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access and support systems. 3. The rights of citizens with disabilities are inadequately protected in numerous areas, and too many protections which are provided by law remain largely unenforced. There is a clear mandate for vigorous action to implement and enforce existing and future laws and regulations. 4. Testimony in the forums seemed to reflect virtually unanimous support by the active disability community for the Americans With Disabilities Act and for a continuum of effective services and support systems designed to empower all people with disabilities as fully equal and productive participants in the mainstream of society.

Preliminary recommendations.-The Task Force recommends Congress: 1. Move decisively to enact an effective form of the Americans With Disabilities Act. 2. Provide aggressive national leadership in the affirmative employment and other meaningful involvement of people with disabilities in roles of significant responsibility. 3. Continue to move toward a full spectrum of effective services and support systems for all people with disabilities. 4. Give particular attention to ensuring the effective implementation and enforcement of rights and services legislation, to providing affordable, quality educational opportunities for all children, youth and adults with disabilities and to enabling all people with disabilities to secure adequate, affordable medical and other insurance coverage.

The task force wishes to acknowledge the magnificant support it has received from numerous members and staff of Congress, particularly Task Force founder Congressman Major Owens and the members and staff of the House Subcommittee on Select Education, Senators Tom Harkin and Lowell Weicker and the members and staff of the Senate Subcommittee on the Handicapped, and all the sponsors of the Civil Rights Restoration Act, The Fair Housing Act Amendments of 1988, the Technology-related Assistance for Individuals With Disabilities Act and the American With Disabilities Act, including Congressman Tony Coelho, Silvio Conte, and James Jeffords, and Senators Edward Kennedy, Robert Dole and Paul Simon. The Task Force has no public funding or private grants. Special recognition is due Task Force members, staff and volunteers, and the literally thousands of patriotic citizens and organizations in every state and territory who have contributed services, money and time to make the democratic system work.

Mr. OWENS. We are pleased to have Mr. Philip Johnston, the Secretary of the Executive Office of Human Services. Welcome, Mr. Secretary.

STATEMENT OF PHILIP JOHNSTON, SECRETARY, EXECUTIVE

OFFICE OF HUMAN SERVICES

Secretary JOHNSTON. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is a pleasure to be here. And it is a particular pleasure to follow my colleague on the panel, Mr. Dart, who has described for you and for all of us in the most powerful and eloquent language that I think I have heard on this topic what the stakes are regarding this legislation. I want to express my appreciation to you, Mr. Chairman, for your leadership and to Congressman Atkins and Congressman Moakley. All three of you have been leaders in this area at the Federal level. Our two Massachusetts Congressmen, Jim Moakley and Chet Atkins have been leaders here in the State. Congressman Atkins is somebody with whom I worked and our commissioners worked very closely when he was chairman of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means in the State legislature, and I do not think that there is anyone in the State who has done as much to support independent living by disabled people as Congressman Atkins.

We have a number of Human Services commissioners who work for us, for Governor Dukakis here who are going to be testifying before the committee over the next hour or so. I would like to do two things. First, I have a statement which I understand you would like to have read, by Governor Dukakis, who feels very, very strongly about this legislation and that is a brief statement. And

then I have a brief statement that I would like to read on my behalf as Secretary of Human Services.

First, I would like to read Governor Dukakis' statement regarding this legislation: "The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1988 is a major step forward in protecting the civil rights of people with disabilities. Building on the principles of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the newly enacted Fair Housing Amendments, the act would provide comprehensive protection of the basic civil rights of people with disabilities.

"Protecting these fundamental civil rights has been the cornerstone of my policies as Governor and will be a major focus of my administration when I am elected President. It is unacceptable that in the United States, two out of three disabled adults are out of work. As President, I will work to provide incentives for people with disabilities to find meaningful jobs, jobs with a future that offer an opportunity to remain independent and self-sufficient. And we must make transportation more accessible, because without adequate transportation, people with disabilities will not be able to get to their jobs. We need to work with every community across the country to create more accessible transportation. Too often, the fear of losing health insurance keeps people with disabilities out of the work force. I recently signed a law that will make health insurance available to every man, woman and child in Massachusetts. A special provision of the law guarantees coverage to disabled workers. As President, I will work to extend this health security to all people in our country who are mentally and physically disabled.

"This basic right of security should also extend to the Social Security benefits upon which so many disabled citizens rely. When the Reagan administration attempted to throw 500,000 disabled people off the Social Security roles without due process a few years ago, I ordered a moratorium in Massachusetts and developed an ineligibility standard that became the basis for national legislation to prevent such injustice in the future.

"As President, I will continue to show this kind of leadership and defend the rights of Social Security recipients.

"As Governor of Massachusetts, I have worked to create a system that recognizes that we must not only prevent discrimination against people with disabilities, obviously, as a first priority, but we must also work diligently to make housing, jobs, health care, transportation and other critical services accessible. We have built a network in Massachusetts of independent living centers that help people with disabilities to live as self-sufficiently as they possibly can. The philosophy of independent living has shaped all of our work for people with disabilities. Our services for early intervention, special education for young children, and the Turning 22 law that provides a transition plan for every child leaving special education at the age of 22.

"My administration developed the Nation's first program for people with head injuries. We worked with consumers in the private sector to develop a wide range of community-based housing models for people with physical and mental disabilities. And we strengthened the authority of the Architectural Access Board.

"In 1985, I proposed a balanced plan to strengthen services for people with mental illness, including new hospitals and expanded

community care and housing. We have opened 11 counseling outreach and treatment centers for Vietnam veterans. We are improving health care services to older veterans. And in all of these initiatives we have had the very, very strong support and commitment from members of the Massachusetts Legislature.

"I believe that the top domestic priority for the next President of the United States must be to build a society that offers genuine opportunity to every citizen, including the nearly one in five Americans who have some form of physical or mental disability.

"The Americans with Disabilities Act will provide a legal standard against which all our efforts can be judged. As President, I will work with the Congress to enact it and I will commit my administration to developing policies and programs that reflect its principles.

"Working together, government, disabled citizens, and the private sector, we can build a new future of equality, independence and dignity for everyone with disabilities in the United States." [The prepared statement of Gov. Michael S. Dukakis follows:] STATEMENT BY GOVERNOR MICHAEL S. DUKAKIS, AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT The Americans With Disabilities Act of 1988 is a major step forward in protecting the civil rights of people with disabilities. Building on the principles of section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the newly enacted Fair Housing Amendments, the Act would provide comprehensive protection of the basic civil rights of people with disabilities. Protecting these fundamental rights has been the cornerstone of my policies as Governor and will be a major focus of my administration when I am elected president.

It is unacceptable that in the United States today, two out of three disabled adults are out of work. As President, I will work to provide incentives for people with disabilities to find meaningful jobs-jobs with a future that offer an opportunity to remain independent and self-sufficient. And we must make transportation more accessible because without adequate transportation, people with disabilities won't be able to get to their jobs. We need to work with every community across the country to create more accessible transportation.

Too often, the fear of losing health insurance keeps people with disabilities out of the work force. I recently signed a law that will make health insurance available to every man, woman and child in Massachusetts. A special provision of the law guarantees coverage to disabled persons. As President I will work to extend this health security to all people with disabilities.

This basic right of security should also extend to the social security benefits upon which so many disabled citizens rely. When the Reagan Administration attempted to throw 500,000 disabled people off the social security rolls without due process, I ordered a moratorium in Massachusetts and developed an eligibility standard that became the basis for national legislation to prevent such injustice in the future. As President, I will continue to show this kind of leadership and defend the rights of social security recipients.

As Governor of Massachusetts, I have worked to create a system that recognizes that we must not only only prevent discrimination against people with disabilities, but must also work diligently to make housing, jobs, health care, transportation and other critical services accessible.

We have built a network in Massachusetts of independent living centers that help people with disabilities to live as self-sufficiently as they can. The philosophy of independent living has shaped all of our work for people with disabilities-our serv ices for early intervention, special education for young children, and the turning 22 law that provides a transition plan for every child leaving special education. My administration developed the Nation's first program for people with head injuries; we wide range of communiworked with consumers and the private sector to develop ty-based housing models for people with physical and mental disabilities; and we strengthened the authority of the architectural access board. In 1985, I proposed a balanced plan to strengthen services for people with mental illness, including new hospitals and expanded community care and housing. We have opened 11 counsel

ing, outreach and treatment centers for Vietnam veterans. We are improving health care services to older veterans.

I believe that the top domestic priority of the next president of the United States must be to build a society that offers genuine opportunity to every citizen—including the nearly one in five Americans who have some form of physical or mental disability.

The Americans With Disabilities Act will provide a legal standard against which all our efforts can be judged. As President, I will work with Congress to enact it and I will commit my administration to developing policies and programs that reflect its principles. Working together-Government, disabled citizens, and the private sector-we can build a new future of equality, independence, and dignity for everyone with disabilities in the United States.

TESTIMONY OF PHILIP W. JOHNSTON, SECRETARY OF HUMAN SERVICES,
COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS

Thank you for giving me this opportunity to express my enthusiastic support of the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1988. I have with me a prepared statement from Governor Dukakis that I would like to enter into the record.

The Americans With Disabilities Act will for the first time in statute protect the basic civil rights of every disabled citizen of the United States. As such it is the most far-reaching piece of legislation affecting people with disabilities since section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The principles embraced in this act have guided the programs and policies of the Dukakis administration and we sincerely hope the act will be passed this session.

As an administration we have long recognized that people with disabilities are a legitimate minority who have faced discrimination on many fronts and have a fundamental right of access to the same benefits as all citizens. Our policies and programs reflect a strong commitment to prevent discrimination while serving to make access to jobs, transportation, housing, and health care a reality for the widest range possible of disabled citizens.

We have been significantly influenced by the independent living movement and its philosophy of consumer control in the design and implementation of programs. All of our efforts have been partnerships between government and disabled citizens-partnerships which have allowed us to offer services that are truly responsive to the needs of disabled people.

I would like to cite a few of our initiatives that are specially relevant to the Americans With Disabilities Act. When he took office in 1983, Governor Dukakis issued Executive Order 246 prohibiting discrimination against people with disabilities in the executive branch. This order parallels section 504 in that it reflects on activities in government. The Americans With Disabilities Act would extend these protections to disabled citizens in every area of their lives and reinforce our ability to enforce this requirement in all of our agencies.

Despite Federal cutbacks under the Reagan administration, we have actively worked for a housing program to provide thousands of new units of accessible housing Statewide. The fair housing amendments were an important first step toward ensuring that public and private housing meets all accessibility criteria set out by State and Federal law. The Americans With Disabilities Act will do much to further ensure that all people with disabilities have equal access to housing in the increasingly tight market.

Jobs are another area where the Americans With Disabilities Act will play a critical role. In America today, two out of three disabled adults are unemployed. The Dukakis administration is tackling that in Massachusetts by making people with disabilities the main focus of our job creation and job training programs. Building on the success of ET, which has placed over 50,000 welfare recipients into good jobs, we are striving to ensure that people with disabilities in Massachusetts have access to jobs in the private sector and the support they may need to do those jobs. The passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act could spur the Federal Government to invest more in programs like supported employment and to target JTPA and other Federal programs specifically to training and placement of disabled people.

Finally, health security is critical to the lives of disabled citizens who may be discouraged from seeking work because they are afraid of losing Federal or State health coverage. We in Massachusetts are proud to be the first Štate in the Nation to guarantee health coverage to every citizen. Two special provisions in the law cover children with disabilities and working disabled adults. The passage of the Americans With Disabilities Act would set a standard for insurers and offer incen

tives in health insurance programs to allow disabled citizens to live and work as independently as possible.

We, in Massachusetts, are proud of our accomplishments to ensure access and equity to people with disabilities. With a strong Federal law, we will be able to move into new areas of advocacy and program development as a State.

I strongly urge that you recommend the act to committee and that you work to pass this essential and long overdue piece of legislation. People with disabilities have every right to have the same opportunities available to them that are available to any American.

Mr. JOHNSTON. That is the Governor's statement. Now, I would like just very briefly to read my own statement. I am going to abridge this a little bit and I will give you copies of the statement, itself.

As an administration in Massachusetts, we have long recognized that people with disabilities are a legitimate minority who have faced discrimination on many fronts as Mr. Dart has so eloquently pointed out and who have a fundamental right of access to the same benefits as all citizens. Our policies and programs in the State reflect a strong commitment to prevent discrimination while serving to make access to jobs, transportation, housing and health care a reality for the widest range possible of disabled citizens.

It is very, very important in the discussion this morning to understand that in Massachusetts, we have been significantly influenced-the Governor has been influenced, I have been influenced and, as Congressman Atkins indicated, virtually every member of the legislature has been influenced, by the independent living movement and its philosophy of consumer control in the design and implementation of programs. All of our efforts have been partnerships between government and disabled citizens, partnerships which have allowed us to offer services that are truly responsive to the needs of disabled persons. I would like to cite a few of our initiatives that might be helpful to the committee and to the Congress that are specially relevant to the Americans With Disabilities Act. When he did take office in January of 1983, for the second time as Governor, Michael Dukakis issued Executive Order 246 which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in the executive branch. That order parallels section 504 in that it reflects on activities in the Government.

The Americans With Disabilities Act would extend these protections to disabled citizens in every area of their lives and would reinforce our ability to enforce this requirement in all of our agen

cies.

Despite Federal cutbacks under the Reagan administration, we have actively worked for a housing program to provide thousands of new units of accessible housing statewide. The Fair Housing Amendments were an important first step toward ensuring that public and private housing meets all accessibility criteria set out by State and Federal law. The Americans With Disabilities Act will do much to further ensure that all people with disabilities have equal access to housing in what is admittedly a tight housing market not only in this region of the country, but in most regions.

Jobs are another area where the Americans With Disabilities Act will play a critical role. Our administration is tackling that in Massachusetts by making people with disabilities the main focus of our job creation and job training programs. Building on the success of

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