Bill > HB1653

This bill mandates that the Tennessee Department of Human Services, through its vocational rehabilitation program, must allocate a minimum of $16,000 annually from vocational rehabilitation funds to support accessible information services for blind individuals in the state, specifically mentioning the National Federation of the Blind newsline as an example of such a service. These funds are intended to ensure continued access to these vital services, which are recognized as crucial for education, employment, and economic independence for blind persons, and if the state allocates these funds, they must be used to secure matching federal vocational rehabilitation funds. The bill also clarifies that these funds can be used for maintaining access to information services, as well as for outreach, training, and marketing activities aimed at increasing the use of vocational rehabilitation services for employment and education, and the department is required to document the funding sources for these accessible information services.

Health and Social Services

https://wapp.capitol.tn.gov/apps/Billinfo/default.aspx?BillNumber=HB1653&ga=114