Public Meeting Notice  MCB Rehabilitation Council (RC) Meeting

The quarterly Meeting of the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind Rehabilitation Council was called to order by Chair Brian Switzer at about 1pm. The meeting was held remotely using the Zoom conferencing platform.

Roll call:

Members in Attendance: Brian Switzer Chair; Jerry Berrier; Martha Daigle.

MCB: Commissioner John Oliveira and Priscilla Ngome.

Regrets: Jennifer Whittemore; Rebecca Davis; Jennifer Harnish; Naomi Goldberg.

A quorum of five out of nine RC voting and non-voting members was present. Three out of the seven voting members were present, so not enough members to vote. December meeting minutes vote will be delayed until the June meeting.

Commissioner’s Update

Commissioner John Oliveira shared that none of the political happenings in Washington impact VR services as of date of this meeting. MCB is fully funded until June 30. Grant from December was used to cover costs of services. This was done in case the continuing resolution that will be voted on March 14 would expire but recent report indicates there will be a vote to continue the resolution for a couple of months which hopefully allows them to release part of the funds. If the resolution is extended and funds released, then those funds will be applied to July thru September. When state budget is signed, MCB will also get its state matching funds. He notes that things change often but MCB is in a good financial place with the planning that has been done. In response to a question, he explained that by allocating the federal grant funds now it shows the RSA that the funds will be used for services and personnel; if RSA sees they are just sitting there unallocated they might pull back the funds. He noted though that this kind of threat has been out there over the years but never occurred in his tenure at MCB. There was a penalty from a past year which has been addressed. He also noted that news channels are reporting some accurate information but also inaccurate information.

MCB is fully staffed for VR services, and vendor providers continue to provide their services.

In response to question on applications when VR positions are posted, he said that positions requiring certification get a low number of applicants (about two-five) whereas voc rehab counselor applications can be as high as 30 or so. MCB is kicking off a collaboration with UMass Boston using RSA reallotment funds to develop an undergraduate course on Vision Rehab which MCB and UMass can also market to other colleges. Goal is to have the course ready for Fall, 2025 enrollment. A second project is to develop videos of COMS and VRT’s working with blind individuals to help the public understand what those positions are and lead them to an interest in this line of work. Future reallotment funds that will be applied for in the summer will then be used to post the videos on social media. RSA has funded tuition for a master’s degree in such areas meaning costs are low for students going into the field. Currently, there might only be four residents of Massachusetts who want to stay in MA in such programs so those outside of the state have to be convinced to move here given cost of living compared to where the students taking the classes on-line might come from a much lower cost of living area. TVI shortages also exist. Such shortages across the blindness services field exist across the country, not just in MA.

Deputy Commissioner’s Report

Deputy Commissioner Justine Muir shared that it is less than one month until the Visions of Collaboration conference which is geared towards professionals working with school-age children. VR staff have worked to have a range of speakers as well as a student panel. After just one week of registration, there are 94 individuals signed up and ten vendors/exhibitors. The internship program is underway including regional soft skills training following MCB’s curriculum; the regional approach allows for more firsthand training including mock interviews, role playing, and facilitating strong peer connections within each region. The VR team has launched a collaboration with Boston Medical Center and the Carroll Center which will offer volunteer opportunities to build skills, confidence, and experience for future employment.

Dashboard Update

Nathan Skrocki reported there are over 800 SR children and over 3300 SR adults, over 200 VR youth (includes Pre-Ets individuals) and over 700 VR adults registered. Closed cases were 18 youth, over 380 SR adults and over 130 successful VR closures and 76 non-successful closures. Consistency in age range of cases. Certificates of blindness, ID’s and parking placards issued are consistent with the previous year. Data dashboard which is on the MCB website is updated at end of each month which achieves one of the WIOA State Plan goals.

WIOA State Plan: Performance towards Goals

In addition to the Dashboard Nate shared that collaborations with community partners are also happening as reported by the Commissioner. He also said that Comprehensive Needs Assessment Survey was completed. Results will be shared in the coming week with the RC then put on the agenda for the June meeting. MCB also continues to look at the data they have and report on that for monitoring trends. They have an in-service presentation developed to show to providers to build knowledge of blindness. For example, teaching eye care providers and senior center staff on eye diseases and treatments that slow progression. MCB is also working with the Department of Transitional Assistance (DTA) to look at accessibility of their service centers and education on MCB services and also how to work with those with visual impairments. DTA serves one in five MA residents providing financial supports such as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and cash benefits to qualified individuals. The Commissioner noted that Nate and his team have been able to get an AI product approved and deployed at the agency allowing the counselors to generate answers and associated policies or RSA directives attached to the answers. He said that MA and also Washington State are the first with agencies using such an app. This tool also updates when policies/directives update which keeps staff on top of changes being made.

Blind Americans Return to Work Act

Mika Pyyhkala, 1st VP of NFB of MA, shared that at NFB’s Washington Seminar where members advocate for legislative items. One was for software and web app accessibility bill; second was the non-visual medical devices accessibility Act. The third bill is the Blind Americans Return to Work Act. This focuses on both SSI (Supplemental Security Income) which is a means-based program for those with disabilities. When individuals receiving SSI start to work, the amount of SSI received starts to decline until they earn enough to lose the SSI totally. For SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) you have to have worked and paid FICA taxes into the Social Security system for a specific number of quarters. The amount you get if you have a disability such as blindness is based on the amount and number of quarters you paid in over your work history. With SSDI if someone goes back to work, there is the Substantial Gainful Activity Limit which is $2700 a month for those who are blind. Or an annual income of $32,400. Once you earn over that amount, a trial work period begins of nine months where SSDI benefits are not impacted. But the trial work period is triggered once someone earns $1160, which is less than $2700. Once you exhaust the nine-month trial period and then the three-month bonus trial period, if you earn in any given month more than $2700 you lose all of your SSDI benefits. This is referred to as the earnings cliff; it can also take many months to be reflected meaning you continue to receive funds that are then considered an overpayment with individuals then having to pay back all of the overpaid funds. The Return to Work Act HR 1175 proposes that benefits are reduced more gradually rather than all at once (about a $1 reduction for every $2 earned). Losing benefits all at once when reaching the SGA can result in people choosing not to work to avoid the amount of income that they would lose especially when they earn close to the SGA limit. For higher incomes earned, the income can make up for the lost SSDI income. One study found that 21 to 37 percent of NIB (National Industries for the Blind) affiliated employees who are blind, or LV would decline promotions/ raises/extra hours because of potential to lose all of their benefits all at once. The bill proposes a trial period from 2026-2035 which could be extended if the gradual reduction in benefits income saves Social Security money and benefits the employees. For more details, Google NFB Washington Seminar 2025 then when on the seminar page go to the Legislative Priorities page. Overpayment is not yet addressed in this bill but might be a future consideration.

Update on BSCB quorum information

Jerry Berrier was asked to present on this topic. He notes that BSCB has been communicating with the Disability Law Center to get input on how quorum is currently being calculated and that it can lead to votes by a very small number of people and whether using the total allowed on the RC (15 people) should be used in calculating quorum rather than number attending the meeting. The Chair noted the difficulties in filling the RC seats such as potential members having schedule changes or no longer being interested while the appointment process is taking a long time to occur. The question of how often one needs to be sworn in was raised. The Chair reported that there should be two new RC members starting at the June meeting. Minh Ha and Darien Johnson. The Chair requested appointees to send him their appointment emails so that he knows when this has occurred.

New Business

The Chair met with Heather Woods, the Chair of MassAbilities’ SRC. To discuss ways to collaborate with the RC. They have a follow-up meeting scheduled with the two relevant Commissioners.

The Executive Order that allows for remote meetings expires end of March and is up for renewal. Brian intends to have remote or hybrid meetings to continue to serve people across MA. It remains unclear if the Chair can make the decision.

Public Comments

None

The meeting was adjourned after one hour. Specific start and end times were not available in the Zoom recording posted on the MCB website which was used by this Secretary to produce the minutes.

Next meeting: Wednesday, June 4, 2025, 1:00 - 3:00 PM. 

1. Call to order
2. Welcome and introductions
3. Approval of December 4 Minutes
4. Commissioner’s Update
   1. Budget update
5. Dashboard Update
6. WIOA
7. Blind Americans Return To Work Act
8. New Business
9. Public Comments