Full Text of SR0528 100th General Assembly
SR0528 100TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, There are over 384,000 individuals in Illinois who | 3 | | are deaf or have a severe hearing loss; and
| 4 | | WHEREAS, There are over two million individuals in Illinois | 5 | | who have mild to severe hearing loss; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, In Illinois, there are nearly 500 children who are | 7 | | identified with a hearing loss each year; and | 8 | | WHEREAS, Hearing loss can happen at any point from birth to | 9 | | late adulthood; and | 10 | | WHEREAS, About 2.4 million people in the United States are | 11 | | DeafBlind; and | 12 | | WHEREAS, In Illinois, there are about 655 DeafBlind | 13 | | individuals, but statistics regarding populations with
hearing | 14 | | loss may be underreported due to individuals denying or | 15 | | refusing to admit as having any kind of hearing
or vision loss; | 16 | | and | 17 | | WHEREAS, The needs and interests of the deaf, hard of | 18 | | hearing, and DeafBlind community are diverse; and
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, In 1995, various leaders in the deaf and hard of | 2 | | hearing community began discussions for the
necessity of a | 3 | | governmental body in Illinois to focus on the needs of | 4 | | individuals with hearing loss; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, The Deaf and Hard of Hearing Commission was | 6 | | established in 1997 to be the coordinating and
advocating body | 7 | | that acts on behalf of the interests of persons in Illinois who | 8 | | are deaf or hard of hearing,
including children, adults, senior | 9 | | citizens, and those with any additional disability; and
| 10 | | WHEREAS, News reports and various citizens, including | 11 | | individuals with hearing loss, have raised concerns
that the | 12 | | Commission has been unable to serve the community to the best | 13 | | of its ability; therefore, be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDREDTH GENERAL | 15 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Office of | 16 | | the Governor to work in collaboration with the Deaf and Hard of | 17 | | Hearing Commission to develop a report of recommendations to | 18 | | help ensure the Commission is better able to serve the deaf, | 19 | | hard of hearing, and DeafBlind community; and be it further | 20 | | RESOLVED, That at a minimum, the final report shall include | 21 | | an analysis of and recommendations on the
following issues: |
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| 1 | | (1) Hiring freezes placed on or at the Commission; | 2 | | (2) Any official orders that limit the functions of the | 3 | | Commission, including orders that have come from the
Office | 4 | | of the Governor, the Governor's Office of Management and | 5 | | Budget, the Department of
Central Management Services, or | 6 | | any other appropriate entities; | 7 | | (3) Whether the transfer of the administration of the | 8 | | Interpreter for the Deaf Licensure Act of 2007 to the | 9 | | Department of Financial and Professional Regulation will | 10 | | better benefit interpreters and the deaf, hard of
hearing, | 11 | | and DeafBlind community, and any positive and negative | 12 | | effects the transfer would have, including,
but not limited | 13 | | to, any change in related fee amounts; | 14 | | (4) Whether the Commission should be housed within the | 15 | | Department of Human Services, and the report
shall include, | 16 | | at minimum, the following: | 17 | | (a) If the move will provide the Commission with | 18 | | more resources and administrative help so that it
can focus | 19 | | on providing specialized services for the deaf, hard of | 20 | | hearing, and DeafBlind
community; and | 21 | | (b) If the move can allow for the Commission to |
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| 1 | | operate as an independent entity and not create
conflicts | 2 | | of interest between the Department program staff who | 3 | | currently serve deaf, hard of
hearing, and DeafBlind | 4 | | populations, the Commission, and the populations that the | 5 | | Commission
serves; and | 6 | | (5) Identifying groups or populations with hearing | 7 | | loss that have been underserved or are not formally
| 8 | | recognized; and be it further | 9 | | RESOLVED, That the Office of the Governor and the Deaf and | 10 | | Hard of Hearing Commission shall take input
and testimony from | 11 | | individuals from the community to be included in the report; | 12 | | and be it further | 13 | | RESOLVED, That the Office of the Governor and the Deaf and | 14 | | Hard of Hearing Commission shall develop a
method to allow for | 15 | | individuals who prefer to remain anonymous to submit their | 16 | | input or testimony
anonymously; and be it further | 17 | | RESOLVED, That the Office of the Governor and the Deaf and | 18 | | Hard of Hearing Commission shall promulgate
any developed | 19 | | methods to receive input from the community; and be it further | 20 | | RESOLVED, That no later than January 1, 2018, the Office of | 21 | | the Governor and the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Commission shall |
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| 1 | | submit a report of their findings and recommendations to the | 2 | | General Assembly; and be it
further
| 3 | | RESOLVED, That the Office of the Governor and the Deaf and | 4 | | Hard of Hearing Commission shall make this
report available to | 5 | | the public, including, but not limited to, by posting it to the | 6 | | appropriate official agency
website.
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