I’m in Albany, meeting with members of the NYS Senate and Assembly regarding the bill to establish an Independent Living Center (ILC) in Ontario County (S.7264/A.10440). As I met with legislators today, the repeated refrain was “I like the bill, but State ED adamantly opposes this bill”. Why, I asked? “They don’t want to create new centers without additional funding”.

Sounds reasonable, but wait.

This is the same State Educated Department (SED) that in the 2006 and 2007 budget cycles, when there was money available, decided NOT to fund CDR to serve Ontario County. When there was money available, they told us we had to already be an ILC. Now that we’re asking to be an ILC, they say that we have to already have funding?!

This is also that same SED that uses CDR’s service statistics in its reports, because our numbers are very good. We’re one of the three strongest centers in New York State due to our Medicaid related services. SED gives us a total of $25,000 through a specific grant for systems advocacy, but they take credit in their report for CDR’s entire budget.

This same SED which chose not to fund us when they had the chance, and chooses to use our service statistics for which they give us next to nothing, is now telling us that we must first have funding in order to become an ILC? Only in Albany.

One of my favorite all time books is Catch-22. In Catch-22, the Airforce servicemen can get out of flying their extremely dangerous missions if they are, essentially, “crazy”. However, if you ask to not fly the missions, you are by definition not “crazy”. Therefore, no one can get out of flying the missions. It’s a great book, but I don’t like living the story.

This is the situation into which SED has placed people with disabilities in Ontario, Wayne and Yates counties. For the sake of the more than 60,000 people of all ages with disabilities potentially affected, SED needs to make up its mind on IL funding. Which comes first, the center status or the money?