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Stay in touch with your legislators throughout the session! Join the action alert network of your favorite disability advocacy organization (join the Arc MN action alert network at http://www.thearcofminnesota.org/actionalert_signup.htm ) to receive alerts throughout the legislative session when we need you to contact your legislator regarding an important decisions about disability services funding.
This is an update from Creating a 21st Century Plan for Disabilities and Aging Campaign. The contact people are listed on the bottom.
Hello Parents and Friends,
In this email you will find the latest update on the work of our "Creating a 21st Century Plan for Disability & Aging" campaign. The purpose of our campaign is two fold: 1) to let policy makers know that we want to reform the disability services system to support self-direction and 2) to let policy makers know that the community of individuals with disabilities cannot sustain further cuts to our current service delivery system. As you are all aware, there is currently a $4.8 billion dollar state budget deficit. With a deficit this large, all state programs and services are at risk of being cut, and some legislators are stating that we are spending too much on Minnesotans with disabilities and older Minnesotans. It is hard to overstate the importance of every single one of us contacting our legislators to let them know of the need for reform in the disability services system as well as the troubling effects of any potential further cuts to disability service in the upcoming legislative session.
To this end, below we are providing you all with logistical information on communicating with your legislators, as well as speaking points pertaining to the campaign purpose. Please keep in mind that these materials are merely a resource for individuals who choose to use them.
Logistical information on communicating with your legislator
- To find out the names and contact information of your MN State Representative and MN State Senator go to www.leg.mn. Half way down the webpage you will find a "Who Represents me?" function which will answer these questions for you.
- While in person meetings with your legislators can be the most influential, when this is not possible phone calls and emails can be powerful as well. Please try to contact your MN State Representative and MN State Senator in one of these ways as soon as possible as it is important legislators hear from us before they have to begin making decisions about funding cuts. Additionally, the sooner you begin to contact your legislator, the more they can hear from you throughout the session!
- In addition to reaching out directly to your personal legislators, please join thousands of other members of the community of individuals with disabilities for a rally on Sat. March 7th, 2009, at noon at the State Capitol in St. Paul. This will be our opportunity to show the legislature the collective power of the disability and aging community, and the importance of preserving funding for the services our community uses. Please see the attached flyer for more information on this exciting rally.
Speaking points and information you may find helpful in your communications with legislators
- Attached you will find an example of a letter that one parent of an individual with a disability is delivering to every legislator in the MN legislature. This is an excellent example of a powerful personal story that every legislator wants and needs to hear. You all are encouraged to use this letter as a guide in constructing your own personal story to present to your legislators. Legislators need to hear from you about the importance and effectiveness of the services you or your family receive. Share what is working and what is not working.
- Attached you will also find speaking points that can be used in discussing the importance of preserving current levels of funding for disability services.
- Attached you will also find speaking points, background information and definitions on what a Self Directed service delivery system would look like, and the importance of moving in this direction.
Follow up
- If you will recall, our goal is to have every legislator in the state be contacted by a parent, individual with a disability, or friend of the disability community from their district to discuss our campaign goals. Once you have contacted your legislators, please email Anni Simons [asimons@arcmn.org] letting her know who your legislators are so she can determine which legislators have and have not been contacted.
- If you feel comfortable passing along your own personal story you use in your communications with your legislators, please do so to Anni [asimons@arcmn.org]. We are compiling as many personal stories as possible to use in our various communications with legislators and the public throughout the legislative session to strengthen our message.
Thank you for joining with us in this important fight to maintain current services for individuals with disabilities and work towards a more efficient future service delivery system!
For more information contact Lester Baue[lwmbauer@msn.com], Terry Morrison [terrymorrison@mchsi.com], Lorraine Skordahl [us4skordahls@frontiernet.net], Tim Schroeder [tims@newulmtel.net] or Anni Simons [asimons@arcmn.org].
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