Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/dpn/
and
The Burton Blatt Institute
Syracuse University
http://bbi.syr.edu
One–Stop Toolkit
Resources of the Week Technical Assistance Project E–Mail listserv
7 December 2007
Good morning everyone,
Below please find the web site and publication of the week, as well as other resources that we hope will be useful as you work on systems change activities to help improve employment opportunities for persons with disabilities.
To subscribe and / or view past resources of the week archives, access: www.onestoptoolkit.org and click on the link to "Resources of the Week" on the right hand side of the home page.
To view an indexed list of the resources of the week by subject matter, visit the L.P.H.D.C. web site at http://disability.law.uiowa.edu/lhpdc/resources/wig/default.asp. It currently includes 20 categories, covering over 300 annotated references. Each category opens to a new window with each Resource of the Week which covered material in that area.
Have a good day and weekend!
Laura Gleneck
Program Associate
Law, Health Policy & Disability Center
University of Iowa College of Law
P: 617–489–0086
F: 617–489–1374
[ E–mail Lgleneck@mail.law.uiowa.edu ]
[ E–mail LFarah8@aol.com ]
[ http://www.onestoptoolkit.org ]
[The Tax Benefits for Business full announcement is located under the section heading "Resources of Interest."]
[The Real Economic Impact Tour full announcement is located under the section heading "Publications of Interest."]
Disability Program Navigators are always looking for resources to share with their One-Stop Career Center business services/job service team to include in their marketing and outreach information to employers on hiring job seekers with disabilities. The information on tax benefits for businesses accommodating persons with disabilities is a great resource to include with these materials. This publication from the Internal Revenue Service informs businesses that there are tax benefits in the form of credits and deductions for businesses that accommodate individuals with disabilities. Read the full description of these credits and deductions under “Resources of Interest.” You can also access the URL to find links to additional information about these business topics concerning accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
So, what does it mean to make a “Real Economic Impact” for people with disabilities? The roadmap out of poverty for millions of working Americans with disabilities is being paved by a grassroots movement of community-based organizations nationwide called the Real Economic Impact Tour (REI Tour. The 2006-2007 Annual Progress Report outlines just how it is doing so. Through an array of new partnerships both nationally and locally, the movement is building knowledge and workgroups that are identifying issues specific to taxpayers with disabilities. The Tour in three years has spurred the publication of national research, Congressional reports and ad hoc committees identifying the specific challenges facing thousands of taxpayers with disabilities.
Through the Real Economic Impact Tour and its goal to build a better financial future for persons with disabilities, the National Disability Institute (NDI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) partnered with Bank of America in 2007. The goal of this partnership was to increase the economic well-being of low-income taxpayers with disabilities by strengthening and expanding the capacity of grassroots community-based EITC coalitions to increase access to favorable tax credits, financial education and other asset building opportunities for taxpayers with disabilities. Access the publication under “Publications of Interest” to learn more about this tour and how it is increasing disability awareness and outreach in local communities….some may be in your own community or nearby.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, in collaboration with the American Public Human Services Association, continues its TANF teleconference series each addressing ways that states can both promote and support work and improve client engagement in work and training activities. These free calls are open to state and local human service agency administrators and staff, provider groups, and nonprofits interested in TANF-related issues.
| Call time: | 2:00 – 3:15 P.M. (Eastern Time) |
|---|---|
| Call-in Number: | 1-877-410-5657 |
| Passcode: | TANF |
Access the website for the confirmed schedule and materials for upcoming calls as well as information about previous calls in this series and the Spring/Summer 2007 Teleconference Series, including audio files and materials.
The U.S. Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration hosted a Webinar on November 30th, featuring two educational programs that link disconnected youth to education and the workforce through applied learning: Job Corps and Youth Build. Representatives from Job Corps and Year One YouthBuild provided an overview of their programs, described potential opportunities for partnerships, and highlighted promising practices that communities could incorporate into their programs and initiatives. You must be a registered user of Workforce3One to listen to and view Webinars. Access the URL to register to view the archive Webinar.
Headliner Volume 217
October 31, 2007
[The following is excerpted from the website.]
October is National Disability Awareness month and the perfect time for the IRS to remind businesses there are tax benefits in the form of credits and deductions for businesses that accommodate individuals with disabilities.
The Disabled Access Credit provides a non-refundable credit for small businesses that incur expenditures for the purpose of providing access to persons with disabilities. An eligible small business is one that that earned $1 million or less or had no more than 30 full time employees in the previous year; they may take the credit each and every year they incur access expenditures. Refer to Form 8826, Disabled Access Credit (PDF), for information about eligible expenditures.
The Architectural Barrier Removal Tax Deduction encourages businesses of any size to remove architectural and transportation barriers to the mobility of persons with disabilities and the elderly. Businesses may claim a deduction of up to $15,000 a year for qualified expenses for items that normally must be capitalized. Businesses claim the deduction by listing it as a separate expense on their income tax return. Also, businesses may use the Disabled Tax Credit and the architectural/transportation tax deduction together in the same tax year, if the expenses meet the requirements of both sections. To use both, the deduction is equal to the difference between the total expenditures and the amount of the credit claimed.
The Work Opportunity Credit provides eligible employers with a tax credit up to 40 percent of the first $6,000 of first-year wages of a new employee if the employee is part of a “targeted group.” An employee with a disability is one of the targeted groups for the Work Opportunity Credit, provided the appropriate government agencies have certified the employee as disabled. The credit is available to the employer once the employee has worked for at least 120 hours or 90 days. Employers claim the credit on Form 5884, Work Opportunity Credit (PDF).
For 2007, there are new Work Opportunity Credit rules for veterans with a service-related disability. The first-year wages taken into account for qualified veterans with disabilities who were hired after May 25, 2007 is increased to $12,000. See the “What’s New” section of Form 5584 for 2007.
Many businesses misclassify workers in a sheltered workshop as independent contractors when they really are employees. Revenue Ruling 65-165 discusses the treatment of such workers in each of the following categories:
Access the URL to view and download any of the forms referenced in this article. On this website, you will also find links to additional information about these business topics concerning accommodations for individuals with disabilities.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently published three helpful brochures that describe the Schedule A hiring process. Schedule A is special appointing or hiring authority that can be used to facilitate hiring individuals with disabilities into federal jobs. Federal agencies fill jobs two ways, competitively and noncompetitively. Persons with disabilities may apply for jobs filled either way. Jobs filled competitively are advertised through vacancy announcements. Jobs that are filled noncompetitively do not have to be advertised. Instead, a selecting official can select a person with a disability who has a Schedule A certification and is qualified for the job.
The three EEOC publications listed below are available in electronic (.pdf and Word) form and in hard copy as well. To order one or more of these Schedule A quick reference guides send an e-mail to: E–mail LEAD.Initiative@eeoc.gov. Please indicate which guide(s) you are interested in, and whether you would like a hard copy or an electronic copy. For hard copies, please provide the mailing address to which you would like the brochures shipped.
For information about EEOC’s LEAD initiative (Leadership for the Employment of Americans with Disabilities) visit the following link: http://www.eeoc.gov/initiatives/lead/index.html. For additional resources on recruiting qualified job candidates with disabilities see the fact sheet Strategic Connections: Recruiting Candidates with Disabilities located at: http://www.dol.gov/odep/pubs/fact/connect.htm.
As an approved Employment Network (EN), your organization will have available a host of services and tools designed to support your Ticket to Work Program efforts. From training on Program procedures to tracking Program activity, we’re here to help. Below is a list of some of these services:
If you have any questions, please call the MAXIMUS EN/VR Education and Communications Department at 866-968-7842.
The Interagency Subcommittee on Employment (ISE) of the Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) provided an opportunity for researchers and business leaders, as well as service providers, policy-makers, and advocates, to come together at the Employer Perspectives on Workers with Disabilities: A National Summit to Develop a Research Agenda. These groups from the public and private sectors met Sept. 19–20, 2006 in Washington, D.C. to guide the ISE in setting a national research agenda focused on the needs of American businesses in employing people with disabilities.
[The following is excerpted from the Executive Summary.]
The roadmap out of poverty for millions of working Americans with disabilities is being paved by a grassroots movement of community-based organizations nationwide called the Real Economic Impact Tour (REI Tour). The 54 city Tour in 2007 built on the existing work being led by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, United Way of America, the National Community Tax Coalition and other national organizations in providing EITC outreach to an underserved population of taxpayers with disabilities. Through an array of new partnerships both nationally and locally, the movement is building knowledge and workgroups that are identifying issues specific to taxpayers with disabilities. The Tour in three years has spurred the publication of national research, Congressional reports and ad hoc committees identifying the specific challenges facing thousands of taxpayers with disabilities.
The REI Tour is a public-private partnership of federal, state, local, and national organizations designed to improve the economic well-being of working Americans with disabilities through asset building strategies. In 2008, the REI Tour will expand to 62 cities nationwide and will be expected to benefit over 50,000 low income wage earners with disabilities, with financial education classes, and new savings and asset building opportunities.
[The following is excerpted from the Atlas Foreword.]
Persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) are frequently the most vulnerable group and, on many occasions, are exposed to human rights violations and deprived of minimum services and dignity. These persons are also the most likely to be secluded in large institutions, unable to access basic health and educational services, and excluded from ordinary social relations. Although it is well known that intellectual disability is a neglected area, essential information about the presence or absence of resources and services for this population does not even exist in most of the countries of the world.
The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Montreal PAHO/WHO Collaborating Centre for Research and Training in Mental Health have worked together to develop the first ‘Atlas: Global Resources for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities’ (Atlas-ID). The main aim of Atlas-ID is to improve evidence-based knowledge and awareness on the global and regional disparities through essential and needed information on resources and services for persons with ID at country level. This global report includes information from 147 countries, representing 95% of the world population. The information is specifically related to terms and classification systems used for this population, policy and legislation, financing and benefits, prevention, health and social care services, human resources and training, research and information systems and roles of NGOs and international organizations. In addition, the Atlas-ID includes a complete glossary of terms with definitions of basic concepts related to the intellectual disabilities field and the questionnaire used to collect the quantitative and qualitative information.
Atlas-ID findings reveal a lack of adequate policy and legislative response and a serious deficiency of services and resources allocated to the care of persons with ID globally. The situation is especially worrisome in most low and middle income countries. The lack of consensus on basic terms and classification criteria related to the ID field do not help to improve the situation. The evidence provided by this report is likely to be useful to professionals, NGOs, development agencies, public health and social services sector organizations, service planners, policy makers, health and social researchers, family members of people with ID, and especially to people with intellectual disabilities. This report constitutes a call for mobilization of resources and the respect of the basic individual rights of persons with ID at the international level.