Approved Minutes

CT Council on Developmental Disabilities

Legislative Policy and Planning Committee Meeting

February 15, 2022, Thursday

10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Via MS Teams

Present:  Emily Ball, April Burke, Adriano Cirioli, III, Committee Chair; Doris Maldonado Mendez, Council Vice Chair; Santina Sciaba-Douglas,

Staff:  Walter Glomb, Council Director

Minutes:  Donna Devin

1. Call to Order with Quorum:The meeting was called to order at 10:00 a.m. There was no public present at the meeting, so the Committee moved on to the next agenda item.

    

2. Comments From the Council Director:Walt said prepping for the upcoming legislative session really needs to begin in the fall. It is the best time to engage Legislators, have discussions, and decide on the priorities of the Committee. Legislators are available locally because they’re not in session. Once they’re in session, it is much harder to get their attention on topics you haven’t discussed with them beforehand. It is also a good time to find out what the big issues are going to be in terms of what other advocacy organizations are going to be doing; what the different departments are going to be asking for; and what the Governor is going to be looking at. He said while there is still some time to put in a word for the 2022 session on matters of concern to the Council, he suggests the Committee also start thinking about 2023 now and their approach to the 2023 session, so that by the fall, they are ready.

    

   Walt sent out a list of the agendas for some of the other big statewide advocacy groups he engages with on a regular basis. He said all of them worked on their agendas in the fall and had them put together by January. The list gives the Committee an idea of what issues other likeminded organizations are working on.
   
   One of the organizations on his list focuses on ID, while 4 others focus on mental health. The Cross Disability Alliance has a broader focus. Legislation to improve mental health services in Connecticut is going to be a hot topic in this session. While he isn’t aware of much happening in the ID space, the Council’s self-advocacy is being furthered by its hard work in helping People First of Connecticut reconstitute itself.

    

   Walt said research needs to be done and he has a lot of information he is willing to share with members. Somebody needs to be tracking the CGA website, etc.

    

   He has spent the past couple of years trying to draw the Council into other areas of developmental disabilities other than intellectual disabilities. He believes with housing, employment, transportation, these areas of emphasis the resources for the solutions are very similar, regardless of what the developmental disability is. He’s been trying to bridge that gap. He wants to get to a place where the focus is on functional needs and not diagnosis; to look at what’ is the functional need that presents itself. Is there need for employment, supports, transportation, healthcare, education?

    

3. Election of Committee Chair:Andy Cirioli, Committee Chair, volunteered for the position of Committee Chair. The motion was seconded by Doris Maldonado Mendez, Council Vice Chair. The Committee approved Andy Cirioli as their Chair.

    

   Tasks for the Committee:  Andy Cirioli, Committee Chair, asked Committee members if they had any questions. He said since the legislative session had already begun and pieces of legislation are being considered in committee and by the entire General Assembly, it was important for the Committee to meet soon and discuss some major legislation they’d like to offer their opinions on. It would probably be through a letter right submitted on behalf of the entire Council to the General Assembly.

    

   Doris Maldonado Mendez, Council Vice Chair, agreed that’s typically what’s been done in the past. She went to say Disability Rights Connecticut had posted their priorities and had also hosted an ADA forum on Covid and the ADA and how it’s been impacted.

    

   Andy Cirioli, Committee Chair, then opened the floor to Santina Sciaba-Douglas, Deputy Director of Disability Rights Connecticut. Santina is new to DRCT. Her recommendation is to focus on what targeted comments the Committee can make that are the most salient; that the group finds are the most crucial ones.

    

   Doris Maldonado Mendez, Council Vice Chair, pointed out due to the short session, a lot of legislative talks are on appropriations and budgeting, not on nonprofits and an increase in nonprofits’ budgets. They are discussing peer supports and peer licensing. And they have an advisory council that is accepting applications and nominations for the Peer Advisory Council Group. She said there’s a peer advisory and people with lived experiences as well. She’ll get the information on them to the Committee. She believes that’s a good place for the Committee to find representation on issues regarding peer run respites, peer workers or community health workers caused by the shortage of counselors, social workers, and other positions.

    

   At the next meeting, Andy Cirioli, Committee Chair, would like to have an idea of what legislation is being considered, so the Committee can write specific and targeted comments to that particular legislation.

    

   Doris Maldonado Mendez, Council Vice Chair, said the Committee needs to create talking points for Council members and its community, the grantees, so they can testify and address their legislators.

    

   Santina Sciaba-Douglas mentioned creating 2 or 3 Venn diagrams of the Committee’s goals; systemic technology, self-advocacy, underserved communities, and education and training. What intersects with those goals? Where is currently being considered that impacts those areas? That’s where the Committee has to focus.

    

4. Adjournment:Andy Cirioli, Committee Chair, made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Santina Sciaba-Douglas seconded the motion. The meeting adjourned at 11:00 a.m.