If experience shows that this is happening, Mr. Chairman, we would hope this committee and the Congress would consider providing a bonus payment formula for such States, that they may continue to provide quality vocational rehabilitation services to all disabled people who apply, that local taxpayers may not become disproportionately burdened and penalized financially because their vocational rehabilitation agencies are doing such fine work and achieving such constructive and commendable results for physically and mentally impaired men and women.

Mr. Chairman, just as the National Federation of the Blind opposes residence requirements as a limitation upon the availability of Vocational rehabilitation services to disabled people, so, too, we are opposed to the continued imposition of a "means" test as an eligibility condition for the receipt of any vocational rehabilitation service.

In 1965, Congress caused to be removed from the Vocational Rehabilitation Act the requirement that some vocational rehabilitation services should be provided to disabled people upon a financial needs basis. With the removal of this Federal requirement, States were then free to abandon needs tests practices in their vocational rehabilitation program.

But, Mr. Chairman, even though a year and a half has passed since the 1965 amendments to the Vocational Rehabilitation Act were enacted into law, as of March 15 of this year, only 15 States and one territory have acted, either administratively or through their legislature, t abolish the economic needs test in vocational rehabilitation.

Only 10 States have eliminated economic need as an eligibility requirement in vocational rehabilitation programs for the blind.

Only 11 States and one territory have eliminated economic need as an eligibility requirement in general vocational rehabilitation programs. In short, Mr. Chairman, so far as can be learned, only the States of Arkansas, Iowa, Maine, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Oregon have abolished economic need in vocational rehabilitation programs for all disabled clients, whether blind or otherwise impaired.

To accelerate this snailpace progress, the National Federation of the Blind offered as an amendment to H.R. 8981, the bill H.R. 7396, introduced in the House by Congressman Philip Burton, of California. The Burton proposal would prohibit the needs test as a condition for receiving any vocational rehabilitation service from any State vocational rehabilitation agency.

Enactment of this proposal into law would make it possible to provide vocational rehabilitation services solely upon the ground that a person has need for such help because he is physically or mentally disabled.

When such a person determines to rebuild his shattered life, Mr. Chairman, the entire Nation benefits from the example of his courageous efforts, and when he succeeds and achieves self-support, the entire Nation gains materially and substantially-for such a restored and rehabilitated person need no longer depend upon others, the resources and taxes of others, but he contributes by his taxes, by his productivity, to the general welfare and the strengthening of the Nation.

Mr. Chairman, the National Federation of the Blind urges this committee to adopt the provisions of the Burton measure and to include them as a part of S. 1618.

Finally, Mr. Chairman, the National Federation of the Blind endorses and supports section 4 of S. 1618, which would authorize establishment of national centers for deaf-blind youths and adults.

As blind men and women, the members of the National Federation of the Blind are fully aware of the problems incidental to blindness and the difficulties of functioning, sightless, in a world geared to sight.

As blind persons, we are also fully aware of the extent to which we depend upon our hearing ability as we endeavor to compete and cooperate with physically fit people.

Therefore, Mr. Chairman, those who must confront the uncertainties of life without sight and without hearing have our profound respect and admiration, and, of course, our full and unqualified support-for theirs must truly be a Herculean struggle against adversity, against seemingly insurmountable obstacles.

But, Mr. Chairman, in spite of this, there are men and women, deafblind, who are a living, functioning demonstration that, when given specialized help, when given special training directed toward meeting their particular needs and solving problems peculiar to their doubly handicapping condition, it is not only possible for all of such persons to live fuller, more worthwhile lives, it is also possible for some of them to achieve independent, economically self-sufficient lives.

Mr. Chairman, the National Federation of the Blind urges this committee and the Congress to act favorably and promptly upon S. 1618, in order that the provision dealing with the establishing of a national center for the deaf-blind youths and adults of the Nation may be started upon its very essential and most worthwhile work as soon as possible for the deaf-blind have waited centuries for this help and they should not have to wait longer for it.

But, Mr. Chairman, just as there is a great need for the creation of a facility exclusively oriented toward meeting the very special needs of deaf-blind youths and adults, we believe there is even a greater need for a similar facility oriented solely toward meeting the even more special needs of deaf-blind children.

Born without sight or hearing, or with extremely impaired sight and hearing, or sustaining the loss of both these basically essential faculties in infancy-this is the sorry plight of a considerable number of children, today, damaged by the ravaging effects of German measles. These unfortunate children and their desperate parents are in urgent need for the kind of assistance that would be available to them at a national center for deaf-blind children.

Mr. Chairman, it is the belief of the National Federation of the Blind that this committee should either expand the proposed national center for deaf-blind youths and adults to include deaf-blind children, or you should authorize to be established a separate national center for such doubly defective, double handicapped children, and we believe the separate facility would be preferable.

Mr. Chairman, when the House Select Subcommittee on Education held hearings on vocational rehabilitation matters, it gave consideration to H.R. 5801 and H.R. 5808, identical bills introduced in the House by Congressman McMillan and Congressman Nelson.

Even though a measure similar to H.R. 5801 and H.R. 5803 has not been introduced in the Senate and is not pending before this committee, it is our expectation that the House will approve the McMillan

Nelson proposal when it acts on the vocational rehabilitation amending bill.

Therefore, Mr. Chairman, the National Federation of the Blind wishes this committee to know of its endorsement and support of the McMillan-Nelson identical bills, and urges your approval of their provisions when they become the business of this committee.

H.R. 5801 and H.R. 5803, which would amend the Vocational Rehabilitation Act to reduce the amount of matching funds from the District of Columbia, are intended to correct a financing disadvantage created for the District of Columbia by the 1965 amendments to the Vocational Rehabilitation Act.

As vice chairman of the Advisory Council on Vocational Rehabilitation to the District of Columbia government, I am familiar with the extent to which vocational rehabilitation services to disabled persons in the District of Columbia have suffered, have been curtailed or canceled, because of lack of adequate funding.

The McMillan-Nelson measures, as Federal law, would make it possible for the District of Columbia to qualify for Federal participating vocational rehabilitation money on a basis that would recognize and compensate for the unique per capita wealth situation which prevails in the District of Columbia.

The McMillan-Nelson bills, as enacted law, would assure that vocational rehabilitation programs in the District of Columbia would be adequately financed, with the result that more and better rehabilitation and restoration help could be provided to the District's disabled citi

zens.

I thank you, Mr. Chairman, for this opportunity to appear.

The CHAIRMAN. We certainly want to thank you, sir, for your statement, and the information which you brought up, and for your splendid presentation. We assure you we shall carefully consider the suggestions you have made to us. We thank you very much.

Mr. Irving P. Schloss, American Foundation for the Blind. We are glad to have you back with us, Mr. Schloss. We will be happy to have you proceed now.

STATEMENT OF IRVIN P. SCHLOSS, LEGISLATIVE ANALYST, AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR THE BLIND, INC., WASHINGTON, D.C.

Mr. SCHLOSS. Mr. Chairman, I have submitted a written statement which I would appreciate having included in the record. The CHAIRMAN. That may appear in the record, sir. Mr. SCHLOSS. I will proceed to summarize it.

In addition to representing the American Foundation for the Blind, which is a national voluntary research and consultant agency in the field of services to blind persons, I am also representing the American Association of Instructors of the Blind, and the American Association of Workers for the Blind and the Blinded Veterans Association. All four of these national organizations join in urging favorable action by the Congress on S. 1618 as legislation which would materially assist in meeting several pressing unmet needs in services to handicapped persons.

Specifically, we believe that the extension of the authorizations of appropriations for fiscal 1969 and fiscal 1970 are essential at this time in order to permit the State agencies which administer the program at

the grassroots level to plan for orderly and effective expansion of the program.

Similarly, the program of special grants for comprehensive statewide planning needs to be extended to permit the States to determine existing facilities both public and private, and how they can best be used, and also to plan for needed facilities and services in an orderly fashion. These two in a sense go hand in hand in permitting the essential expansion of the program.

We also endorse the prohibition of residence requirements for vocational rehabilitation service. In a society as mobile as ours we are continually moving to other areas to obtain employment. It is needlessly cruel to deprive an individual of the benefit of the Federal-State program of vocational rehabilitation when he becomes injured or ill and sustains a disability. He should have the benefit of the services of a State agency, no matter where he happens to be living and how long he has been living there.

Also a disadvantaged group over the years has been migrant workers and their families. We very definitely believe that the provision in S. 1618 of a pilot and demonstration project for the vocational rehabilitation of these individuals will go a long way toward alleviating their problem.

Blindness uncomplicated by other impairments is certainly a severe handicapping condition which requires highly specialized educational rehabilitation, vocational, and numerous ancillary services. As you can well imagine, blindness accompanied by deafness is an even more serious disability which requires even more skilled attention. By providing for the establishment of the National Center for DeafBlind Youths and Adults, S. 1618 would go a long way toward providing what has long been urgently needed to facilitate the training and rehabilitation of deaf-blind persons of employable age.

The American Foundation for the Blind maintains a register of deaf-blind persons, and has the most authoritative statistics presently available. We know of 4,000 deaf-blind persons over the age of 20. According to our register information, approximately 1,600 of these individuals are between the ages of 20 and 65. We have no doubt that there are many more who have not been reported to the Foundation register.

The employment status of deaf-blind persons of employable age is not too well known. But we can safely conjecture that only a handful are fully employed in the sheltered workshops, and even fewer in competitive employment, including the professions.

What has been done in terms of programs in this area is virtually negligible. The Industrial Home for the Blind, whose representatives you heard earlier this morning has been operating the only facility in the country for the rehabilitation and training of deaf-blind persons of employable age. With the aid of a demonstration grant from the Vocational Rehabilitation Administration, this pioneering local agency for the blind established the Anne Sullivan Macy Service for the Deaf-Blind in 1962, and has demonstrated the potential effectiveness of this type of program.

However, since there is a great need, with a relatively small population scattered nationwide, we firmly believe that Federal facilities

such as the National Center provided for in S. 1618 are urgently needed to do the job which must be done.

Unfortunately techniques for completely adequate medical, educational and rehabilitation diagnosis, evaluation and training of both deaf-blind adults and children are really lacking. And one of the beneficial effects of the establishment of the National Center would be the development through research of the most effective techniques for rehabilitating and training deaf-blind persons. As Miss Switzer indicated in her testimony earlier, the Department is presently developing a bill which will provide for a similar type of center for deaf-blind children with, of course, more emphasis on educational diagnosis; and procedures and other aspects of services which are most urgently needed. We would hope that when this bill is sent to the Congress by the administration that it will receive favorable consideration as well.

We know that deaf-blind persons have a potential for self-care and self-support. We feel that the establishment and operation of the National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults and similar regional centers as the need arises and, as well as a national product center to develop adequate diagnostic, educational, and training techniques for deaf-blind children, will assist this group substantially to develop their maximum potential as individuals, and to lead what we would consider a normal and productive life, contributing to the American society just as the rest of us always attempt to do.

In addition to endorsing S. 1618, Mr. Chairman, we should also like to recommend to the committee the inclusion of H.R. 7396, which would eliminate the economic need criterion for eligibility for rehabilitation services.

This is a logical extension of what was done in Public Law 89-933, where this was to be on an optional basis to the States. When it comes to services for severely disabled persons like the deaf-blind and blind, we certainly feel that there is a question of economic need to the youth, and one that should have serious consideration.

We would, therefore, commend to you most respect fully favorable action on S. 1618, with amendments, including the provisions of H.R. 7396.

(The prepared statement of Mr. Schloss follows:)

PREPARED STATEMENT OF IRVIN P. SCHLOSS, LEGISLATIVE ANALYST, AMERICAN FOUNDATION FOR THE BLIND

Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, I appreciate this opportunity to appear before you in support of S. 1618, a bill which would amend the Vocational Rehabilitation Act to extend the authorization of appropriations for grants to the states for vocational rehabilitation of the disabled, to provide for the establishment and operation of a National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults, and to improve the vocational rehabilitation program in other essential

ways.

In addition to representing the American Foundation for the Blind. the national voluntary research and consultant agency in the field of services to blind persons, I am also representing the American Association of Instructors of the Blind and the American Association of Workers for the Blind-the two national professional membership associations in the field-as well as the Blinded Veterans Association. All four of these national organizations join in urging favorable action by the Congress on S. 1618 as legislation which would materially assist in meeting several pressing unmet needs in services to handicapped persons.