2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998
Leroy Moore
Damian Pickering
Sergio Alunan
Jim Brune
Vincent Behan
Ed Evans
Michael Kwok
August Longo
Allison Lum
Frank Marone
Walter Park
Council Secretary
Mayor’s Disability Council
Minutes
21 June 2002
1:14 p.m.
1 ROLL CALL
Mayor’s Disability Council Members Present: Vincent Behan, Jim Brune (1:25 p.m.), Ed Evans, Michael Kwok, Leroy Moore, and Damian Pickering.
Excused Absent: Allison Lum
Absent: Sergio Alunan, August Longo, and Frank Marone
Mayor’s Office on Disability: Walter Park, Director; Susan Mizner, Assistant Director; and Grace Lee, Acting Assistant to the Director.
Co-Chair, Damian Pickering called the meeting to order.
2 APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA.
The agenda of the June 21, 2002 meeting was approved.
3 APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES.
The minutes from the meetings of March and April 2002 were approved.
4 PUBLIC COMMENT.
· Jerry Grace commented that there was a lot of good information given at the April 2002 MDC meeting. He was unable to attend the March meeting, but he knows that the council did a good job.
· Damian Pickering noted that there is a call-in bridge whereby individuals can call from outside of the meeting and be a part of public comment. The phone number is 554-9632. Also, Braille agendas are available for the meeting.
· Norma Block, an applicant for the Mayor’s Disability Council, expressed her interest in having in-home support services being made available at shelters, and in terms of priority policy for housing for the mentally ill. She has been an advocate for almost three years and would like to represent accessibility to mental health services on the Mayor’s Disability Council.
5 REPORT FROM THE CO-CHAIRS.
· Damian Pickering reported that Sergio Alunan has tendered his resignation to the Council. Sergio Alunan’s work demands have precluded him from participating on the council. Although Council Member Alunan was not present, Council Member Pickering thanked him for his participation.
Damian Pickering reported that he attended the May 8th California Transportation Committee meeting (an advisory committee to CalTrans). There were about twenty members from the blind community from the Bay Area that encouraged accessibility be considered in any new installations of signal technologies, and that the State guidelines for allowable accessible signals types be expanded. He will follow the issue of what triggers the installation of accessible signals. Any interested individuals can contact him at the Lighthouse for the Blind, 415-431-1481 x250.
6 REPORT FROM THE DIRECTOR
Walter Park reported the following:
_ There was an annual awards meeting of the Mayor’s Committee on Employment of Persons with Disabilities held since the last MDC meeting. The Mayor attended the meeting and reported that there has not been much progress in employment of people with disabilities in the U.S., twelve years after the passage of the ADA. A job fair will be held again in October. The Mayor also commented about the recent string of unfortunate Supreme Court decisions.
_ The Mayor’s Office on Disability (MOD) has funded 104 new curb ramps in San Francisco through the Department of Public Works with a grant of $575,000. Construction will take place through January 2003. It will be the first time that public right-of-way funding has come directly from the MOD.
_ It is a difficult budget year, however the MOD is maintaining its efforts at providing citywide accessibility.
_ Plan Review efforts are an important process at the MOD. It results in fifteen to twenty plan review or site inspection cases a month. The MOD is currently restructuring its review process, with the goal of reducing duplicate efforts with the Department of Building Inspection. The MOD office reviews approximately 500 projects per year.
_ Walter Park described a few legal cases, citing the Chevron employment case. Many of the Supreme Court cases that are narrowing the civil rights of people with disabilities are in the employment area. Title I is not providing the protection it used to.
_ Walter Park cited a case in the Ninth Circuit court in the U.S. District that involved the City of Sacramento. The Ninth Circuit decided that the public right-of-way, including sidewalks, is a program of local government and therefore must be accessible. This will impact SF’s public right-of-way planning.
_ Walter Park and Susan Mizner attended a meeting of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community Council. The council discussed the implementation of a Needs Assessment that was completed in November 2001. One of the goals is to have a staff person who is responsible for gathering together the various responsibilities that the council would like to fulfill for people who are deaf or hard of hearing to ensure access to City Services.
_ The Mayor’s Office on Disability is moving along with its replacement staff. Grace Lee is at the MOD temporarily. There is also a temporary person conducting plan reviews and site reviews while Richard Skaff is out on disability leave. There will be a couple of interns in the office in the fall, including a Fulbright Scholar from Portugal.
7 COMMITTEE REPORTS.
REPORT FROM THE EMPLOYMENT COMMITTEE
The Employment Committee did not meet in June 2002.
REPORT FROM THE PROGRAMMATIC ACCESS COMMITTEE
Harry Mar reported on the Programmatic Access Committee meeting of June 7, 2002. The committee decided to table the efforts towards bid preference for businesses owned by disabled persons until there is more expressed interest in the program. The committee is reviewing the MOD website for content, presentation and accessibility. The committee hopes to have recommendations by the next Programmatic Access Meeting scheduled to take place on July 12th at the Lighthouse for the Blind at 11:00 a.m. Comments on the MOD website are welcomed; Harry Mar can be contacted at the Mayor’s Office on Disability, 554-6791.
8 CRIMES AGAINST PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES PRESENTATION
· Leroy Moore gave a background on the crimes against people with disabilities issue, noting that he has been tracking the issues for years. Last year the Disability Advocates of Minorities Organizations, DAMO, presented the first open forum on senseless crimes against people with disabilities and the community in the Mission District.
He noted that the Senate is revisiting the Hate Crime Bill, attempting to get it passed once again after failing to pass in 1999 and 2000. The bill would include people with disabilities and homosexuals. (Handouts regarding the status of the bill made available at the meeting.)
· Carolyn Kosanouvong, Crimes Against Persons with Disabilities Specialist working at the Fresno County Center for Independent Living, presented PowerPoint slides (presentation hardcopy distributed at meeting) on the epidemic of violence on people with disabilities. She cited statistics on the high level of violent crimes against children and adults with disabilities versus that of the general population, although such crimes result in low rates of prosecutions and convictions. She outlined what is being done and what can be done to decrease the level of crime against people with disabilities. The Crime Victims with Disabilities Initiative includes a funding program of pilot grants in six counties to improve the reporting of crimes against people with disabilities, to assist in the investigation, prosecution, trial, and victim assistance of crime victims with disabilities. For more information about the Crime Victims with Disabilities Initiative, individuals can contact Dan Sorensen, 916-651-9906
· Yvette Taylor Monokino, Human Resource Manager at the District Attorney’s office, outlined her role in being responsible for ADA issues surrounding employment access. She is the contact person for individuals needing accommodation during an interview, or throughout their employment. Reginald Smith, the Law Office Manager, coordinates access that deals with programs and buildings.
She reported that the Assistant District Attorneys are not provided with any special in-house training on working with people with disabilities. Most attorneys do attend ongoing continuing education in maintaining their requirements for the Bar.
Crimes that are prosecuted or brought forth through the District Attorney are tracked, but are not tracked specifically as hate crimes against people with disabilities. Yvette Monokino suggested that the Council could share some information that would be helpful in developing mechanisms to help track such issues.
She described the role of the Victim Witness Unit, which coordinates cases for victims in a centralized manner to reduce redundancy. She further stated that cases must be brought forward on their own merits, and are handled on a case-by-case basis. Thus it is difficult for her to offer a formula to the Victim Witness Staff on how to assist individuals. She raised the issue on whether a victim of a crime, disabled or otherwise, might have resistance or additional barriers to either reporting, approaching or navigating the criminal justice system. She asked that the MDC provide some information in that regard.
She welcomed any information or input from the MDC for her Department, or the Victim Witness Unit, the Law Office Manager, and for Mr. Hallinan himself, in the areas of staff training, coordination of services, and perhaps tracking mechanisms to better serve the disabled community. The Director of the Victim Witness Unit is Linda Alexander (554-1044), and her deputy is Cynthia Alexis (554-2408). Yvette Taylor can be reached at 553-1009 for issues regarding employment and ADA access. Reginald Smith, Law Office Manager, can be reached at 553-1268 for issues regarding access or training.
· Sergeant Michael Sullivan outlined his background in serving as the ADA Coordinator for the Police Department since 1993. One of the first things he worked on was training for police officers and determining what needed to be included in that training. He created a Disability Awareness Guide, updated every two years; he is including interviewing techniques in the guide this year. Currently there is elder abuse training and training on the topic of hate crimes. He stressed the importance of people with disabilities having an ADA coordinator to go to.
· Ed Evans questioned Sergeant Sullivan on what procedures officers go through to be trained for responding to incidents, and how familiar are officers with regulations on service animals and access in general.
Michael Sullivan responded that such information is covered in training. Also, two videos have just been created with the California Hotel-Motel Owners Association; one for the industry regarding people with service animals and the other specific to law enforcement.
Ed Evans indicated that there seems to be a number of incidences involving under-trained personnel. He asked if there is any kind of training that might be available, especially for rent-a-cops, so that such incidences can be avoided.
Michael Sullivan replied that he has shared that training with people.
· Damian Pickering asked Carolyn Kosanouvong for a clarification on the term "vertical prosecution." Ms. Kosanouvong replied that it is the prosecutor or the prosecuting units that makes the initial filing, or the appearance in a case, and performs all subsequent stages. The prosecutor is assigned to the case and the victim works with that prosecutor from the initial reporting through the sentencing phase. Vertical prosecution has been proven effective in prosecuting cases that involve crime victims with disabilities. It reduces the trauma of victims, and there is a higher rate of convictions.
· Leroy Moore asked Ms. Kosanouvong how long are the grants, and when can a city apply for the next round of the pilot program? She replied that the next grant cycle year would be around June or July 2003. Information can be obtained from:
· Michael Kwok asked Sergeant Sullivan about the incident at the Sony Metreon several months ago involving a young man with a developmental or mental disability being killed in an altercation with the security of the building.
Sergeant Sullivan was unable to discuss the particular case because it’s still open. But he did note that there were two pilot 40-hour training courses last year for police officers. The courses covered mental illnesses, developmental disabilities, mobile crises and presentations from psychiatrists, psychologists. The department is waiting for funding for four future courses in October, January, March, and July. He encouraged the Council to provide any assistance that they can.
· Leroy Moore asked Yvette Monokino what kinds of training does the Victim Witness Unit receive.
Ms. Monokino replied that the training they receive is mandated through the State. It is a week-long course that focuses on assessment and some of the concerns and issues that will be brought forth by victims, and their mandated reporting for certain issues like child abuse, elder abuse and so on. The training is not specifically geared toward members of the community with disabilities and it is clear that a gap exists by not providing this training.
· Ed Evans asked if anything has been done through the District Attorney’s Office or through the Police Department about crimes against the disabled with regards to their finances.
Sergeant Sullivan answered that in the Domestic Violence Unit, there is an investigator whose sole purpose is to investigate such cases. There is a District Attorney with whom they work closely with to prosecute the case.
Public Comment
· Jerry Grace commented that he works with parents that are missing children. He stressed the importance of educating children about the issues.
9 INTERNATIONAL DISABILITY REPORT
Walter Park and Jim Brune attended the May 2002 International Disability Conference in Jihad, about two and a half hours south of Budapest in Hungary.
· Jim Brune reported on his conference experience:
· 150 participants attended from twelve different countries.
· Workshops were presented over two and a half days on legal issues, advanced civil rights issues, new reports from the Hungarian government on the status of people with disabilities, and strategies for removing architectural barriers.
· He attended a media campaign workshop coordinated by disabled students in Belgrade, Yugoslavia. During the workshop, four film vignettes were shown that focused on increasing awareness of people with disabilities.
· Another workshop, from the European Disability Forum (EDF), focused on international non-profit organizations. The EDF, an organization of the European Union, was consulted by the Council of European Nations for advice on access and nondiscrimination policies. The EDF also promotes European Year of People with Disabilities, which will happen during the year of 2003.
· One workshop session included "country reports" from each of the countries represented. Each member discussed the status of people with disabilities in their respective countries. It appears that there has been little progress within organizations that provide services for the disabled. There are no policies on a national level to guarantee access and nondiscrimination.
· Jim Brune had the opportunity to meet four deaf people from Hungary; one man was the President of the National Association of Deaf and Hard of Hearing People in Croatia, and another man was one of the few sign language interpreters of Slovakia. One accomplishment was that in 1996, the national government in Slovakia recognized sign language as the language of the deaf. It is something the United States has not done on a federal level. Also, in Slovakia, there isn’t an interpreter-training program, which means there are very few interpreters in the whole country.
· Walter Park reported on the conference and meetings in Israel with disability advocates:
· Walter showed photos of local methods of providing accessible parking spaces, curb ramps, and physical accessibility in Central Europe. There were cases in which there were attempts at making areas accessible, but were lacking in prescriptive detail. In Israel, some ancient historic areas and structures had well-planned physical accessibility. Even in those areas, though, programmatic access to government services is not yet required.
· He described how there is no single solution for the people with disabilities in different cultures and countries; it is not possible to simply export the ADA. While the principal goals of accessibility are universal, the details that make it all work, the regulations for architectural compliance, policies, funding programs, organizations of in-home support workers, interpreters, and so on, either don’t exist, or are considered in vague terms. There is much more work to be done.
· Finally, there is a new proposed United Nations Persons with Disabilities Convention under discussion. It may provide basic principles, helping to define what is needed for physical access and access to government services.
10 SUPPORT FOR FAMILIES OF CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES
· Audrey deChadenedes, representing the Support for Families of Children with Disabilities, described the services provided by her organization. It is a non-profit that provides information, education, and parent-to-parent support of families who have a child with any kind of disability or special heath care need. In celebration of the organization’s 20th anniversary, it is holding an event called Walk and Roll, scheduled for June 30th, 2002 at Golden Gate Park. She invited the entire community to join in the event. More information about the organization can be found at: www.supportforfamilies.org, or by calling Audrey deChadenedes at: 415-282-7494.
11 REVIEW OF TRANSLINK PILOT PROJECT
· Dr. Bill Crandall of the Smith Kettlewell Eye Research Institute, phone number 345-2111, reported on the Translink Fare System:
· The system links together 5 of the Bay Area transportation systems (BART, MUNI, AC Transit, CalTrain, and the Valley) in a united fare system. The fare system involves a micro-chipped memory fare card with information that can be accessed through the telephone and the Internet.
· The recent focus has been on-site evaluation of the accessibility of the card selling machines by people with various disabilities. Twelve people with mobility impairments, visual impairments, and cognitive impairments have been surveyed on their ability to use the system. Significant issues have been identified and will need to be address, as the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) is committed to making the machine as useful to as many people as possible.
· Ed Evans asked if the new card will replace MUNI’s Fast Pass, and if it will resolve the problem of disabled persons being charged per ride on BART within San Francisco city limits.
Dr. Crandall responded that the programmatic aspects of the rate structure have not yet been addressed. He suggested that a list of questions or concerns be created and forwarded to him so that people can be identified to resolve the problems.
· Damian Pickering questioned Dr. Crandall about whether it is possible to obtain balance information, the number of rides remaining, and so forth.
Dr. Crandall indicated that the add value machines can provide balance information. A possible solution is to provide visually impaired consumers with a card reader that accesses all of the information stored on the card.
· Dr. Crandall pointed out that, when boarding BART or a MUNI bus, the fare card does not need to be inserted into a slot. The card reader device can sense the fare card within 2 to 3 inches.
12 CORRESPONDENCE
None.
13 PUBLIC COMMENT ON ITEMS NOT ON AGENDA BUT WITHIN THE JURISDICTION OF MDC.
· Jerry Grace had a question about a workshop, and when it would be presented again.
14 MEMBER REQUESTS FOR FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
· Ed Evans suggested that the Council invite Heidi Seek Williams, a telecommunications and policy specialist with the Department of Telecommunications and Information Services, and Joan Hicks, Operator for the Emergency Department, to discuss if new 3-1-1 numbers would make communications within City government easier and more cost effective, and the implications of such a change for the disabled community.
He suggested that individuals could contact him should they have any physical access problems within the City. He noted that individuals could request to be added to the Physical Access Committee mailing list by calling 554-6789.
· Leroy Moore requested that there be a follow-up on a hearing about in-home support services. He recalled that there was a proposal to invite an agency to the Council meeting to educate members on the issue.
15 COUNCILORS’ COMMENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
· Damian Pickering informed the public about two art exhibits funded through the Mayor’s Office on Disability that have accessibility features. Both exhibits take place on the lower level of City Hall:
Through June 30th:
July 3rd through September:
Damian Pickering announced that he will not be able to attend the July Mayor’s Disability Council meeting because he will be guiding dogs in San Rafael and getting his first dog.
· Leroy Moore had three announcements:
· He will read poetry for a radio show on sexuality and disability on June 26, 2002, KPFA Radio FM 94.1, at 11:00 a.m.
· The Disability Advocates of Minorities Organization is starting a Breaking the Silence Organizing Campaign. The first meeting will be at the Bayview Library in July. He can be contacted at: 510-649-8438, email address: [email protected].
· There will be a hearing on the Individual Disability Education Act at UC Berkeley. More information will be available in July.
· Walter Park reminded everyone that community meeting announcements are posted on the Mayor’s Office on Disability website. The meetings mentioned will be posted at: http://www.sfgov.org/sfmod/calendar.htm.
16 ADJOURNMENT.
The meeting was adjourned at 3:58 p.m.