (continued) Frank Coco, Manager ACCES-VR District Office AdministrationDiscussion/OutcomeWhy VR – brief history of the Rehabilitation ActNYS Education Department Agencies15 District Offices Staffing and ResponsibilitiesParticipant Orientation VR-101Topic/PurposeState Rehabilitation Council Full Team Meeting: Call to Order & Welcome Tonya Robinson-Mayer, SRC ChairDiscussion/OutcomeMember IntroductionsReview & Approval of September MinutesReview Action ItemsPublic Comment- NoneTopic/PurposeExecutive Committee ReportACCES-VR & SRC Common PrioritiesUpdatesTonya Robinson-Mayer, SRC ChairChad Underwood, SRC Vice ChairDiscussion/OutcomeACCES-VR & SRC Common PrioritiesNo updates notedJoanie motioned to accept December 2017 minutes ? Helene seconded the motion: All yeas, no nays, no abstentionsTopic/Purpose Peer Mentoring Presentation:Rebecca Payton, Director of Independent Living (Regional Center for Independent Living) Dustie Huff, Independent Living Supervisor Matt Fico, Independent Living Supervisor Leydy Rodriquez, Peer Integration Living Specialist Wendy Ford, ACCES-VR Assistant District Office Manager - Rochester Linda Schramm, ACCES-VR District Office Manager - White PlainsDiscussion/OutcomePeer Mentoring presentationThis pilot is the result of a 2015 RFP to bring peer support services to ACCES-VR. Pilot timeline is July 1, 2016 through June 30, 2019. The collaboration is between ACCES-VR District Offices (Rochester and White Plains) and 2 ILCs (Regional Center for Independent Living in Rochester and Westchester Independent Living Center in White Plains). ILC staff is housed in each DO working with ACCESS-VR participants. Activities include: addressing barriers to services and employment, housing, childcare, bi-lingual support, transportation services, referrals to additional services/providers, benefits advisement, assistance at group orientations, co-presentations with DO staff, etc. Annual goals are to serve at least 100 participants, provide 150 hours of VR staff and community partner trainings, 250 hours of participant group training, and to develop regional community resource maps of services. All of these goals have been surpassed.Results of the pilot have shown improved participant readiness for services, active participation, empowerment and problem-solving leading to better communication with ACCES-VR. Local TV and newspaper media have showcased some of the success stories. SUNY Brockport has incorporated study of this project within their course of study. RCIL (Regional Center for Independent Living) has coordinated a variety of trainings related to Ticket-To-Work, health training, domestic violence and health, and de-escalation techniques at a variety of sites including local community colleges.Peer Specialists are working with the One-Stop Centers to direct people toward their services and do presentations about the Peer Mentoring program and ACCES-VR. Data is being collected in quarterly ic/PurposeData Presentation - Rich Evans (Manager of ACCES-VR Data Unit), Nick Harris ACCES-VR-VR Data UnitDiscussion/OutcomeRich reviewed data reports used by ACCES-VR: (1) Rehabilitation Goals and Progress Report (2) VR-752 Counselor Caseload Monthly Report for Open Caseload Statistics (3) VR-755 Counselor Caseload Report, and (4) NYS Characteristics of People Served.The data presents opportunities for the SRC to analyzing information and make recommendations related to ACCES-VR priorities and goals. SRC members offered the follow suggestions/requests: (1) year-to-year comparisons to see trends(2) data routinely provided to the full SRC(3) try to change the way data is presented to compare with other standardized data reporting(4) see if we can do similar analyses based on need(5) see if we can we track actual changes in earnings between application and closure(6) track average pay rates and changes.RSA has made many data requirement changes. It is a huge effort to meet RSA requirements, but ACCES-VR has made incredible progress. Data is used consistently in District Offices by Managers, Senior VRCs, VRCs, ic/PurposeCommittee Meetings, Committee ChairsDiscussion/OutcomeCommittees were provided the option to meet today and tomorrow or to postpone meeting today if tomorrow will provide ample meeting ic/PurposeInteragency UpdatesDiscussion/OutcomeAlan Gallagher: Department of Labor was awarded an 8th round of Disability Employment Initiative funding. A $2.25 million 3-year grant for youth to increase the capacity of career pathways programs. There will be one Disability Resource Coordinator for each of the following 3 areas: Tompkins, Chenango-Delaware-Otsego and the Hempstead regions. Keri Wiley is the staff lead for this project. Intent is to make businesses more open to hire people with disabilities and create more work experiences. The National Collaborative on Workforce Development will be presenting at this on the Guideposts for Success.Erica Molina: Client Assistance Program is under DRNY, 303 individuals served in 2017. Reviewed how the report is broken out into categories. Outreach efforts are not captured in reports. DRNY was contacted by RSA prior to the ACCES-VR review.Lindsay Miller: NYS Independent Living Council will meet in April in conjunction with NYSILCs 1st Disability Hall of Fame event. Michael Peluso will be one of the inductees. Advocating for increased funding for the Independent Living Center networks. Lindsay will share information with the SRC for future advocacy efforts.Meghan Brown: NYS Office of Special Education 1st priority relates to impartial due-process hearings for students with disabilities. The 2nd relates to testing accommodations for students with disabilities (to supersede May 2006 guidance document), and the 3rd priority is reporting of infants to the Justice Center. December 2017 Board of Regents voted to expand Superintendent’s ability to determine students with disabilities earning a diploma.Mike Godino: Advisory Council on Postsecondary Education for Students with Disabilities No update. Mike first meeting will be in April.Liam McNabb: NYS Office of Mental Health -No updates.State Rehabilitation Council (SRC) March 7-8, 2018 QuarterlyMinutes – Day TwoTopic/PurposeCall to Order & Welcome Member IntroductionsDiscussion/OutcomeTonya Robinson-Mayer, SRC Chair-Called meeting to orderTopic/PurposeACCES & ACCES-VR Updates, Reports & DialogueWIOA - Combined State PlanACCES-VR & SRC Common PrioritiesRSA ReviewStrategic DesignCRS 2.0 UpdatesCareer Exploration Initiative with Students(CEIS) statusDiscussion/OutcomeKevin Smith, ACCES Deputy Commissioner: Commended NYCB and Mike Godino for efforts on accessibility to testing materials and sites.Expressed appreciation to all participants of the RSA review including: SRC, NYSCB, ILC, RC. Review was a positive dialogue with technical assistance provided by RSA. When results are received the agency will have 20 days to respond.The initial State Plan was approved, required to amend every 2 years. The State Plan is now posted for 30-day public comment. There is concern regarding the MOU’s not completed; RSA is aware, and an extension has been requested.The Unified Data Reporting System is being addressed. CaMS to be replaced with an integrated system that will allow access for participants and vendors.Debora Brown-Johnson, ACCES Assistant Commissioner:Strategic Plan- the Service Delivery System is working well in some offices, not in others. Leadership is currently reviewing the information. WIOA involves career planning, working with Pre-ETS (students that are “potentially eligible”); An RFP is being developed. Anticipate implementation in January 2019.CRS 2.0 Agency received 600 questions from applicants. Answers have been posted and an extension has been requested to the Contract Unit. Unable to comment further as RFP process is in place.The agency received 50 backfill positions, majority in the District Office across all titles. Focus groups on Long Island lead by Potsdam. NYC area is currently being planned. SRC will be notified of dates, times and locations to share with the public. CSAVR, ACCES-VR and COB discussed an initiative “Vision 20/20”, in the planningstage. 4.2 Recommendations for 2017-all have been responded to. Erica requested that SRC be notified of initiatives and pilot programs. Kevin ic/PurposeWIOA Priorities for CommitteesDiscussion/OutcomeCeylane Meyers-Ruff, Director of Central Office AdministrationPower Point provided. There was a review and discussion of ACCES-VR Guiding Principles along with the mission and vision. The 4 Priorities in State Plan were also discussed.SRC committees were encouraged to review ACCES-VR priorities and identify committee work that aligns with priorities and mittees were asked to identify focus areas by the June ic/PurposeInteragency Updates continued from Day OneDiscussion/OutcomeBronce Perez Mato-Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities: The TRAID program generates a $3 million cost savings for people with disabilities. Current priorities include development of a database, storage of equipment, and obtaining increased in funding. Goal is to create a one stop depository. Lynne Thibdeau- Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD): Regulations were issued and released related to pre-vocational services. The goals by 2020 is for all prevocational services to be delivered in integrated settings. Peter Herrig- New York State Commission for the Blind (NYSCB): RSA to review in April. Preparations in place with appreciation to ACCES-VR. Continue working efforts with State Education Department of ic/PurposeAdjournDiscussion/OutcomeHelene motioned. Joanie seconded motion.9. Committee & Subcommittee ReportsD. SPIL CommitteeSPIL CommitteeJune 7, 20181:00 PMPresent: Joe Bravo, Lindsay Miller, Ann Scherff, Rookmini Mangal, Brad Williams, Amy Wink, Jonathan SerranoDuring the last call, Brad asked if anyone was interested in being the chair of the SPIL Committee. Laurel Kelley, Executive Director of the Capital District Center for Independence (CDCI) traded emails with Brad and agreed to be chair. She had a conflict with today’s meeting.Brad then gave an update on the Part B increase/proposed scholarship use for the unexpended funds. ACL did communicate back to us after sending an email to Bob Williams. ACCES-VR is in the process of connecting to the online platform to find out just what the amount of the increase is. We will continue to move forward with this as planned. It was approved by both State Plan partners – the SILC and Federal CIL directors.Brad then reviewed the two primary documents for the upcoming SPIL formulation for 2020-2022. The public notice was the first attached document. He noted the inclusion of CART. Depending on site, some CART will be in-person, other remote. Amy and Jon will be working with Brad as a team during the public hearing process. Amy is setting up the public hearings and logistics. Jon will be taking care of posting notices and social media. Brad briefly reviewed the locations and dates of the five public hearings. Everyone was good with the updates to the document.Brad went over the formulate document. It was flipped to landscape to add in target dates. The group needed to focus in on the first five steps. Needs assessment is actively engaged with their steps, just like the SPIL Committee is in reviewing the formulation process. We are now concentrating on step 3, which looks to finalize the public hearings, the public notice, the posting and distributions to promote and then facilitate the process. Staff will be busy over the next two to three weeks developing the notices to ensure the material is posted and distributed effectively at the beginning of July. Brad also wants to meet with the Federal CIL directors near the end of June before the process starts. We will send out reminders during the process to keep people engaged. The deadline of the public comment period is the end of August. Based on the volume of the public comments, we often secure a temporary worker to help summarize the input, tabulate the priority results into an Excel spreadsheet, along with the needs assessment priorities. This takes place during September. The SPIL Committee then takes this information and meets during October to identify the priorities for the next plan.The group was fine with the updates to the formulation document. In terms of the next meeting, Brad will send a Doodle out to the group for the last week in August.Meeting adjourned.9. Committee & Subcommittee ReportsH. DevelopmentDevelopment CommitteeJune 26, 20182:00 PMPresent: Amy Wink, Jon Serrano, Bob Meek, Helen FangAmy discuss the first issue, which is decision about the venue for the Hall of Fame (HOF) event. The two venues being the Troy Hilton Garden Inn (where the event was last year), and the Schenectady casino properties. Information was provided in the email. Amy went through the logic of why the Schenectady casino properties was the better decision for the venue. There is a second hotel co-located on the property, which could accommodate overflow (which was needed last year). The Hilton postponed the renovation of their roll-in showers to 2020. This is very disappointing and no longer meets our need. The overflow hotel has two roll-in showers and seven accessible rooms, the casino hotel has eight accessible rooms all roll-in showers. Bob asked if the plan was to still have the event the night before and the council meeting the next day. Amy confirmed. They also have seven hearing impaired rooms between them as well. Bob agreed. The recommendation should be discussed with the council. Helen asked how close the casino was to Amtrak. They weren’t sure. Post comment is one mile. The property does not have an accessible shuttle, but they have discussed the responsibility to provide accessible options for guests, other alternatives.Amy discussed the best dates available at this time. March 14th and 15th. This is to also accommodate the review of the next state plan. Bob noted that March is the usual month. Amy will call and reserve that date after the call. Helen inquired about April. Amy clarified that the April dates were taken. With weather concerns, we typically meet in mid-March. Amy looked at a cost comparison of food and the casino is a little bit less expensive. Bob asked if there was anything we needed to do give an earlier date for the event compared to last year. We need to act ASAP. Bob thought the council needed to confirm the decision, but it really is a decision of the committee and informing the Executive Committee for an event that is annual.The group then discussed the number of honorees to select from the nominees. It was felt somewhere between 3-5. Helen asked is we will be able to get the same number of sponsorships with a lower number of honorees. The group discussed the issue. It will be a matter of work and getting people to follow through. We may need to push ticket sales. The group felt that we should poll the council about how many we should honor.For subcommittees, fundraising and outreach will focus on sponsors and advertisers, gift baskets. Outreach will reach out to legislative members and staff and media (did not have good awareness last year). Bob liked the two proposed. Helen thought we should reach out early to sponsors before the end of the year. It was felt this was an excellent idea. Jon just mentioned that web changes need to catch up. Perhaps the advertise these sponsors. They can write off the donations for 2018 (before the tax changes). Next call will be July 24th at 2 PM.Post comment, the committee should make their recommendations and they can go to the Executive Committee, who make decisions in between the full council meetings. Council business will get slowed down waiting for the direction of the council and there are management decisions that are within the prerogative of contracts and programs that don’t need constant approval – just the reporting out of progress.Development CommitteeJuly 24, 20182:00 PMPresent: Brad Williams, Amy Wink, Jon Serrano, Bob Meek, Doug UsiakThe meeting had a brief agenda, looking to discuss the HOF venue and date. After following up with the Executive Committee as recommended at the last meeting related to this issue, they really liked the idea of switching the HOF event to the Schenectady casino hotels for the reasons explained. However, their only concern was the March date for the event and the risked posed by weather. So, Amy spoke with the casino and they have Thursday, June 13th available for the event and Friday June 14th for the full council meeting. This will push everything back to better weather and give us more time for planning. It addresses the weather concern voiced by the Executive Committee. The area will be full developed by then. The two-day event and meeting will be held at the Landing hotel and casino conference meeting area. They have eight accessible rooms all with roll-in showers. The Marriott courtyard will be the overflow hotel. They have nine accessible rooms (two are roll-in showers). We reserved a room block of 75 (50 for HOF guests and 25 for council members) at the GSA rate. We have until August 17th to sign it. We have the contracts to review and respond to and eventually engage in wen we are satisfied. Amy noted that she noticed that it wanted us to obligate to spend at least $6,000 in food in beverage for the event and council meeting. We sent $13,000 last year. So, it won’t be a problem. She thought we might want to add an addendum in the contract to related to their accessible shuttle responsibilities. Brad noted that we’ve had discussions about the issue, so it shouldn’t be a surprise. Bob acknowledged that it would be a good move. Brad added that we would still have a full council meeting at the hotel in late March to largely address the draft state plan. He noted that it was good work by Amy to get to get the dates realigned and have a contract to react to. The group then discussed other big picture items the staff are working on. Jon noted how we learned from the nomination process during the first cycle. So, he is working with ADG to improve the HOF webpage to enhance the process to create an interaction online process to improve the process for the person applying and to make it, so we receive consistent information on our end. We are going to create more guided questions, about their history and impact. Members asked questions about the process. Doug was worried about bias. Jon, Amy, and Bob responded in ways to structure scenarios. Doug felt good about the possibilities related to objective elements. The group then talked about a three-step process: review of the objective elements, narrative, and score, then selection. One final note, Brad mentioned that if approved, the budget modification could approve a project that will help to enhance the event. More to come.Meeting adjourned.9. Committee & Subcommittee ReportsI. Database WorkgroupDatabase Work GroupAugust 3, 20181:00 PMPresent: Rocco Semeraro, Brad Williams, Roger Benn, Doug Usiak, Ken Dibble, Rookmini MangalThe group started with introductions. Rocco is a partner from ES11, who will be building the database. Brad Roger, Doug, Ken and Rookmini and provided introductions.Project update. For phase I, setting up the online project board. Brad gave the committee members emails addresses. Everyone is all set to interact related to all communications connected to the project. We can have conversations via threads. Keeps track of all conversations. Everyone must set up a password. Rocco will start the first conversation, or thread. We can review, read through, and or react to the threads. We’re going to discuss how the application’s going to look. The first thing will be the web application and aesthetics. For example, clean, bright, easy to use and understand. ADA compliance is a given. 508 compliance. Look and feel. Doug cautioned against clutter because they interfere with the user. Ken echoed that we shouldn’t have items that pop up to intrude, or present pale color contrast. For cognitive disabilities, a straighter forward approach is always best. If we use graphics instead of text, make sure the alt-text is available. If we present a button or a link, let it stand alone. We should lean to the side of usability. Doug inquired if Rocco was familiar with the seven principles of universal design. He was, based on a couple of audits they’ve done on some websites. They are good principles. Doug said it is important for the population potentially using the product. Looking at your audience, one of the next steps, would help with the process. Ken agreed that simplicity and accessibility will be the top priorities. Aesthetics is way down the list. Roger identified the need to have it tested. The next question, related to the information architecture package, the areas that people would use: login, update data, generating reports, individual center data and query function. Ken thought it might be the difference of generating the standard reports and then allow a different menu for local center reports. We can have “enter data” and “statewide reports,” then have another menu for local center reports. Doug noted that local center reports should only be available to respective centers. It can be addresses during the login process, what access to data centers are granted. Rocco noted it as part of the login planning process. Roger noted user-based security. Different centers have different county catchment areas. It is the IL county catchment area. Some serve the same county. It will be able to cull out a center’s data, even in a mutual county. Only the data entered for your center. Brad noted the 704 database and who has access. Access should be for all the statewide data or their own center data. Centers can choose to share their data, if they consent. For the dashboard after login, update data, reporting, any other functions? How about sharing report queries? This would be a way to share a report query. This shares how it was run so you get a similar result. Would it be better to have pre-defined results? Some reports will be standard. Better to have an engine that allows the entry of variables to conduct the query. Doug wondered about the outside search as an option. Rocco thought something that will list the last few reports generated. Brad asked about the comparison between statewide year trends along with deinstitutionalization impacts. Ken responded yes, so long as we were not increasing data points. These were just increased examples of how the data generated data into reports. Everything is based around the center key. Brad has the examples of the data fields to share with Rocco. For the user login system, each center is connected to their own unique login. How manage the users? Will each center be able to add, edit, manage the users? Yes. Ken thought that ACCES-VR and NYSILC might have different data access needs. Different user types. Each one will have an admin. They might see different information on their dashboards. Work out with ACCES-VR and NYSILC. Roger thought the report coming direct from the website would be an excellent efficiency to be exported as an accessible, attached PDF. Ken added if it is in the budget. So, an excellent recommendation. Depends on the feasibility. Doug asked all to double check his email, dusiak@. His long standing “edu” email will phase out in a few weeks. Rocco asked us to follow through with the invite to the online board and respond to the thread discussions.9. Committee & Subcommittee ReportsK. Monitoring & EvaluationMonitoring & EvaluationJune 12, 20182:00 PMPresent: Brad Williams, Kathern Carroll, Ann Scherff, Chad Eldred, Maria Samuels, Doug UsiakBrad noted that the council meeting was Friday. He gave a review of the purpose of the Monitoring & Evaluation Committee and how it fit into the work of the council, particularly with the development, monitoring and evaluation of the state plan.For this meeting, the group reviewed quarterly reports related to contracts from state plan objectives. The highlights from the discussion will then be shared at the council meeting during the committee report out. Minutes will be in the packet at the following council meeting per the packet. Finally, Brad noted that Doug will mention something at the meeting Friday about members chairing committees and being active participants. This committee is one of the committees lacking both a chair and vice chair. Brad is acting chair in the interim. Doug will be pressing about these concerns. Chad will be willing to assume the role of chair but would prefer a little more experience before accepting the responsibility. Katheryn noted the timing of a new member as well. Brad noted how the council staff works with each chair to provide for the level of support that works best for them. The group started the review of the quarterly reports. Brad mentioned the NYSILC quarterly report for January to March 2018. Any questions or comments regarding the report? Comments about performance, comments. Ann wanted to know about progress. Brad explained how the progress. There is a lag because these reports comment on the previous quarter, but they don’t catch up until the next quarter. For more real time comments, we might do something like invite participants from some of these projects on a conference call (at a council meeting) and facilitate a discussion. We have done this before. Ann like this and thought we might be able to ask them additional questions. Brad noted the different types of groups we’ve had these types of discussions with.Chad inquired about the statewide database. There was nothing mentioned in the NYSILC report. Brad noted that’s because it is currently not an active objective to report on but is an unresolved issue. It has been very challenging. This has taken six years to this point. The goal this year was to create a budget amendment for the NYSILC contract for the years 2018-19 which will accommodate the database project. It is getting down the wire if it will be achievable. We have a meeting with ACCES-VR on July 5th to discuss the feasibility of staying course with the amendment or going in a different direction. Total cost is $125,000 divided over two years. It would be funded by vocational rehabilitation funds, I & E monies. Internal review at ACCES-VR is slowing the process down, then it must go to the Office of State Comptroller.The group then reviewed the quarterly report for the SSAN, January to March 2018. Their report is formatted a little bit differently. They address program activity up front for the quarter related to several areas such as training and media, then discuss performance to the objectives/outcomes. The report does address all the work the SSAN accomplishes. Brad asked for questions/comments. Doug asked if they were addressing outcomes of outputs. Brad agreed that previous discussions touch on this reality. The council has made progress, but overall, we must focus on more outcomes for the objectives, or a progression of activities, outputs and outcomes. The SSAN will need to make similar adjustments. Perhaps a tiered approach. Doug felt that the outcome should look to measure more than just identifying initial system change or blocking bad recommendations. We will need to look at the impact of long-term systems change results and the overall number of peers who benefitted, money saved, and or other impacts. For one example, Brad identified the Medicaid Buy-In. The logic flow would be the state plan, which supported the SSAN, provided leadership with colleagues to help achieve a state Medicaid Buy-In. To date, almost 12,000 New Yorkers with disabilities are enrolled in the program (identify the benefits). Doug noted the role to take legal and advocacy action to implement HAVA and increase to accessible voting in the state and the numbers of people with disabilities voting statewide today. (which could be better). Brad wondered if we needed to come up with a study. Doug felt we just needed to first identify the major systems change impact areas. Ann wondered if the committee could do the work. It was the felt that we would have taken it in steps. Chad thought we could start with one example, then build it from there. Start from 704 reports and summary for SSAN from 2005-20016 when it shifted over to NYSILC.The group then discussed and reviewed two quarterly reports from Taconic Resources in Poughkeepsie for their new demonstration project for veterans with disabilities, which focusses on providing connection on housing and transportation (and other IL services). The reports were for October to December 2017 and January to March 2018 – the current quarter we are reviewing. Any questions or comments? Brad noted that this is this first reporting cycle for what is a single demonstration project. Doug asked about their contract and service activity. Brad noted that this objective was set up in the SPIL so competitive proposals and the eventual awardee would have unique outcomes and deliverables for their project which would be in the contract. We have not seen the contract but are seeing what they are responsible for on a quarterly basis. They seem to be very task oriented. Brad would like to see what their goals and objectives are right up front for the year. Chad agreed. He felt it was more like an activity log. The goals and objectives should be for the year and the progress for the quarter, noting anything completed or items addressed that will be continued to the next quarter. Doug asked if the final goal is the completion of a “how to” manual. Brad agreed. What do we expect them to do at the conclusion at the end of the project? Will they self-sustain? Ann wondered if the job description exists and if there an exit survey for veterans? It lacked outcomes. Progress should be made on the objectives. The group agreed that the report needs to be restructured.Are there outcomes in the deliverables – the goals and objectives - that TRI is accountable for? The committee wants to know. Let’s see it in clearly in the quarterly report like the other quarterly reports, or maybe we need to see it in a section from the contract. Doug noted that if this becomes a best practice, it could become a fee for service with veteran’s services. To summarize, Brad will touch base with Rookmini from ACCES-VR first at the full council meeting on Friday about the committee’s concern’s and recommendation about TRI’s quarterly report. If needed, Brad will follow up with Patrick the following week (Rookmini may take care of it). Brad will summarize the highlights from today’s call, so they can be shared at the council meeting Friday during the committee report out. We will invite Patrick to present about the project at our November meeting to learn more. He can participate in person or via conference call.Meeting adjourned. ................
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