The Houston Chronicle (CFED)
By: Chris Tomlinson
February 5, 2012
Texans politicians (and our local Assemblymember, Dan Logue) like to tout the state’s economic growth, but more and more Texans are finding themselves teetering on the edge of poverty.
… a study by the Corporation for Enterprise Development has found that 27.7 percent of Texas households have no financial cushion in case of an emergency. If you exclude homes and automobiles from the calculation, a full 50 percent of Texans have no assets they could use to survive if they suddenly lost their income.
The findings match up with the latest U.S. Census data on Texas, which found that 17.9 percent of Texans — or 4.4 million people — live below the poverty line. That’s 2.6 percent higher than the national average and ranks Texas 40th in the nation. When compared to the rest of the country, Texas ranks 41st in financial security. Is Texas really a good model for California as we go forward out of the latest recession?
Assemblymember Dan Logue explains "voodoo economics".
January Disability Employment Statistics Released
The U.S. Dept. of Labor has released the first disability employment statistics for 2012.
Labor force participation for people with disabilities was 20.0 percent, compared to 68.9 percent for people without disabilities, while the unemployment rate for people with disabilities was 12.9, compared to 8.7 for people without disabilities.
Among youth age 16-19, the employment rate was 15.0 percent for those with disabilities, compared to 23.6 for those with no disabilities. For youth age 20-24, the employment rate was 26.7 percent for those with disabilities, compared to 61.0 for those with no disabilities.
Universal Design table
XIONG BROTHERS’ WISH COMES TRUE
Tub Xiong (age 17) and Leng Xiong (age 16) have contracted Duchene’s Muscular Dystrophy, a sex-linked recessive genetic disorder. This rare form of MD progresses rapidly, has no known cure and usually results in death around the age of mid-20’s. The rapid progression leaves most youth in need of wheelchairs by the early teen years, as is the case with the Xiongs. The parents were struggling to provide transportation for both of the boys. With only standard automobiles at their disposal, it required two vehicles to get the two boys anywhere. It was necessary to perform a difficult lift by a family member to maneuver in and out of the vehicle with their wheelchairs. The parents turned to many agencies looking for assistance, but no agency could help them.
The parents turned to Independent Living Services of Northern California for assistance. Independent Living Services of Northern California took their request seriously and granted the family $500. The Clifton Lewis Foundation contributed an additional $1000. By combining the two gifts, the Xiong family finally purchased a used accessible van for their two lovely children. Leng and Tub stated that “our wish comes true.” They also stated that “we can go anywhere we want to go together now.”
Additional information about the services provided by Independent Living Services of Northern California can be found at: http://www.ilsnc.org/services
