Transcript Slide 1

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National Disability Institute
Building a Better Economic Future for Americans with Disabilities
Linking AT with
Economic
Empowerment
Engines
21st
Century
2010 Annual Conference of
AT Act Programs
Host: National AT Technical
Assistance Partnership
Johnette Hartnett, Ed.D.
National Disability Institute
Washington, DC
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Nation’s proper goals regarding individuals
with disabilities are to assure equality of
opportunity, full participation, independent
living, and economic self-sufficiency for such
individuals.
42 U.S.C §1201(a)(8)(2005)
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Disability and Economic Development
21st Century Economic
Empowerment Goals
19th Century
for People with Disabilities
Evolution
Life Insurance
Funeral Industry
Hospitals
Veteran Pensions
Education
Banks
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Research
Public Benefits
Railroads
Institutions
Schools for the Blind
Homestead Act
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Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Improve economic status
Increase quality of life
Reduce technology barriers
Develop new partnerships
Recognize disability as
power market
Reform public policy
Increase social expectations
Lift asset limits
Introduce new financial
products and services
Create new jobs
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Disability and Economic Development
21st Century Economic
20th Century
Vocational Rehabilitation
Women Rights
Empowerment Goals
Nursing Homes
Federal Reserve
for People with Disabilities
Tax Code
Social Security
Civil Rights
Labor Laws
Doubled Mortality Rates
Individual Disability
Education Act
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Americans with Disability Act
Architectural Barriers Act
1968
Rehabilitation Act 1973 (Section 504)
Television Decoder Circuitry Act of 1990
Assets for Independence Act
Section 508 1986
Tech Act 1988
AT Act 1998
Welfare Reform 1996
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Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Improve economic status
Increase quality of life
Reduce technology barriers
Develop new partnerships
Recognize disability as
power market
Reform public policy
Increase social expectations
Lift asset limits
Introduce new financial
products and services
Create new jobs
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
What is economic empowerment?
Economic empowerment is the capacity to preserve and grow
resources acquired through access to social, human and financial
capital that expand and sustain quality life choices.
Where do we find the economic empowerment engines?
Community-Based Organizations providing tax and asset building
services
Private Sector Corporations and Foundations
Federal, State and Local Government Programs
Who are your partners?
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
UNDERSTANDING DISABILITY MARKET
•54 MILLION OR ONE OUT OF FIVE AMERICANS REPORT A DISABILITY
•91.4% LIVE IN A HOUSEHOLD AND 8.6% IN GROUP QUARTERS
•24.4% OF THE 113.1 MILLION HOUSEHOLDS IN US CONTAIN AT LEAST
ONE PERSON
WITH A DISABILITY
•PRE-TAX
INCOME FOR
US HOUSEHOLDS
IS
$8.1 TRILLION
17.8% OR $1.44
WITH DISABILITY.
OF WHICH
TRILLION IS HELD BY HOUSEHOLDS WITH A T LEAST ONE PERSON
•HOUSEHOLDS WITH PERSONS WITH A DISABILITY CONTROL 20% OF SPENDING
•PRE-TAX INCOME FOR EMPLOYED PERSONS WITH A DISABILITY IS $274. BILLION
COMPARED TO $133.7 BILLION FOR PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES NOT EMPLOYED
•25 PERCENT GROWTH IN DISABILITY SINCE 1990
•DISABILITY SPENDING GREW FROM $397.5 IN 2006 TO $542.8 BILLION IN 2007
(REPRESENTS FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL SPENDING)
•21.6 MILLION RECEIVE INCOME MAINTENANCE (SSI, SSDI, TANF, VA COMPENSATION,
FOOD STAMPS AND HUD)
•17.5 MILLION RECEIVE HEALTH CARE (6.8 M MEDICARE, 8.8 M MEDICAID, 1.8 M VA)
•7 MILLION K-12 GRADES SPECIAL EDUCATION
•7.2 MILLION LONG TERM CARE AND 1.04 INSTITUTIONALIZE
•34% OF US POPULATION IS COMPRISED OF MINORITY POPULATION
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
FISCAL RATIONALE FOR DISABILITY AS A FUTURE GROWTH MARKET
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$1 TRILLION IN AGGREGATE
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$220 BILLION DISCRETIONARY SPENDING
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DISABILITY MARKET IS LARGER THAN AFRICAN AMERICAN, LATINO AND GAY MARKET COMBINED
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DOUBLE THE FABLED SPENDING OF TWEENS AND MORE THAN SEVENTEEN TIMES THE SPENDING OF TWEENS
INCOME
8-12
YEAR OLDS
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70% OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES CHOOSE TO BUY FROM RETAILERS THAT
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92% FEEL MORE FAVORABLE
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DISABILITY IS NOT A NICHE MARKET BUT PART OF THREE MAJOR MOVEMENTS
REVOLUTION
SUPPORT PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
TOWARD COMPANIES THAT HIRE PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
2) KNOWLEDGE WORKER
1) DEMAND-DRIVEN CONSUMER RIGHTS
(DRUCKER) AND 3) BOOMER GENERATION.
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Economic Empowerment Programs Available in Many Cities
• Free Tax Preparation
• Financial Education
• Debt and Credit Counseling
• Matched Savings Programs
• Microenterprise
• Assistive Technology Loan Programs
• Home Ownership
• Health & Wellness
• Work Incentives – Social Security Administration
• Job Readiness and Training and Telework Opportunities
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Example of Free Tax Preparation Engine
Model: Tax Code Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) provided $49 B in refundable tax credits to qualified
taxpayers in 2009 and lifted 5 million taxpayers out of poverty.
Engines: IRS and over 600 Community-Based Organizations; 44,000 volunteers providing Volunteer Income
Tax Assistance (VITA) to 3 million taxpayers with over $1 billion in returns. Since 2005 NDI REI Tour
(www.reitour.org) became part of the VITA network and provided over 330,000 taxpayers with free
preparation services that saved $66 million in paid preparer fees. 60% of National Community Tax Coalition
members (www.nctc.org) providing asset building services. Private sector sponsors and VITA Grant
providing fuel. REI Tour tested Video Relay Service in DeafTax initiative in over a dozen cities providing real
time tax preparation remotely. In 2010 offered Savings Bonds option on tax return.
AT Opportunities: Are you partnering with local tax/asset building networks? Opportunities to compliment
existing loan programs operating with or at tax sites (credit unions, banks and CDFIs). Coalitions should be
asking about access needs on intake forms. TaxWise should ask access question. How can AT services be
integrated into free tax and asset building work?
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Model: Financial Services – Community Based Organizations provide financial education to reduce use of
predatory lending practices, help families out of debt, and stabilize economic security. Sometimes CBOs
partner with a local credit union or bank and offer enrollment opportunities at the site. Financial institutions
provide underbanked and unbanked customers an array of online games, products and services.
Engines: In addition to Community Based Organizations that provide a continuum of services from home
ownership to credit counseling, a number of Federal programs – FDIC, U.S. Treasury, USDA, IRS, Federal
Reserve are involved in advancing economic self sufficiency for an array of outreach strategies. State
Treasure Offices provide debt and credit services (online and otherwise) for customers. Many credit unions
and banks provide online financial education and access to financial services. Corporations like ATT have a
national assistive technology board that provides field information about needs and barriers. Individual
Development Account Programs (IDAs) available through a number of orgs – will hear more from panel
today. United Ways, Community Action Agencies, Mayor’s Offices, Community Councils, just a few of the
local partners doing tax prep with an additional strong financial stability agenda. VISA produced Financial
Soccer for NDI – a video game with 100 questions on benefits. Not accessible for the blind.
AT Opportunities: Community Based Organizations need education and information about AT strategies –
device loans, device demos, AT advocacy and financing assistance. As more people with disabilities are
integrated into the economic mainstream the more assistive technology needs, products and services will be
in demand. Are AT programs providing outreach to these markets? How can AT assist tax and asset building
field in expanding its programs to people challenged with transportation barriers?
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Linking AT with 21st Century
Economic Empowerment Engines
Johnette Hartnett, Ed.D.
Director REI Tour
National Disability Institute
202-296-2043
[email protected]
www.reitour.org
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org
Real Economic Impact Tour
The Real Economic Impact Tour (REI Tour) - a national initiative of the National Disability
Institute (NDI) - delivers free tax preparation and filing assistance, along with other asset
building strategies to low-income persons with disabilities. The REI Tour is a public-private
collaboration designed to provide Americans with disabilities insight, tools and resources to
improve their lives through financial education, training and counseling. For more information
on the Tour please visit www.REITour.org and to learn more about NDI’s economic
empowerment projects visit www.realeconomicimpact.org.
REI Tour Sponsors
Tax knowledge is freedom. www.reitour.org