STATEMENT OF THE HONCRAREE JOHN E, FOGARTY OF RHODE ISLAND

. BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON SPECIAL EDUCATION,

COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND LABOR, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
ON MARCH 9, 1959

Mre Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee on Special Education, I am
appearing on behalf of HeRe 5243, a bill I introduced to provide for the esbab=
lishment of a temporary Presidential Commission to study the potentialities,
problems, and needs of blind parsons in the United States in relation to the
various Federally=supported services and programs designed to assist them, The
need for a comprehensive, authoritative, and objective study of this type has
become increasingly apparent during the past several years The rapid growth
and development of service programs as a result of legislation enacted during
and since World War IIs changing concepts in rehabilitation, education of the
handicapped, social insurance, and social welfare in generals changing public
attitudes toward the blind; the steadily increasing population of blind persons

all of these factors emphasize the necessity for a high level study of programs

39

nd sorvices for blind persons in order to objectively determine the adequacy of
existing services and to recommend improvement in the light of present and future
needSe

My biLL would provide for such a study of services and programs supported to
any extent by Federal funds with the exception of medical research, As you know,
TL have been an advocate of increasing Federal support for medical research as the
best hope for eliminating the killing and disabling diseases of mankinds and I
WLLL continue to be a strong advocate of effective medical researche However,
our concern in this bill is for those persons whe mist make their way in life
without sighte-the several thousand premature babies of a few years ago (now of

grade school age) who lost thelr sight because of excessive oxygen. in incubators
weet

before the cause was discovered and eliminated, the men and women who are
blinded each year in industrial and other accidents, and those who lost and
continue to lese their sight through diseases whose cure and cause are nob yet
knowns We are interested in learning how we can better assist such people to
become full participants in the economic and sociel life of the nations

My bill calls for a Study Commission consisting of nine members to be
appointed by the President from among prominent persons in public and private
life and the pertinent professions. It authorizes the employment of a fulletine
staff and permits the utilization of specialists from voluntary agencies for
short periods of time without compensation except for expenses, The duration of
the study would be two and a half years, and a total appropriation of $450,000
would be autherized to carry it oute This amount would cover a per diem allowance
of $50 and travel expenses for members of the Commission, salaries and travel
expenses of the staff, printing ef the finel report and staff background docu»
ments, office supplies, and the like for the entire two and a half year periods

The Commission is charged with studying existing Federal lews which provide
services or benefits to blind persons; with studying and evaluating the standards
of these services; and with formulating and recemmending standards where none
exist, in addition to any other recommendations it may make for improvement of
servicess Thus, programs and benefits for blind persons administered by several
Federal agencies would be covered ag would State programs in which the Federal
Governnent perticipates financially, Only those voluntary agencies which partici~e
pate in Federal programs through the purchase of products, such as workshops for
the blind, or through the purchase of services would be includede Since the study
provided for in my bill would invelve programs and benefits administered by

several agencies of the Executive Branch of the Federal Government and one agency
a

a=

of the Legislative Branchs»the Library of Congress, which administers the "Looks
for the Blind" programesI firmly believe that the Comnuissicn should be housed at
&. supradepartmental level, such as the Executive Offices of the Presidente

I know that the study provided for in this bill will result in improving
services to blind people and make it possible for many more of them to take their

rightful places in the preductive life of our nations