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WRC Meeting Minutes
October 19, 2006
Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin
Present: Rob Buettner, Jim Dobrinska, Charlene Dwyer, Jeff Erlanger, Steve Gilles, Ken Kluever, Gail Kolvenbach, Peter Lucas, Bill Malone, Sarah Miller, Al Noll (for John Lui), Laura Owens, Roxan Perez, Cindi Pichler, Carol Schaufel, Dan Sippl, Dee Truhn, Linda Vegoe
Absent: John Lui
Resource Staff/Guests: Vince Holmes, Manuel Lugo, Christopher Marschman, Patricia Severt
Interpreters: Jill Kenehan-Krey, Sarah Miller
Recorder: Kristin Rolling
Introductions
Announcements
Linda Vegoe shared information about a MIG-funded training for vocational rehabilitation staff and service providers related to traumatic brain injury.
Review of Minutes
Motion to approve – Carol Schaufel.
Second – Jeff Erlanger.
Old Business
Charlene Dwyer provided an update on the Department of Health and Family Services (DHFS), Office for the Blind and Visually Impaired (OBVI) proposal to create a separate blind agency.
- Not the first time that a proposal recommending a separate VR blindness services agency has been advanced.
- DWD/DVR was not aware of the latest paper/proposal until after it had been released by DHFS to the Statutory Council on Blindness.
- The WRC wrote to DHFS expressing concern that the paper was not shared with DVR before it was released.
- DVR believed that there were a few errors of fact in the draft proposal.
- Other stakeholder groups also expressed concerns to DHFS that their opinions were not accurately reflected in the proposal.
- After discussions with DHFS, the paper was revisited jointly both DHFS and DWD, redrafted, shared and reviewed with the Statutory Council on Blindness.
- Feedback from the Statutory Council on Blindness during discussion included a statement that the portion of the proposal to establish a separate VR blindness services agency should not be pursued at this time. However, some council members said that it is their intent to pursue this again in the future stating that they believe a separate agency would be in the best interest of blind and visually impaired individuals. DVR disagrees but respectfully so.
New Business
None.
Agenda Item - SWOT Discussion
Linda Vegoe reported that there is a movement to create a national organization of State Rehabilitation Councils (SRC).
At the next meeting of the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation (CSAVR), SRC members will pull together input from states to decide what would be the group’s priorities, if it is decided that a national organizations of SRC’s should be created.
Consensus of WRC:
- Legislative issues.
- Recruiting and training materials for new members.
- Advocate for national priorities/policy initiatives that are good for people with disabilities, i.e. Making Work Pay.
Before there was a call for a motion, Charlene Dwyer was asked to provide and update on the Rehabilitation Act and give an explanation of Making Work Pay.
Rehabilitation Act
- Last reauthorization in 1998.
- The Rehabilitation Act is now Title IV of the larger Workforce Investment Act as of the 1998 reauthorization.
- Is scheduled to be reauthorized every five years.
- Reauthorization has been attempted for the past three years and has not occurred - mostly due to unreconciled issues in other titles of the Act.
- When the Act is not reauthorized on schedule, it continues “as is” and remains formula-funded.
Making Work Pay
- A DWD/DVR experimental/research demonstration project in Wisconsin that has been submitted to the Social Security Administration for funding and program waiver consideration.
- Premised on a cost-share work incentive program that would allow people with significant disabilities to work while retaining full access to key public benefits, up to their full capability without losing the safety net of their benefits. This would be done by having the person pay a cost share that would increase as earnings increase.
- Proposal was returned by SSA as not fundable with a list of questions and concerns about the demonstration design. DVR and three MWP university partners are preparing responses to the questions and concerns and are planning to resubmit the proposal to SSA.
Motion:
By Carol Schaufel.
Second by Jeff Erlanger.
On behalf of the WRC, Linda will report to the committee of national SRC chairs that, if a national organization of State Rehabilitation Councils is created, WRC suggests that they focus on these three issues:
- Making legislative issue information available to SRCs.
- Making recruitment and training information available to SRCs.
- Advancing system change, such as Making Work Pay, that would remove work disincentives for people with disabilities.
Agenda Item: Updates
CAP
- An information sheet for consumers has been compiled – lists what DVR can do in terms of providing services. Reminds consumers that all services need to relate to employment and the IPE.
- FACETS is currently reviewing for readability.
ILCW
- Held listening sessions to gather input for the State Plan.
- DVR is coordinating with ILCW in the state plan needs assessment to avoid duplication of effort.
- A retreat will be held in February to get input on W-2, employer services, customer satisfaction survey and tribal services
NRA
- National conference will be held in November.
DPI
- Significant attention being paid to transition by the highest level decision-makers.
- New regulations in effect – performance indicators now require that the IEP address employment as well as independent living.
- Statewide transition initiative.
- Focus on youth leadership development – Youth Advisory Board.
- There are new opportunities for DVR, parents, students and educators to work together.
- Manuel Lugo suggested that there be a transition presentation at the DVR Bi-Regional training in 2007 and that some DVR staff attend the annual statewide transition conference.
Agenda Item: Supported Employment and Transition Discussion
Linda Vegoe requested input from the WRC for ways to more actively engage the counties in transition planning for students. The two public agency silos of DWD (DVR) and DPI are working collaboratively through a structured Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to support students – the infrastructure piece that is missing is DHFS, counties and long term supports:
- Employment support planning should be encouraged.
- Benefits analysis.
- Job matching.
- Use of natural supports.
- Saving resources for those who need on-going supports through the county
Ways to encourage agencies to collaborate and coordinate are needed in order to design a system that is seamless for the student.
DHFS has the same goal (i.e., person-centered planning) as DPI and DVR, but every county does not deliver services using this approach.
Steve Gilles suggested engaging counties through the DPI clearinghouse of information for students. They are a partner in that effort and it may be an unintrusive way to approach the counties.
Bill Malone introduced the idea of a “4th silo” – the community providers. He noted that government contracts with these organizations for much of the work, so their input in the discussion is important.
Charlene Dwyer suggested that DVR and DPI update the interagency MOU to include the new DOE performance indicator #17 which focuses on employment and independent living as part of the IPE. She also suggested that the two partner agencies invite DHFS to become a third partner in the interagency Memorandum of Understanding. The idea of expanding the scope and partnership of the DVR/DPI interagency MOU will be addressed by the workgroup updating the MOU.
Agenda Item: Committee Reports
Evaluation Committee – Rob Buettner
- Manuel provided a list of the reports that are currently available.
- Three surveys being worked on – consumer, counselor and vendor.
Reports Committee – Gail Kolvenbach
- Working on the annual report.
- Looking at reports from other states to get ideas about information that can be added to the WRC report.
Executive Committee – Linda Vegoe
The IHO sub-committee received, evaluated and approved four new IHO candidates:
- John Olson
- Thomas Neuman
- Pat Mommaerts
- Deborah Proctor
Motion by Bill Malone – To accept the agency recommendation for the four
IHO candidates.
Seconded by Jeff Erlanger.
Discussion
- There are currently three IHO’s. Two of them are retiring. Candidates are still being recruited – DVR looking for ethnic, gender and geographic diversity. The three current IHO’s are white males. Of the four new candidates, three are white males, one is a white female and two have a disability.
- There is an IHO position description. Training is being planned for early 2007.
Motion carried.
Discussion of Seats on the WRC
- Dee Truhn requested that the WRC consider a designated seat on the council for the Wisconsin Council of Independent Living Centers.
- Charlene Dwyer reported that WRC membership representation is prescribed by federal law. A group that seeks representation that is not currently prescribed in law can request that RSA consider adding language to the regulations to expand the SRC membership to include the group. She noted that several stakeholder groups and organizations have requested representation on the SRC over the years. DVR has decided to maintain alignment of SRC membership to what is prescribed in law. Suggestion made that SRC member nametags include the representation category for the individual on the council.
- Gail Kolvenbach said that information could also be included in the annual report to better inform the public about the representational categories of the SRC.
Agenda Item: Data Report – Vince Holmes
- Largest groups receiving services were those with cognitive impairments and psychosocial impairments.
- Employment outcome success rate for DVR case closures was 43% for FFY 06.
Agenda Item: DVR Report – Charlene Dwyer
When FFY05 data is compared to FFY06, there is a dramatic increase in the number of people who were closed before plan initiation. For those who were on the wait list for extended periods of time, up to 35% didn’t come in to develop plans when called off of the wait list. Next year there will be little to no wait list so the "closed before plan" federal indicator percentage will decrease dramatically.
Making Work Pay
- Submitted as an unsolicited proposal to the Social Security Administration. It was returned in July with a list of questions and the proposal is being updated for resubmittal.
- The proposal may go back and forth more than once before being accepted by SSA. There is no guarantee that SSA will accept it.
- The danger in getting it out to the public too early with information on the proposed demonstration is that people will expect that it’s coming and we’re not sure when or if it will be approved. Approval could be a long process.
Tri-Regional Trainings
- Shared the agenda of the DVR staff training.
- Bi-regionals being planned for 2007 – training subject matter currently being decided on.
RSA Visit to Wisconsin (Manuel Lugo)
- The recent visit made by the RSA liaison to Wisconsin to meet with DVR and other Rehabilitation Act funded program staff (e.g., Client Assistance Program, Protection and Advocacy program, State Independent Living Council, Centers for Independent Living) was very positive. RSA found that VR management is committed to meeting the letter and intent of the Rehabilitation Act, staff was positive about management, and that WI DVR has a good relationship with its key partners.
- DVR will now implement its RSA corrective action plan based on the FFY '05 agency performance review against the federal standards and indicators. Most improvement items are related to case reporting.
- RSA has also expressed its approval for moving as much funding to case planning as possible and decreasing third-party contracts, the additions to DVR management in terms of diversity and succession planning, the move to team-based service delivery and DVR’s technology updates.
CSAVR "Futures" Strategic Planning Session (Charlene Dwyer)
- CSAVR member agencies are trying to be more proactive and focused on what they would like to see happen in the national VR delivery system and in the federal legislation.
- The CSAVR Executive Committee led a national listening session with national partner groups to get their feedback on the national VR service delivery system and the Rehabilitation Act legislation.
- Discussion included questions such as whether there should be an expansion of "presumed eligibility" for other groups of VR consumers like there is for SSI/SSDI recipients. For example, there was discussion that perhaps students in transition from HS with an IPE should be "presumed eligible". There were many items of lively discussion at the "Futures" listening and strategic planning session.
Agenda Item: DVR Report – Manuel Lugo
Order of Selection/Waiting List
- Immediate activation for Category 2 was achieved in October.
- Goal was to have no one in Category 1 or 2 wait for services for more than 3 months by September 2006. This goal has been achieved.
- Category 3 consumers will be invited off of the waiting list with November and December activations.
- There were approximately 9,000 active plans when the OOS activation process started in June 2005 – as of this date, there are 15,173 active plans.
Training Grant
- To date in for Fall semester 2006, 1,341 training grants have been paid out. There were a total of 1,893 training grants issued for Fall semester 2005. The Fall 2006 number is expected to increase as many grants are still in process.
Case Aids Budget Forecasting
- Now being done for current year and for three years in the future.
- The end of the fiscal year is now transparent and seamless for the purposes of case-service budget management purposes.
- The roller coaster effects on caseload size over the past few years was driven by fiscal considerations. The forecasting tool helps DVR to manage the “carryover” of case funds from fiscal year to fiscal year. When an IPE is signed, DVR generally makes a commitment to fund a case for an average of nearly three years. With a three year financial forecasting capability, caseload size and capacity can be better managed.
Policy Changes and Implementation
- The counselor position description is being modified to minimize time spent on case management and allow more time for rehabilitation counseling.
- The DVR training report was provided as a written report
Question about staffing levels (Rob Buettner)
- A 3% vacancy rate is mandated by DWD, which is a rate that typically happens naturally.
- DVR is moving and filling staff vacancies where the population indicates that staff is needed.
Motion to adjourn by Dan Sippl.
Seconded by Rob Buettner.