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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2012_0717_MACFEA Minutes (App) Meeting Minutes -Approved as Amended 11/20/12 Mayor's Advisory Committee For Equal Access (MACFEA) Tuesday, July 17, 2012 Mo'ikeha Building, Meeting Room 2A/213 4444 Rice Street, Uhu'e, HI 96766 Members present: Linda Nuland-Ames- Director RSVP, COK; El Doi - Kaua'i Developmental Disabilities Council (DDC); Rita Manriquez- State Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Board (STBIAB); Kathy English - Hawai'i Disability Rights Center; Roberta Eiben - Consumer; Dr. Lucy Miller- DCAB (Disability and Communication Access Board) Board Member; Sharry Glass -Advocate, Teacher/Trainer; Betty Bell - Kaua'i Federation for the Blind; Elena Costales- Consumer, KCIL Volunteer. Also: John Isobe and Janine Rapozo, HR Taskforce Members and Guest Presenters; Elizabeth Villasista, Guest. Staff members also present: Marc Guyot-Deputy County Attorney; Barbara Davis - Support Clerk; Teresa Tamura, Administrative Aide; Paula Morikami, Administrator; Beth Tokioka, Interim MACFEA Advisor. Captioner: Dodie Weiss - Caption First. Members absent or excused: Ana Valdez- Family Advocate; Dawn Cummings - Family Advocate Call to Order Chair Nuland-Ames called the meeting to order at 12:32 p.m. with 9 members present. Approval of May 15, 2012 Minutes Action: Ms. Bell moved to approve the minutes as circulated. Ms. Glass seconded the motion. Motion carried 9:0 Business o Presentation from the HR Taskforce on the Implementation of the Human Resources Department as relates to ADA and the expansion of the ADA Coordinator position • Communication from Dr. Lucy Miller and Shany Glass sharing their recommendations on the requirements for the ADA Coordinator position Mr. Isobe apologized to the MACFEA Committee members for not discussing the expansion of the ADA Coordinator position with them earlier. It was simply an oversight on the part of the Taskforce and not intended to slight the Committee in any way. Our initial recommendation to the Mayor was to move the ADA coordinator position into the Department of Personnel Services. When concerns from the MACFEA committee MACFEA-July 17, 2012 Page 1 were presented to the County Council, the budget was revised to keep the position within the Office of the Mayor. The reason the Taskforce made the recommendation to transfer this position to the Department of Personnel Services was primarily to provide some stability to the program. Currently the ADA coordinator is a contracted position which must be renewed annually. When there are changes to the mayoral position, there is a probability the position could be changed or revised so we were trying to provide some permanency to that position and give it stability. The second reason we recommended this position be moved to the Personnel Department was to ensure that in the recruitment of the position on a permanent basis, a qualified person would be placed in that position on a long-term basis. Additionally, with the expansion of the Personnel Department into a Human Resources Department there will be greater support both clerically as well as professionally for this position, which now acts as a single position with the Office of the Mayor. These were the basis for our recommendation. Ms. Glass questioned why the EEO designation came before the ADA designation as there is only one other coordinator in Hawai'i who also does EEO work. Ms. Glass said she understood the EEO portion would only be about 10 percent of the job and asked if that was so the position could be placed under the Personnel Department. In using civil service guidelines, Ms. Glass was not sure that encompassed the scope of the ADA position. The ADA coordinator's position extends beyond the County government and encompasses all the accessibility on our island including any private company that is open to the public. Mr. Isobe said they were not putting more importance on the EEO by placing it ahead of the ADA. The Taskforce was looking at the overall need of the County by having someone to oversee the needs and regulations as they relate to both ADA and equal employment opportunities. The civil service process will ensure the position is looked at on a statewide basis. Typically it will have minimum educational requirements and basic knowledge but the specific duties will be written up as part of the job description and not part of the overall recruitment and classification. The recruitment process will entail an interview of the qualified applicants where specific questions can be raised to get a sense of the breadth and depth of knowledge. Ms. Bell said she understood that Ms. Pilkington worked with the entire population of the County, different unions, private and public employers, and was responsible for working out solutions in employment practices of the disabled and how they were treated. The scope of that position is much greater than being attached to Human Resources. You need someone who really understands the issues and the law and knows when to bring in the County Attorney; there would not be enough autonomy under Human Resources. MACFEA-July 17, 2012 Page 2 Mr. Isobe said that the Taskforce did recommend the position be placed in the Human Resources Department but under the new fiscal year budget, the position remains in the Office of the Mayor. Mr. Isobe explained to Ms. Bell that the Taskforce did not know who would be making up the interview committee for that position. Ms. Glass said it was her perception that the Taskforce did not understand the scope of the position and she would appreciate it if they could all come together to find a solution so they do not have to go through this again next year. Under federal law there has to be an ADA coordinator. The people who will be interviewing for this position need to understand the scope of the position. Ms. Pilkington was in the position for 11 years accumulating knowledge about what is required, dealing with emergency response situations, emergency shelters, streets and facility access, people frustrated with the treatment they receive because clerks can't understand them, and certification of service animals. There is any number of responsibilities required of the person in this position and they have to have the legislative knowledge to back up their decisions. Mr. Isobe further explained that the Taskforce was no longer a viable group. They were responsible to look at the potential of creating, consolidating, and expanding the Personnel Department into a full-service Human Resource Department and provide that information to the Mayor, the County Council, and the Civil Service Commission. Ms. Glass clarified that Janine Rapozo is the acting ADA coordinator and said normally it is the coordinator who provides the issues for the MACFEA Committee to address at the meetings. An issue that needs attention is the federal legislation requiring that the County be internet accessible with the capability to provide remote interpretative services by September 31St of this year. Another need is when there is a public event, especially if it is a County-sponsored event that a sign language interpreter for the deaf is provided if that is requested. It is the ADA coordinator's responsibility to make sure that anyone contracting to use a County facility has made it accessible. Ms. Rapozo clarified that during the interview process, they will be working as a team with Beth Tokioka working with MACFEA and Janine handling the responses to inquiries that come into the ADA coordinator. Ms. Tokioka explained that someone involved with the 4th of July event received a grant from our Office of Economic Development and that party put out a flyer that did not have the auxiliary aid notice. When the County grants monies we let the recipient know it is their responsibility to provide the notice but sometimes the grantee misses it. On July 9th we put out a reminder to all County agencies to be sure to include the auxiliary aid notice whether they are sponsoring the event or partnering with an outside agency. For the record, Ms. Tokioka read the information from the flyer that was sent out. When the County co-sponsors or has any affiliation with an event or activity open to the public, we inform the event planner of their obligation to provide access to people with disabilities, which first and foremost requires an auxiliary aid notice on all modes of advertising for the event whether it is flyers, programs, agendas, announcements, newspaper articles, MACFEA-July 17, 2012 Page 3 radio and so on. Janine Rapozo's name and phone number was included as a contact person in this information. Ms. Glass said she understood that the proposed salary was about 20 to 25% less than what the salary had been for the ADA coordinator. Because this is an administrative position and needs to have the authority and influence to work with all people and all County agencies, the salary should be commensurate with the responsibilities rather than a civil service level salary. Mr. Isobe said the current posted position is at a salary range of between $59,000 and $84,000, which is comparable if not higher than the contract position. Ms. Glass said part of the recommendation they made to the Mayor was this position needs accessibility for anyone in a wheelchair or with mobility difficulties. It also needs to be in a confidential environment where people can bring their issues and expect to have confidentiality. Mr. Isobe said the Mayor is aware of that concern. The ADA coordinator position is currently located within the Office of Boards and Commissions where there are two conference rooms that anyone can use for a private conversation or meeting. Ms. Glass pointed out that phone conversations were not confidential. Chair Nuland-Ames thanked Mr. Isobe and Ms. Rapozo for their time and expressed appreciation to Ms. Glass and Dr. Lucy for their work on the ADA coordinator dialogue they created. Reports o DCAB reports for June and July, 2012 Dr. Lucy reported the legislative bill related to building design for accessibility passed and it establishes the fee schedule for construction or renovation projects effective January 1 of next year. Another bill that passed is related to a special fund and all monies collected as application fees are to be deposited back into the disability and communications special fund to defray the cost of administering the program. The new electric vehicle charging stations must be accessible. If there are three stations, one must be handicapped accessible. o ADA Coordinator's report In addition to explaining the County's ongoing efforts to ensure notification of auxiliary aids, Ms. Tokioka wanted the members to know they can also receive all of the County's news releases. The County's website provides an area where you can sign up for RSS (Really Simple Syndication), which automatically sends a copy or a link of all MACFEA-July 17, 2012 Page 4 our press releases. The Office can also provide the URL address to anyone interested but it is probably easier to just do a search for RSS on our website. o Updates /Announcements Ms. Bell said the Newsline for people with poor vision has been funded for the next two years and signed by the Governor. The Garden Island, the New York Times, and many other newspapers are part of this system and free to anyone who signs up for its use. You are given an access code and you can then call and listen to the news. Ms. Bell also expressed her appreciation for The Kaua'i Bus once again stepping up to accommodate other meetings by adjusting their time schedule. Ms. Bell extended an invitation for anyone who is interested in attending the National Federation for the Blind monthly meeting held on the second Tuesday of the month, 2:00 p.m. in Room 203 of the State Building. Ms. Doi said the Developmental Disabilities Council's meeting is on the first Tuesday of the month in the State Department of Health's conference room at 12:30 p.m. Plans are still underway for the DD Council's legislative forum which is scheduled for Tuesday, September 27th from 4:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. and will have about 30 agencies participating. Ms. Doi extended an invitation to anyone who is interested in helping to plan this forum to let her know since there are only four people on the committee. Ms. Glass requested that the agenda for September include a discussion on the Sunshine Laws and how they apply to MACFEA. Ms. Glass is interested in learning how to create subcommittees under the Sunshine Law and what happens to a meeting when the quorum is lost. Ms. Glass also asked for an update on the status of accessible bus stops and accessible routes in the vicinity of public libraries and schools. Chair Nuland-Ames said they could definitely ask for a presentation from someone with knowledge of the current Sunshine Laws because there have been recent changes. Ms. Davis said they would work with the Attorney's Office to schedule someone to present and discuss the Sunshine Laws with the membership. Ms. Costales announced that Kathy English will be the speaker at the HCIL Kaua'i self- advocacy group meeting on July 24th. Also scheduled is a fitness program on July 19 and July 31 for anyone who is interested. Next Meeting Tuesday, September 18, 2012 at 12:30 p.m. Adjournment Chair Nuland-Ames adjourned the meeting at 1:38 p.m. Respectfully submitted by: Barbara Davis, Staff Support ( ) Approved as circulated ( ) Approved as amended MACFEA-July 17, 2012 Page 5