Governor Deal Speaks at 18th Annual Disability Day at the Capitol
The following is a transcript of the remarks given by Gov. Deal at Disability Day.
Your theme this year is The Disability Vote –Feel The Power. That is an appropriate theme to have in this election year cycle. I would encourage all of you to register to vote and then to use that power to vote in primaries and at the general election. This will be a busy year in all of those cycles of the election process so it is an appropriate time for that to be your theme for the year.
I also want to thank all of those who have sponsored legislation and actually carried your efforts forward in the State General Assembly. For example, in my budget this year we are including 100 new NOW waivers and over $11 million to support the increased rates for the COMP waiver. We remain committed to serving people in the least restrictive environment as possible in order to obtain a high quality of life for everyone in our State.
Another important aspect of what is happening in Georgia is the progress that we are making of being able to enroll students with intellectual disabilities on our college campuses. Those colleges currently include Kennesaw State University, Georgia State University, East Georgia State College, Georgia Tech and Columbus State University. There will be others joining these including the University of Georgia.
We all remain committed to making sure that we have progress toward increasing the number of people with disabilities who actually can go to work. I’m happy to support the efforts of Chairwoman Katie Dempsey’s study committee to establish the Georgia Employment First Council. They will recommend to the General Assembly ways in which we can proceed in order to become an Employment First state.
In summary this is our goal: We want people who can live in real communities with real homes with real careers and with real learning opportunities. Thank you very much. I am now privileged to present to you a proclamation recognizing this special occasion. It is a proclamation for Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.
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Eric E. Jacobson
Executive Director, GCDD
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