Resolution A14-01

Regarding Accessibility of the State's Information Technology

WHEREAS, Minnesota's Information Technology agency (MN.IT) has become the centralized agency in charge of procuring and implementing information technology for Minnesota state government and is therefore in charge of insuring that such technology is accessible to all; and

WHEREAS, due in large part to the leadership of the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota, the Minnesota legislature has adopted a strong law (Minn. Stat. § 16E.03 subd. 9)  which mandates that all information technology be accessible to state employees as well as members of the public; and

WHEREAS, MN.IT has procured a license for Microsoft SharePoint 2013 and intends to roll it out to all state agencies in the near future; and

WHEREAS, state agencies intend to expand their use of SharePoint, not only internally but also externally, having outside contractors interact with the state through SharePoint; and

WHEREAS, SharePoint is not accessible to blind individuals using assistive technology because SharePoint does not allow such individuals to use critical aspects of the program with substantially equivalent ease of use thereby making it difficult to do important parts of their job compently; and

WHEREAS, although MN.IT has been examining how to make SharePoint accessible, it has not adopted any solution; and

WHEREAS, even though it has no plan to deal with the barriers Sharepoint creates for blind employees, nonetheless, MN.IT apparently plans to roll out SharePoint and does not know when accessibility will be achieved; and

WHEREAS, SharePoint is not the only problem in that there are several other information technology packages that have been procured which are not accessible; and

WHEREAS, The State of Minnesota has significant economic clout that could force outside vendors to provide accessible information technology but has not been exercising that power; now therefore

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota in convention assembled this 2nd day of November, 2014 in the city of New Ulm, Minnesota, that this organization insist that Minnesota's Information Technology agency (MN.IT) take all necessary steps to make Microsoft SharePoint accessible to blind state employees (and anyone else using SharePoint to interact with the State) and cease further expansion of its use until this has been accomplished; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization demand that the State of Minnesota, through MN.IT, exercise its leadership and fully enforce the information technology law it has adopted by requiring that all information technology used by state employees or by the public be accessible in a nonvisual manner; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization urge the State of Minnesota to procure information technology only when the State has verified through thorough user testing that said technology is accessible nonvisually; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this organization call upon the State to conduct a full accessibility audit to determine which of its technology is not accessible and adopt plans to remedy these issues.

Resolution A14-02

Regarding State Services for the Blind Senior Services

WHEREAS, State Services for the Blind's Senior Services Unit is the primary, and in many cases, only source of funding for services to blind seniors in the state of Minnesota, especially crucial adjustment to blindness training in the home or through group classes, as well as access to information and resources; and

WHEREAS, a recent study by the Public and Nonprofit Leadership Center of the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota describes an impending “Silver Tsunami” in which the number of blind seniors will expand exponentially in the coming years, unaccompanied by any significant public or private funding to meet their needs; and

WHEREAS, in comparison to the rapidly expanding need for senior services, funding is minimal, approximately 50% of the Unit’s $2.1 million budget (the rest of which goes to pay the salaries of direct service staff who locate seniors and provide limited teaching and referrals to them), not even remotely enough to meet current needs, leading to a service crisis of massive proportions; and

WHEREAS, Minnesota has an established network of service providers, including our partner organization, BLIND, Inc., which are capable of providing group and individual adjustment to blindness training to seniors, but which are currently unable to do so because of lack of funding; and   

WHEREAS, these crucial services, which will enable blind seniors to live independently in their own homes and communities, can be provided for a one-time cost of 20 to 50 percent of a single month of assisted living or nursing home care which would otherwise go on for years, wasting state funds that could meet real medical needs; and

WHEREAS, State Services for the Blind has been encouraged by everyone knowledgeable of the problem to seek a major funding expansion for Senior Services, which is entirely justified, in order to avoid the destructive effects of the upcoming “Silver Tsunami”; Now Therefore

BE IT RESOLVED by the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota in convention assembled this 2nd day of November, 2014 in the city of New Ulm, that this organization call upon the Governor and the Legislature to provide a major increase in funding to the Senior Services Unit of State Services for the Blind, enough to meet all existing needs and head off the upcoming “Silver Tsunami” crisis.