WHEREAS, pursuant to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, several states have established client assistance projects to serve as advocates for disabled clients who are having problems with their rehabilitation agencies;
AND, WHEREAS, under the existing arrangement most of these projects are totally ineffective since they are funded by the very agency against whom they would have to fight to protect the rights of the blind and disabled citizens;
AND, WHEREAS, to correct this fundamental flaw in the program, the Senate version of the new Rehabilitation Act (Sl340) contains a provision which would separate client assistance projects from rehabilitation agencies;
AND, WHEREAS, while the House version (HR352) does not include this provision, a Senate/House committee will be convened to resolve this and other differences;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland in Convention assembled this 15th day of October, 1983 in the City of Gaithersburg, Maryland, that this organization urge all members of the Maryland Congressional Delegation to support and work for adoption of the Senate version of the Rehabilitation Act pertaining to client assistance projects.