County of Santa Cruz

Commission on Disabilities

1999 Yearend Report

I. Roles of the Commission

The Commission on Disabilities is an advisory body to the Board of Supervisors on issues concerning persons with disabilities. The Commission was established to (a) Review existing County policies that affect persons with disabilities and make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors regarding proposed changes; (b) Review Sections 503 and 504 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and its implementing regulations and advise the Board of Supervisors on any actions necessary to bring the county into compliance with the federal requirements and to eliminate discrimination against persons with disabilities; (c) Review the provision of access for persons with disabilities to public places within the County and recommend improvements where needed; (d) Review the County’s Affirmative Action Plan and policies and recommend to the Board of Supervisors and Affirmative Action Commission any revisions which may be necessary to eliminate employment discrimination against persons with disabilities; (e) Review the County’s Personnel rules and job descriptions and make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors and to the Civil Service Commission, as necessary, to assure that any unnecessary barriers to employment opportunities for persons with disabilities are removed; (f) Advise the Board of Supervisors on any other appropriate programs and actions which would increase employment opportunities for persons with disabilities; (g) Evaluate services provided to persons with disabilities in the County and make recommendations to the Board of Supervisors based on their conclusions; (h) Review requests by persons with disabilities or organizations for County assistance and advise the Board of Supervisors; (I) Investigate citizen complaints related to concerns of persons with disabilities and make appropriate recommendations for action to the Board of Supervisors; (j) Review Federal and State Legislation of interest to persons with disabilities and advise the Board of Supervisors of their recommendations; and (k) Exercise other responsisbilities related to the needs and concerns of persons with disabilities in the County.

II. Meetings Dates, Time, and Location

The Commission meets the second Friday of each month from 12:00 noon to 2:00 P.M. at 1400 Emeline Street, Building K, Room 206. The mailing address is 701 Ocean Street, Room 30, Santa Cruz, CA 95060.

III. Commission Structure

The Commission on Disabilities is comprised of ten members representing five districts. The Board of Supervisors appoints two Commissioners for each district. The Chair and/ or Vice-Chair who are elected every January facilitates commission meetings. This year the Chair was Michael Bush (2^nd District) and the Vice-Chair was John Daugherty (2^nd District). The Commission members, as of December 31, 1999 are:

District	Commissioners
1^st District	Robert McGaw, Robert Freiler
2^nd District	John Daugherty, James Lewis
3^rd District	Rebecca Northcutt, Victor Everlove
4^th District	Pat Green, vacant
5^th District	Tom Ferr, Cynthia Adams

The following Commissioners either completed their terms, resigned, or were replaced in the last year: Michael Bush and Angelee Dion.

IV. Commission Staff

The Commission is supported by a twenty hour per week staff person – the Commission Coordinator. The Coordinator takes minutes, prepares correspondence, and represents the Commission in some of the Commission activities. From January to March 1999, the Coordinator was Becky Mathews, who filled in on a temporary basis. From July to December 1999, the Coordinator was Andrea Smith.

V. Attendance

Name	1	2-6	7	8	9	10	11	12
Robert Freiler	A	NR	X	A	X	A	A	X
Robert McGaw	X	NR	X	X	X	X	X	X
Michael Bush	X	NR	X	X	A	X	X	X
John Daugherty	A	NR	A	X	X	A	X	X
James Lewis	-	NR	-	-	-	-	-	X
Rebecca Northcutt	X	NR	X	X	X	A	X	X
Victor Everlove	-	NR	X	X	X	X	X	X
Pat Green	-	NR	A	X	X	A	A	X
Tom Ferr	A	NR	X	A	X	X	X	X
Cynthia Adams	X	NR	A	A	X	X	X	X
Angelee Dion	X	NR	-	-	-	-	-	-

X= present A= absent L=leave of absence dash (-) =not on commission

NR=indicates no records available to verify attendance

VI. Annual Goals and Accomplishments

The goals of the Commission are set annually and are developed utilizing the Commission mandate, the vision statement, and emerging needs as expressed by the community and identified by Commissioners.

The Commission serves as the eyes, ears, and voice to our County leaders. Our vision is for all people with disabilities to experience Santa Cruz County as a community free of barriers to independent living.

In 1999 the Commission’s activities concentrated on issues of accessibility, employment, awareness.

ACCESSIBILITY

• In response to citizens’ complaints, the Commission contacted the City of Santa Cruz Public Works Department and requested that customers not be instructed to place recycling containers on the sidewalk thereby obstructing a clear path of travel for persons with disabilities. This initiated a change in policy and patrons were instructed to allow a three feet clearance around the containers in the street, allowing better accessibility.

• Resulting from the Commission’s 1998 investigation of SCCHO (now known as the Central Coast Alliance for Health), two positions were created to remedy problems with service delivery to its members - the Members Advocate Position, which serves as an objective party to assist persons with disabilities when confronted with problems obtaining services through SCCHO and the Disabilities Liaison position, which works in-house to assist members with disabilities with any health care issue they may have. This year the Commission monitored the hiring process and outreach plans for both positions. Commission representatives also worked with the Legal Aid Society, the agency funded to employ the Member Advocate Position, on improving accessibility to their site in Santa Cruz. Also resulting from the investigation, due to a streamline of their procedures affecting repairs and the purchase of durable medical equipment, SCCHO members now experience a much shorter turnaround time for service delivery.

• The Commission alerted and advised the San Lorenzo School District on the misplacement of the hydraulic lift chair at the new public swimming pool located at the High School. The lift was installed contradictory to manufacturer’s recommendations and installed in the shallow end of the pool, risking serious injury to persons with mobility problems. The chair was relocated on the advice of the Commission.

• In response to citizens’ complaints, the Commission alerted the City of Santa Cruz of the serious safety and accessibility problems that exist on the Soquel Avenue Bridge since its reconstruction. The walkways have a cross-slope in excess of the ADA mandated 2% and the crosswalk button exceeds an 18” reach. Also, the traffic lights were timed so that cars had a green light to proceed while pedestrians were still in the middle of the crosswalk on the blind corner turning onto River Street. Persons using wheel chairs would be virtually invisible to cars proceeding over the bridge. The City responded with the intention to correct the cross-slope and reduce the reach to the crosswalk button. They fixed the traffic light immediately.

§ The Commission has received numerous complaints regarding violations of accessible parking throughout Santa Cruz County. We have heard at an increasing rate that persons requiring the use of accessible parking spaces are finding these spaces used by non-disabled individuals or blocked by dumpsters, shopping carts, or merchandise.

In response to these complaints, the Commission has researched and recommended to the Board of Supervisors and the Sheriff, a solution. Since 1996, the City of Fremont has a program which works in partnership with law enforcement and community members. This program utilizes volunteers to enforce accessible parking and to cite businesses for non-compliance of accessible parking ordinances. The program has proven to be successful and has generated over $130,000 in revenue over a twelve month period.

The Commission is currently working in collaboration with representatives from the Sheriff’s department, County Council, Planning, and the County Administrator’s office to determine what is needed to implement a similar program in Santa Cruz County.

DISABILITY AWARENESS AND EDUCATION

§ In 1999, the Commission on Disabilities (COD) maintained its commitment of assisting all persons and organizations in Santa Cruz County in understanding disability issues by investigating complaints and/or by providing information and guidance whenever possible. The COD also acts as a referral and information resource for issues of concern to persons with disabilities and extends to private businesses and agencies as well as to governmental organizations.

• Commissioners tended a booth at the Ability Awareness Fair sponsored by Shared Adventures at the Louden Nelson Community Center. The event was well attended and provided an opportunity to share the Commission’s work with the community.

§ Commissioners attended a Disability History Seminar featuring Dr. Paul Longmore, a professor from San Francisco State University. Dr. Longmore provided a history of the disability movement and shared his own experiences.

• The Commission has developed an informal policy on language use when referring to persons with disabilities. The term “handicap” has been deemed unacceptable when referring to persons with a disability. Although the term “handicap” has been used interchangeably with disability for many years, due to its origin – it’s both inaccurate and degrading. The word originated from the use of a cap (hat) to collect hand-outs and implies that a disability automatically means a person is unable to work or must beg for their keep. The Commission recommends putting the person first – as in “person with disability.” And when referring to buildings, bathrooms, and parking – use the term “accessible”.

EMPLOYMENT

• The Commission responded to the County’s 1998-2000 Equal Employment Opportunity Report with recommendations and an offer of Commission cooperation in meeting the goals to employ persons with disabilities.

• The Commission also reviewed the hiring process of the Commission Coordinator with County representatives to identify areas of improvement for reaching persons with disabilities.

• The Commission tended a table at the County’s Access Job Fair at the Coconut Grove. The event was well attended and provided opportunity to network with other services offering support to persons with disabilities trying to get into the job market.

Guest speakers welcomed by the COD in 1999:

Richard Gallo, Central Coast Center for Independent Living

Barbara Flynn, Senior Health Services Manager of SCCHO

Angelique Milhous, Provider Relations of SCCHO

Denita Carlson of SCCHO

Susan Seip of SCCHO

Connie Harrigan of the American Chronic Pain Association

Scott Bugenthal of Food and Nutrition Services Lift Line Services

Ajita Patel, Santa Cruz County EEO

Charles Bruscino, Association for Injured Workers

Rayna Juarez, Central Coast Alliance for Health (formerly SCCHO)

Foster Anderson, Shared Adventures

James Lewis, community member

Peter McLean, community member

Christine McGuire, DA’s office

Suzanne Koebler, In-Home Care Integration Project

Dave Donohoe, community member

Wayne Haygood, County Office of Education

Sallie Johnson, HICAP

Jody Harris, Long Term Care Commission

VII. Future Goals and Recommendations

• Continue working with the Sheriff’s department on the volunteer parking enforcement through its implementation.
• Advocate for children with disabilities in Santa Cruz County and recommend that Prop 10 funds be allocated to services for children with autism and other disabilities.
• Launch the COD’s new webpage in January 2000.
• Work with the County to increase employment for persons with disabilities.
• Work with the County to eliminate the term “handicap” from county ordinances and other documents.
• Continue to work with the Central Coast Alliance for Health on insuring equity of services to person with disabilities.
• Explore ways to comprehensively address ADA non-compliance in the private sector.
• Plan a celebration for the ten-year anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Continue to serve as a referral and information resource for the community.

Respectfully Submitted,

Andrea Smith

Commission Coordinator

Approved by the Commission on Disabilities on 1/14/00