Susang1961@aol.com .

TO: NDSC Members and Affiliated Parent Groups

FROM: Susan Goodman, Director
Governmental Affairs

DATE: July 26, 2007

Advocates Achieve an Important Victory

On July 19th, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 276 -140 to pass the funding bill for Labor-Health and Human Services-Education (H.R.3043).  It was passed with 276 Democrats and 140 Republicans (a bi-partisan effort).  The House appropriations bill increases funding modestly for many services, with above-inflation increases for many education programs, community health centers, and maternal and child health care. This bill rejects severe cuts proposed by the President.
 
Many Newsline readers responded to our request to contact their Representative regarding this important bill. Our advocacy is vital and IT WORKS! However, our work is far from over!

The President has said that he will veto a bill with spending increases. We need to let our members of Congress know how important these funding increases are to individuals with Down syndrome and other disabilities so they can garner the votes to override the veto. We have a chance!
 
If your representative voted for the Labor-HHS-Ed bill (H.R. 3043), please thank him/her. If not, please let them know how important this is to you and the other voters in the district.

To find the name of and contact information for your Representative, go to www.congress.org and enter your zip code. To find out how your Representative voted, go to http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2007/roll686.xml.

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Senators Kennedy and Brownback Introduce Bill
Promotes Quality Information for New Parents

U.S. Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) have introduced a bill called The Pre-natally and Post-natally Diagnosed Conditions Awareness Act. This Act requires that families who receive a diagnosis of Down syndrome or any other condition, either pre-natally or within a year after the child’s birth be given up-to-date information about the nature of the condition and connection with support services and networks that could offer assistance.

To read the text of this bill, go to http://thomas.loc.gov and enter S.1810 under bill number.

If you have questions or comments about this Newsline, please contact Susang1961@aol.com.