Finding a job is always a challenge, but for people with developmental disabilities it is often nearly impossible. Georgians with disabilities such as autism, Down syndrome, or cerebral palsy have experienced how society focuses on their limitations instead of their strengths. The overall unemployment rate in the U.S. hovers at seven percent, but it’s closer to 80 percent for people with developmental disabilities (severe, life-long disabilities that limit critical life functions).

Currently, Georgia’s Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) has authorized just $7.4 million for supported employment services, when the need is many times that amount. A coalition of advocacy groups is asking the General Assembly to support an appropriation of state funds in the FY 2015 DBHDD budget for a program to provide supported employment services to help students with developmental disabilities. The program would help young people who are finishing high school in 2014 find and keep good jobs in the regular workplace.  Read more...