Hearing of the Senate HELP Committee on "Opportunities for Too Few? Oversight of Federal Employment Programs for Persons with Disabilities"

Hearing of the Senate HELP Committee on "Opportunities for Too Few? Oversight of Federal Employment Programs for Persons with Disabilities"

Mr. Chairman and Senator Kennedy, I would like to thank you, and your staff, for scheduling this hearing. It is long overdue and very timely given that October is National Disabilities month.

I have been involved with disability issues in Ohio for a very long time and feel strongly about the importance of quality employment opportunities for people with disabilities.

Jobs play a vital part in providing a sense of productivity and fulfillment to all people. While it is difficult for some persons with disabilities to obtain employment or training, I laud those of you here, like Michael Nelson, who have overcome barriers to obtain and maintain that employment.

Despite the undeniable importance of having a job, $15 Million persons with disabilities are actively seeing employment, yet remain unable to find it. Why? Why do persons with disabilities remain unemployed when we have federal programs in place to assist them in their efforts to find gainful employment? There simply has been no measurable change in the unemployment situation for persons with disabilities since the American's with Disabilities Act. That is unacceptable. It is wrong. It is something we have to change. We can do better, and we have to do better.

As members of Congress, it is our job to ensure that the programs we create and fund work in the manner we intended. It does a disservice to everyone if we do not examine these programs to ensure the focus is where it should be. And that focus is on getting as many people with disabilities into quality, sustainable long-term employment as we can.

However, we need not limit our scope to the two programs we are discussing today. The federal government can do a better job to employ persons with disabilities both directly and indirectly. We have got to think about how we can better utilize all the available federal resources and look at new ways of providing employment opportunities.

I believe there may be a chance to do just that with the release of certain federal contracts. The federal government is in the process of putting out contracts for certain types of jobs that are suited for people with disabilities. I've discussed this issue with Senator Ben Nelson just recently, and we're going to be working on ways to encourage private companies who apply for federal contracts to hire people with disabilities.

There are many models in the private industry. For example, in my home state of Ohio, LaRosa's Pizza in Cincinnati has worked to employ persons with disabilities through a partnership with the state. This has been very successful, and we need to encourage other businesses to form similar partnerships.

I look forward to working with everyone on these issues.

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