[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 105 (Wednesday, June 27, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S8613]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

       By Mr. ROBERTS (for himself, Mr. Kennedy, Ms. Collins, and Mr. 
        Lieberman):
  S. 1702. A bill to promote employment of individuals with severe 
disabilities through Federal Government contracting and procurement 
processes, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs.
  Mr. ROBERTS. Mr. President, today I rise for the purpose of 
introducing important legislation for the moral and fiscal posture of 
our great Nation: the Employer Work Incentive Act for Individuals with 
Severe Disabilities of 2007.
  While there are obvious differences of opinion on the state of the 
U.S. economy, the U.S. workforce is experiencing relatively low 
unemployment rates. The average hourly wage and payroll employment 
levels are at an all-time high. As our economy has experienced a slow 
and steady rise, there is one sector of the population who has been 
left behind.
  The unemployment rate for the severely disabled is higher than it has 
ever been. Despite previous efforts to increase employment 
opportunities for this population, the rate of unemployment has risen 
to 70 percent, that means increasing the amount of citizens relying on 
Social Security disability insurance.
  In 1982, the amount of payments distributed through Social Security 
disability insurance was $15.8 billion. In 2004, that number climbed to 
$80.6 billion. According to a forecast by the Social Security trustees, 
the old age and survivors insurance trust fund will last until 2044, 
while the disability trust fund will be exhausted in 2029.
  The Americans with Disabilities Act was enacted in 1990 as a means of 
leveling the playing field for citizens with disabilities. And while it 
has provided necessary reforms in employment practices, this 
legislation has had little to no effect on the rate of unemployment 
experienced by individuals with severe disabilities.
  Even government-run programs such as the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act or 
Randolph Shepard Act, have done little to improve this high 
unemployment rate. As our brave men and women serving in uniform in 
Iraq and Afghanistan return, this problem will be compounded. Many of 
our troops have been disabled in the cause of protecting this country, 
and it is incumbent upon us to ensure that there are opportunities for 
them in the workforce so that they can regain a semblance of their 
lives back.
  It is time for a change in the way we think about employing 
individuals with severe disabilities. The goal should be to create job 
opportunities for the severely disabled in the national workforce, not 
just in government operated programs.
  The Employer Work Incentive Act for Individuals with Severe 
Disabilities, a bipartisan bill authored by Senator Kennedy and myself, 
creates these opportunities while reducing dependence on Social 
Security disability insurance. This legislation gives government 
contract procurement advantages to those companies who employ 
significant percentages of individuals with disabilities in their 
workforce.
  Our goal is to employ at least 1 percent of individuals with severe 
disabilities, or 94,000 people. In doing this, we have the opportunity 
to save approximately $45 billion in Social Security disability 
insurance over the next 10 years.
  I know firsthand how important individuals with severe disabilities 
are to our workforce. In my home State of Kansas, persons like my good 
friend, Pat Terick, play an important role in local business. His 
agency, the Cerebral Palsy Research Foundation of Kansas, has long 
advocated the importance of creating job opportunities for the severely 
disabled. This advocacy group, located in Wichita, is dedicated to 
showing companies the advantages of hiring individuals with 
disabilities. Our bill will be a powerful incentive for businesses to 
enhance their workforce.
  I would like to thank Senator Kennedy for his leadership in helping 
to craft this bipartisan legislation. Special thanks to my longtime 
friend and to a great Kansan and American, Senator Bob Dole, cochair of 
the One Percent Coalition. With Bob's remarkable devotion to disability 
advocacy, it comes as no surprise that he is leading the effort to 
increase job opportunities for those individuals with severe 
disabilities.
  It is time for a change in the way we think about employing 
individuals with severe disabilities. We must create job opportunities 
for the severely disabled in the national workforce, not just in 
government-operated programs. With the support of my colleagues, this 
legislation will do just that.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, today we take one more giant step to open 
the workplace doors wider for people with disabilities. The joining of 
businesses, consumers, and the Congress is powerful--and we will pass 
this bill. I thank Senator Roberts for his vision and leadership on 
this legislation.
  In the winter of 1999, President Clinton signed the last bill of the 
millennium into law at the FDR Memorial--it was the ``Ticket to Work'' 
Act.
  Hundreds of disabled people managed through the snow to get to the 
memorial that day, in hopes of finally being of part of our Nation's 
great economy.
  That law has made a big difference in giving disabled workers access 
to health care by allowing them to work and buy Medicaid--but securing 
actual employment has been a much harder challenge.
  Many of the nation's ``return to work'' programs are outdated and do 
not engage employers to hire disabled workers to the fullest extent 
possible.
  This legislation will expand opportunities for disabled workers and 
reward employers who are willing to do the right thing: by paying 
disabled workers a decent salary; by providing and contributing to the 
cost of their health care insurance; and by placing workers in an 
environment where they can work alongside their non-disabled friends 
and neighbors.
  ADA has led to enormous societal change. It has fundamentally altered 
how our society views disability, and that change will be its most 
lasting and significant contribution.
  But the ADA was also intended to address the very real barriers to 
people with disabilities looking for a job, a house, an education, and 
even a bus ride--and we still have a lot of work to do to meet that 
promise.
  This legislation is one positive step forward as we continue to fight 
for more opportunities for disabled people to go to work and contribute 
to their communities.
                                 ______