Senator Richard F. Colburn - A Shore Senator

May 22, 2006

National Federation of the Blind
9013 Nelson Way
Columbia, MD

Dear Senator Colburn,

On behalf of the members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, I am writing to thank your colleages in the Maryland General Assembly for your efforts in the 2006 session to create better educational opportunities for blind persons.

We commend the members of both the House and Senate for passing companion bills SB 392 and HB 710, which will require publishers to submit electronic files of grades k-12 textbooks in a uniform file format. Maryland's Instructional Resource Center for Blind and Visually Impaired Students will then be able to produce textbooks in Braille and other alternative formats more quickly and efficiently. Thanks to your efforts, our goal of provideing textbooks to blind and visually impaired students at the beginning of the semester rather than later or not at all, is now within our grasp.

We also commend you for including the recommendation in SB 392 and HB 710 for an annual appropriation of $150,000 to improve the operations of the Maryland Instructional Resource Center. This is a most reasonable appropriation, given the many demands on Maryland's tax dollars.

Further, this legislation offers a modest beginning in our efforts to ensure on-time delivery of accessible textbooks to blind and visually impaired students in higher education by requiring the Maryland Department of Disabilities and the Maryland Higher Education Commission to issue recommendations after consulting with the textbook publishers. Since these recommendations are due by the end of 2006, we look forward to working with the Maryland General Assembly on this matter in 2007.

We take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to those of you who will be leaving the General Assembly this year. We truly appreciate your many years of support and hard work on our behalf. We wish you much success in your future endeavors.

We extend best wishes to those of you who are running for reelection.

The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland looks forward to continuing our partnership with the Maryland General Assembly as we strive to improve the quality of life for blind citizens of Maryland. We thank you again for your valuable help.

Sincerely,

Sharon Maneki
President


Paid for by Citizens for Colburn Committee. Authority John W. Phillips, Jr., Treasurer		May 22, 2006 National Federation of the Blind 9013 Nelson Way Columbia, MD Dear Senator Colburn, On behalf of the members of the National Federation of the Blind of Maryland, I am writing to thank your colleages in the Maryland General Assembly for your efforts in the 2006 session to create better educational opportunities for blind persons. We commend the members of both the House and Senate for passing companion bills SB 392 and HB 710, which will require publishers to submit electronic files of grades k-12 textbooks in a uniform file format. Maryland's Instructional Resource Center for Blind and Visually Impaired Students will then be able to produce textbooks in Braille and other alternative formats more quickly and efficiently. Thanks to your efforts, our goal of provideing textbooks to blind and visually impaired students at the beginning of the semester rather than later or not at all, is now within our grasp. We also commend you for including the recommendation in SB 392 and HB 710 for an annual appropriation of $150,000 to improve the operations of the Maryland Instructional Resource Center. This is a most reasonable appropriation, given the many demands on Maryland's tax dollars. Further, this legislation offers a modest beginning in our efforts to ensure on-time delivery of accessible textbooks to blind and visually impaired students in higher education by requiring the Maryland Department of Disabilities and the Maryland Higher Education Commission to issue recommendations after consulting with the textbook publishers. Since these recommendations are due by the end of 2006, we look forward to working with the Maryland General Assembly on this matter in 2007. We take this opportunity to express our sincere appreciation to those of you who will be leaving the General Assembly this year. We truly appreciate your many years of support and hard work on our behalf. We wish you much success in your future endeavors. We extend best wishes to those of you who are running for reelection. The National Federation of the Blind of Maryland looks forward to continuing our partnership with the Maryland General Assembly as we strive to improve the quality of life for blind citizens of Maryland. We thank you again for your valuable help. Sincerely, Sharon Maneki President