[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: GEORGE W. BUSH (2001, Book I)]
[February 1, 2001]
[Pages 44-46]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Announcing the New Freedom Initiative
February 1, 2001

    Steven, you were brilliant in your 
introduction. Little did we know--we kind of thought we'd be sitting 
here during the California race, didn't we? But here we are, and thank 
you so much for being here.
    I'm so honored that you all are here. I appreciate the folks who 
served on my coalition for people with disabilities. There's one hero 
here that I got to know during the campaign. His name is Jim 
Mullen. Jim is from Chicago. He's a police 
officer, wounded in the course of duty, who is a courageous, fine 
American. And Jim, thank you so very much for coming today.
    I'm glad the First Lady is here. It's an 
unusual job where all you've got to do is walk down from your living 
room to come to work. [Laughter] I'm really proud of Laura.
    It's good to see Members of the Congress who are here. Thank you all 
for coming as well. I'm especially pleased that people from all around 
the country have taken time to help kick off this important initiative.
    One of the things I enjoy most about my new job is the walk I get to 
take every single morning up the Colonnade from the Residence to the 
Oval Office. I say ``up,'' because the path rises just slightly. It's 
been that way since they took out the steps so that Franklin Roosevelt 
could make it to his place of work.
    This house is among the first places in America to accommodate 
people with disabilities. And we have come a long way since the days 
when only a President could hope for that consideration. We are more 
mindful now of the hardships that come with disability, more generous in 
responding to the needs of our citizens, more grateful for the 
contributions you make to our society. Old misconceptions about physical 
and mental disability are being discredited. Old barriers are falling 
away. Our task is now clear: We must speed up the day when the last 
barrier has been removed to full and independent lives for every 
American, with or without disability.
    I am proud that the last great reform in this cause, the Americans 
with Disability Act, bears the signature of my dad. I see many in this audience who helped him get this 
important legislation through Congress, and I want to thank you for 
coming. Because of that law, millions of Americans can now compete for 
jobs once denied them, enter buildings once closed to them, travel in 
buses and trains once unequipped for them. For those who have hearing or 
visual impairments, for those who use walkers and wheelchairs or have 
mental retardation and mental illnesses, your own country now seems a 
more welcoming place as a result of that law. Eleven years after the 
ADA, we are a better country for it.

[[Page 45]]

    But there is more to do, and today I propose we move forward. This 
morning I sent to Congress a set of proposals called the New Freedom 
Initiative. It is an important step in ensuring that all Americans with 
disabilities, whether young or old, can participate more fully in the 
life of their communities and of our country. Wherever a door is closed 
to anyone because of a disability, we must work to open it. Wherever any 
job or home or means of transportation is unfairly denied because of a 
disability, we must work to change it. Wherever any barrier stands 
between you and the full rights and dignity of citizenship, we must work 
to remove it, in the name of simple decency and simple justice.
    Often, as you know, such barriers are unintentional. One is the high 
cost of assistive technologies. For many people with disabilities, new 
technologies are helping to defeat dependence and frustration and 
isolation: text telephones for those with hearing impairments; computer 
monitors with Braille displays for those with visual impairments; 
infrared pointers for people who cannot use their hands, allowing them 
to operate computers by pointing at functions on the monitor or the 
keyboard; lighter wheelchairs; lighter artificial limbs. These modern 
wonders make the world more accessible; yet, they are often inaccessible 
to people who need but cannot afford them. These technologies were once 
beyond the dreams of Americans with disabilities. Today, they're only 
beyond their means, and we can help.
    In our New Freedom Initiative, we're asking Congress to 
significantly increase Federal funding for low-interest loans so that 
more Americans with disabilities can purchase assistive technology. And 
to ensure that even better technologies are available in the future, 
we're asking Congress to increase Federal investment in assistive 
technology research and development.
    My administration will also work with businesses to bring more 
assistive technologies to the marketplace. Once available, these 
technologies will allow Americans with disabilities to use more of their 
own gifts, make more of their own choices, and lead lives of greater 
independence.
    Many Americans with disabilities work or would like to have more 
freedom to do so. And you know that the greatest challenges are often 
not in the job itself but in the distance between your job and your 
home. For some people with disabilities, this challenge means no job at 
all, no opportunity to work and to contribute and to use their talents. 
This is changing as more Americans work at home. Yet here, too, the cost 
of computers and telecommuting are sometimes beyond the means of those 
with disabilities, and we can help.
    In our New Freedom Initiative, we are asking Congress to create a 
fund to help people with disabilities to buy the equipment they need to 
telecommute. We will provide tax incentives to encourage employers to 
provide such equipment. And we will protect home offices from needless 
OSHA regulations. Some 40 million Americans today work out of their 
homes. For most, it is a convenience. For workers with disabilities, it 
is a revolution. And we want as many Americans as possible to share in 
this revolution of independence.
    Our plans also include transportation solutions for people with 
disabilities. Specifically, we're asking Congress to fund pilot programs 
for innovative transportation plans that serve people with disabilities. 
And we'll provide Federal matching grants to community groups to provide 
alternative methods of transportation.
    There are several additional proposals in this package, but let me 
just mention one more. We will provide additional funding each year to 
help churches, synagogues, mosques, and other civic groups become more 
fully accessible to all Americans. In many houses of worship and civic 
centers, intentions are good, but resources are scarce. We can help make 
these community places open to all.

[[Page 46]]

    I've often talked about the goal of a welcoming society, a nation 
where no one is dismissed or forgotten. Our progress toward that goal is 
really the great American story. It is a story of inclusion and 
protection extending across our history to more and more Americans. And 
that story's not over. There is still work to do. We must all do our 
duty and play our part. And I hope today we have made a good beginning.

Note: The President spoke at 1:10 p.m. in the East Room at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Steven J. Tingus, resource 
development director, California Foundation for Independent Living 
Centers, who introduced the President.