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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014_0121 MACFEA_Agenda_Packet COUNTY OF KAUAI MAYOR' S ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR EQUAL ACCESS NOTICE OF MEETING AND AGENDA Tuesday, January 21 , 2014 12 : 30 p.m. or shortly thereafter Mo ` ikeha Building, Meeting Room 2A/2B 4444 Rice Street, Lihue, HI 96766 MACFEA' S MISSION IS TO ASSIST THE COUNTY OF KAUAI IN ITS COMPLIANCE WITH THE FEDERAL, STATE AND COUNTY LAWS MANDATING EQUAL ACCESS CALL TO ORDER INTRODUCTION OF MACFEA MEMBERS AND STAFF APPROVAL OF MINUTES • Regular Open Session Minutes of November 19, 2013 BUSINESS • Election of Vice Chair for 2014 • Subcommittee on Increasing Emergency Preparedness 1 . Selection of members 2 . Outline scope of work • Subcommittee on Increasing Employment of Persons with Disabilities in the County 1 . Selection of members 2 . Outline scope of work REPORTS • DCAB report for December 2013 • ADA Coordinator' s report • Updates / Announcements NEXT MEETING Tuesday, March 18, 2014 — 12 : 30 p.m. , Mo ` ikeha Building, Meeting Room 2A/2B ADJOURNMENT cc : Marc Guyot, Deputy County Attorney PUBLIC COMMENTS AND TESTIMONY Persons wishing to offer comments are encouraged to submit written testimony at least 24-hours prior to the meeting indicating: 1 . Your names and contact information, position/title and organization you are representing (if applicable) ; 2 . The agenda item that you are providing comments on; and 3 . Whether you will be testifying in person or submitting written comments only. 4. If you are unable to submit your testimony at least 24-hours prior to the meeting, please provide 10 copies of your written testimony at the meeting. While every effort will be made to copy, organize, and collate all testimony received, materials received on the day of the meeting or improperly identified may be distributed to the members after the meeting is concluded. The length of time allocated to persons wishing to present verbal testimony may be limited at the discretion of the chairperson or presiding member. Send written testimony to : MACFEA Attn: Cherisse Zaima Office of Boards and Commissions 4444 Rice Street, Suite 150 Lihue, HI 96766 e-mail: czaimakkauai.gov Phone : 241 -4881 Fax : 241 -5127 If you need an alternate format or auxiliary aid to participate, please contact Linda Nuland-Ames at 241 -4924 (V/TRS) at least (5) working days prior to the meeting. Meeting Minutes — DRAFT Mayor's Advisory Committee For Equal Access ( MACFEA) Tuesday, November 19 , 2013 Mo` ikeha Building , Meeting Room 2A-2B 4444 Rice Street, Lihu `e, HI 96766 Members Present: Elena Costales , Consumer, HCIL — Kaua ' i Volunteer; Rita Manriquez — State Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Board (STBIAB ) ; Dr. Lucy Miller — DCAB ( Disability and Communication Access Board ) Board Member; Kathy English — Hawai ' i Disability Rights Center; Ellen Ching — Easter Seals Hawaii ; El Doi — Kaua' i Developmental Disability Council ; Roberta Eiben , Consumer; Suzie Woolway — 'Ohana Home Health Care Members Excused : Betty Bell — Kaua' i Federation for the Blind ; Sharry Glass — Advocate , Teacher/Trainer; Keri Russell — American Red Cross Staff members also present: Linda Nuland -Ames — ADA/EEOC Coordinator; Cherisse Zaima — Commission Support Clerk; Teresa Tamura — Administrative Aide ; Marc Guyot — Deputy County Attorney; Tamar Lani — remote ASL interpreter CALL TO ORDER Chair Elena Costales called the meeting to order at 12 : 34 p . m . with 8 members present. APPROVAL OF MINUTES • Regular Open Session Minutes of September 17 , 2013 Action : Ms . Doi moved to approve the minutes as circulated . Ms . Eiben seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . Ms . Costales noted a change to the agenda to allow a presentation by J . Robertson of Ho ` ike to address some of the Committee's concerns on captioning . Mr. Robertson stated he is the Managing Director for Ho ` ike Kaua ' i Community Television , which serves as the management organization for Kaua ` i ' s public education and government access through Oceanic Time Warner Cable , specifically providing extensive coverage of government meetings as well as the Mayor's message . They also provide education and equipment to the community at large to enable them to produce non -commercial messages . There are also two education channels , which are programmed primarily by the Department of Education , as well as the University of Hawaii with their extended curriculum and distance learning programs . Ms . Woolway shared the great experiences she has had with Ho ` ike working with some of the non-profits she helps . She asked how Ho ` ike is acknowledging technological aspects and what kind of IT support they have for accessibility. Mr. Robertson replied that the way the contract with the County has been recently administered , Ho ` ike is no longer the contract owner, but a sub-contractor to Granicus . Ho ` ike provides the video source , and receives encoding for real-time captioning from Aegis Rapid Text located in California . Mr. Robertson addressed the conflict between open and closed captioning , noting that Granicus has allowed closed captioning to be embedded into the program ; Ho ` ike provides open captioning , which means it will always be in the picture . Open captioning was employed many years ago , and has continued to be implemented today, and he feels it is essential for the hearing impaired to have open captioning , which removes the additional burden of having to press the CC (closed caption ) button . Another benefit to open captioning is that it provides a real text source for those who have language challenges . Ho ` ike has had past discussions with members of the County Council about whether captioning should be closed or open , but Ho ` ike felt that keeping it open and having the text on the screen all the time was an essential tool for the entire community. Mr. Robertson explained that because of the closed caption element implemented by Granicus , when the CC button was pressed in addition to open captioning already present, it created a conflict making the captions impossible to read . At that time, he was unaware that Granicus had employed that system . Mr. Robertson is interested in the opinion and impressions of the Committee members , and expressed his willingness to work with the Committee to provide the best service they can . He noted that Ho ` ike's Board has been dedicated to how to increase services to the challenged community on Kauai , particularly with initiating programs for autistic children . He would really appreciate MACFEA's partnership , direction , guidance , and suggestions on how Ho ` ike can serve everybody. Dr. Lucy stated she is a caption user, and is aware of how the law was enacted , but noted that technology has changed since then , making it impossible for her to watch the County Council meetings . She noted that anyone who has purchased a television in the last 20 years has closed captioning capability. Therefore , she feels there is no need for open captioning , and would like to get rid of it. She expressed her disappointment in not having captioning for debates, noting she wished to hear both sides of some of the more recent issues and was not able to do so . Mr. Robertson stated they can always try to work together, and explained that the end result has to be determined by the County government as to how they will present their programming specifically. To provide more captioning for the public side of things may come upon cost barriers , but it does not prevent Ho ` ike from being able to do it. Mr. Robertson stated he has approached the Office of Boards and Commission to continue dialogue about providing an encoder at the Ho ` ike location so that they may possibly be able to provide captioning for additional programs such as community-at-large and non- profit programs . The captioning for the government channel and the problematic streaming needs to be corrected by the County Government as it is part of their contract with Granicus . In response to a question by Dr. Lucy, Mr. Robertson stated the County would just need to make a technological change to remove Ho ` ike' s open captioning . Dr. Lucy stated MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 2 she has spoken to individual council members who have all stated they know nothing about the encoder. Ms . Woolway asked for clarification from Dr. Lucy that open captioning is not needed , only closed captioning , and asked if she agrees that open captioning helps everybody. Dr. Lucy replied that closed captioning is now available to everyone , unless you don 't have a television under 20 years old , and if one is unsure how to use it, the television manual should tell you . Ms . Woolway asked what the quality difference is between open and closed captioning in relation to the translations of Hawaiian words and pidgin by the captioner . Mr. Robertson explained it depends on the individual doing the transcribing , but that aspect will be the same whether it' s open or closed captioning . Ms . Ching summarized what has been discussed so far, and asked Dr. Lucy what it is she would like . Dr. Lucy stated that open captioning is obsolete and no longer necessary because closed captioning is available to 99% of people . She confirmed that she does not want open captioning , and would only like closed captioning . Ms . Ching asked if the open captioning is part of the settlement agreement to which Ms . Nuland-Ames replied no , the settlement agreement just specifies that captioning be available for certain County activities ; open captioning doesn 't really apply anymore with the new technology now available . Action : Ms . Ching moved to make a recommendation to the Mayor to ask the Council to either interpret or make a contract amendment to remove open captioning as part of the contract with Ho ` ike . Dr. Miller seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . Ms . Woolway stated she agrees with the motion , but would like to amend it to include a massive public education component because many people won 't understand how closed captioning works ; this will need to be ongoing . Dr. Lucy stated she would volunteer to write an article to explain the use of closed captioning . Mr. Robertson suggested that along with the educational piece , Ho ` ike should air something prior to each program that would inform people of the change as well as provide instruction on how to use the closed captioning feature . Mr. Guyot suggested Ho ` ike run a text crawler during the first month , every 15 minutes during the show, with that information in addition to the announcement at the beginning of the program . Dr. Lucy noted that crawlers often block captioning . Mr. Robertson stated if they do a very good job of alerting the community, and doing outreach , he doesn 't see it being a significant issue . MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 3 Action : Ms . Woolway moved to have an educational component to the removal of the open captioning . Ms . Ching seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . BUSINESS o Election of Chair and Vice Chair for 2014 Action : Ms . Ching moved to select Roberta Eiben for the position of Chair for 2014 . Ms . Doi seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . The election of Vice Chair for 2014 was deferred to the January 21 , 2014 meeting . o Discussion and decision making on 2014 MACFEA meeting calendar Action : Ms . Ching moved to approve the 2014 MACFEA meeting calendar. Ms . Woolway seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . o MACFEA Goals for 2013/2014 1 . Increasing Emergency Preparedness 2 . Increasing Employment of Persons with Disabilities in the County Ms . Ching asked if Ms . Nuland-Ames would like to draft recommendations , or if she would like a sub-committee to be formed . Ms . Nuland -Ames suggested a small sub- committee to help move things along . Action : Ms . Ching moved to form a sub-committee with Civil Defense to work with the ADA Coordinator to identify areas of concern , and draft up recommendations to address emergency preparedness . Ms . Manriquez seconded the motion . Motion carried 8 : 0 . Ms . Manriquez stated the American Red Cross has community volunteers for disaster preparedness , for which she is the lead of health services . She noted there is already a group that responds to emergency disasters , and feels like they would be over-stepping or interfering with American Red Cross . Ms . Nuland -Ames stated that this has been discussed before , and reminded the Committee that this initiative is to ensure better outcomes for people with medical conditions and various disabilities in preparation during a disaster, and the recovery and rebuilding . It's to supplement areas that are not being addressed , not to run a shelter. Ms . Manriquez stated that Ho' ike would be a perfect way to get information out on emergency preparedness , but noted that the American Red Cross encourages people to shelter-in-place . She reiterated that as a County she feels they would be over- stepping . MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 4 Ms . Woolway suggested including in the sub-committee some organizations on the island that work with home health care , noting they could provide good insight on preparedness for families that stay in the home . Ms . Ching noted it is her goal to address all of the issues that were discussed so far by working with people from different organizations to get everybody on the same page , and get the message out more consistently. First and foremost, they need to define what the problems are , draw up the plan , and implement it . Ms . Woolway asked about creating a sub-committee to implement this goal as well , and include State Vocational Rehab , Workwise , and other similar organizations . ( Ms . English left the meeting . ) Ms . Ching asked Ms . Nuland-Ames if she would like to draft an initial plan , or if she would prefer a sub-committee be created . Ms . Nuland-Ames stated she could draft up some suggestions , but feels that they can progress more quickly if there is a sub - committee working on things between the regular MACFEA meetings . Ms . Nuland- Ames reminded members that because they are an advisory committee to the Mayor, this initiative will need to relate to County government, and they should consider meeting with the Human Resources department to discuss the application process . She also suggested they meet with people involved in training students to transition to a job , and businesses that contract with the County. Action : Ms . Ching moved to form a sub-committee to develop and implement a strategic plan to increase employment of individuals with disabilities in County government. Ms . Woolway seconded the motion . Motion carried 7 : 0 Ms . Ching asked Ms . Nuland-Ames to facilitate sending out emails to ask for volunteers for the sub-committees, and coordinate meeting dates to which Ms . Nuland —Ames stated it is the Committee that does that. She suggested the Committee have Boards and Commissions send out an email asking members to serve on the Committee . REPORTS o DCAB o Plan of Action for 2013-2014 o DCAB Report for October/November Dr. Lucy noted that everyone has received a copy of the report, noting that the next meeting is on Thursday. • ADA Ms . Nuland -Ames provided updates on the following : MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 5 • Follow-up on a request for written or oral response from Lenny Rapozo regarding ADA plan review of Parks and Recreation projects currently underway; the response letter from Mr. Rapozo is on file . • Update on the Lihu `e Civic Center improvements , and offered copies of the design plans for the Commission to review. • Report on 3-day FEMA Disaster Preparedness & Recovery Conference on Oahu last month . • State Civil Defense distributed a brochure listing all available shelters on each island . They mistakenly declared all shelters on Kauai are accessible , and provide support to those with special needs . Ms . Nuland -Ames stated the brochure will not be distributed on Kauai as it contains incorrect information . ANNOUNCEMENTS : Roberta Eiben will be the Committee Chair effective January 2014 . Ms . Manriquez stated that due to difficulties in achieving quorum , the State Traumatic Brain Injury Advisory Board has reduced the number of members . She also mentioned that there is an Immigrant Resource Center across the street from the Kapa`a Big Save parking lot. The Center is under Child and Family Services , and is part of Nana 's House , which is located on the West Side . Ms . Doi reported that there are two upcoming transition events . One is being held on Saturday, November 23 at the Kapa`a High School cafeteria from 9 a . m . - 12 p . m . , and will focus on the importance of transitioning , and how to prepare . There will also be three breakout sessions on medical information , legal information , and a presentation by DVR. Leolinda Parlind will also be doing a mini workshop on preparation for transitioning from Intermediate to High School . The second event will be on December 11 at the Department of Health from 5 p . m . - 7 p . m . , and will focus on the various types of planning such as ISP , IEP , FIP , and differences between each of those plans . Dr. Lucy mentioned that the parking committee for DCAB has a website , which can be accessed with a smartphone that tells you where handicapped parking areas are , based on your location . Soon , there will a feature that allows anyone to contribute to the website via smartphone by taking a photo of the building , and the location of the handicapped parking . The next meeting will be on Tuesday, January 21 , 2014 at 12 : 30 p . m . , Mo' ikeha Building , Meeting Room 2A/213 Adjournment: Chair Costales announced the meeting was adjourned at 1 :45 p . m . MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 6 Respectfully submitted by: Cherisse Zaima , Support Clerk ( ) Approved as circulated ( ) Approved as amended MACFEA — November 19 , 2013 7 MACFEA Goals for 2013 — 2014 Increasing Emergency Preparedness I . Identify areas of concern and draft up recommendations to address these areas II . To increase emergency preparedness , engage in formalized partnerships with community organizations and groups including the Red Cross and the Center on Disability Studies ( Emergency Preparedness System of Support Project) A. Form a partnership with Red Cross to : 1 . Work with Red Cross to identify preparedness steps for People with Disabilities with Kauai Specific information . 2 . Identify more facilities that could serve as accessible shelters . 3 . Red Cross will offer People with Access and Functional Needs Awareness training for all volunteers twice per year. 4 . Assist Red Cross in finding potential partners and resources . B . Form a partnership with the Center on Disability Studies ( Emergency Preparedness System of Support Project) to facilitate and provide support to encourage as many people as possible to attend the " Feeling Safe Being Safe" curriculum C . Form a partnership with DCAB to : 1 . To provide the personnel , resources and training on shelter accessibility and preparedness III . Develop and implement a targeted awareness and education campaign plan on shelter locations , first aid locations and any other pertinent information . Increasing Employment of Persons with Disabilities in the County I . Provide information to the MCFEA committee on the hiring process and procedures to increase awareness II . Develop and implement an internship and volunteer program to increase job readiness III . Develop and implement a strategic plan to increase the employment of individuals with disabilities in the County. ,if, O F N4 MCP+rA 1959 a 'i Q DISABILITY AND COMMUNICATION ACCESS BOARD 919 Ala Moana Boulevard, Room 101 • Honolulu, Hawaii 96814 Ph. (808) 586-8121 (V/TDD) • Fax (808) 586-8129 December 2013 Report from the Disability and Communication Access Board for City and County of Honolulu , Maui , Kauai , and Big Island Mayors Committees Maui , Kauai , and Big Island Developmental Disabilities Committees Disability Rights Hawaii Big Island State Council on Developmental Disabilities State Independent Living Council Submitted by Francine Wai , Executive Director 1 . Hawaii Administrative Rules , Title 11 , Chapters 216 and 217 DCAB held a public hearing on amendments to its administrative rules , Title 11 , Chapters 216 and 217 , Facility Access Rules of Practice and Procedures on August 29 , 2013 . Chapter 11 -216 was amended to include the new fee schedule for Hawaii Revised Statutes § 103-50 . Chapter 11 -217 was repealed and incorporated into Chapter 11 -216 . No public testimony was received on the amendments . Governor Abercrombie signed the rules on November 14 , 2013 and they rules went into effect on November 25 , 2013 . For more information on the administrative rules , contact Mona Higa at mona . higa(a)doh . hawaii . gov. 2 . Update on Federal Rules relating to Disability • The U . S . Department of Transportation ( DOT) issued final rules regarding the accessibility of web sites and automated kiosks at airports . The Department amended the Air Carrier Access Act to require U . S . and foreign carriers make web sites accessible under certain requirements and also amended its Section 504 rules to require U . S . airport operators that jointly own , lease , or control automated airport kiosks to meet the same standard . For more information , contact Charlotte Townsend at charlotte .townsend (a�doh . hawaii . gov . • The U . S . DOT issued final rules to allow airlines to choose between stowing wheelchairs in a cabin compartment on new aircraft or strapping them to a row of seats , subject to certain conditions . For more information , contact Charlotte Townsend at charlotte .townsend (a)doh . hawaii . gov . • The U . S . Access Board issued final rules establishing guidelines for outdoor developed areas (picnic facilities , camping facilities , viewing areas , trails , and beach access ) that are applicable to federal agencies and non -federal agencies that construct or alter recreation facilities on federal land on behalf of the federal agency. For more information , contact Mona Higa at mona . higa (a�doh . hawaii . gov . 3 . Update on State Rules relating to Disability • The Hawaii Civil Rights Commission ( HCRC) finalized their Hawaii Administrative Rules relating to nondiscrimination in housing . Among the many changes made were updating the definition of a person with a disability and an assistance animal . The changes conform to the Fair Housing requirements for assistance animal . It is important to remember that the rules for housing differ from those relating to state/local government or public accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) . The Fair Housing Act provisions are broader to include a variety of assistance animals (comfort, therapy, companion , etc . ) and not just service animals as defined under the ADA. However, the Fair Housing Act does allow landlords to ask for verification of both the person 's disability and the need for the assistance animals under the ADA. HCRC's rules provide guidance for landlords as to what to ask and also provides for reasonable restrictions on the animals in the residential setting . For more information , contact HCRC , http ://Iabor. hawaii . gov/hcrc/ . DCAB testified on the rules with many recommendations incorporated into the final version . For information on how these rules impact persons with disabilities , contact Francine Wai at francine .wai @doh . hawaii . gov. • The County of Hawaii , Department of Parks and Recreation is in the process of amending all its rules relating to the policies and procedures of the parks and its recreation services . This includes rules relating to golf, aquatics , as well as some of the major park facilities . DCAB has provided comments for the public hearing to recommend language relating to service animals as well as reasonable modification of policies and procedures for situations such as use of golf carts , lifts and flotation devices in the parks' pools . The hearing is scheduled for December 13 , 2013 . For more information on DCAB 's testimony, contact Charlotte Townsend at charlotte .townsend (a)doh . hawaii . gov. • The City and County of Honolulu has updated its "no-show" policy for HandiVan service on Oahu . The policy explains the notification , warning , and service suspension for chronic no-shows . For more information , contact Charlotte Townsend at charlotte .townsend (c doh . hawaii . gov . --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Don 't forget to sign up for DCAB 's four (4 ) E-Bulletins For the Emergency Preparedness for People with Disabilities E-News, contact debbra .jackson doh . hawaii . gov For the Facility Access E-Bulletin , contact laurie . palenske(a)doh . hawaii . gov For the Communication Access E-Bulletin , contact kristine . pagano(a�doh . hawaii . gov For the SPIN News, contact jan .tateishi (@,doh . hawaii . gov