Senate Bill 449: Why is this bill important?

Chad Ludwig: Hi! I’m Chad Ludwig, President of Oregon Association for the Deaf (OAD). Now, I wanted to comment on SB 449. SB 449 would create a permanent office for Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard of Hearing people. You may wonder why this is so important. I can’t stress enough how important this bill is.

In the U.S, we have a total of 38 states providing services for the Oregon Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing members. These services being provided range from case management, counseling, advocacy, data, referrals, education, and workshops in various locations teaching people how to improve and serve in their community. This is just a handful, the list of services goes on and on.

Some of you may have lived in or visited other states and taken notice of the services they have available. You want to have the same services here in Oregon, yet we have none. This lack of services must stop! We want to be able to say, “We have these services in Oregon!”

In order to do this our community must become involved when the legislators start discussing SB 449. There are many ways to become involved. You could go to the Legislative Building at the State Capitol in Salem. If you can’t go to Salem to show your support, write a letter and send it to your legislators. You can also call your legislators and explain why this bill is important.

If you aren’t sure how to do any of these options, please reach out to OAD. Both Steven Brown, OAD Legislative Chairperson, and I are so excited to give you advice on how to have your message heard by the legislators stating that you want these services to be established for all Deaf, Deaf-Blind and Hard of Hearing in Oregon.

The bill won’t quite be done once it is in place. It will, however, start opening many doors to build up the momentum and support needed. This momentum takes some time.

The most important thing is to have the legislators sign the bill with a “yes” vote. From there, the bill will be forwarded to the Senate and then to the House for both of them to sign before giving it to our new governor for the final vote. Once it is signed by all parties, it means the services will come to Oregon!

Of course, there will still be some work to do from there on out as well. I am committed to getting these services established and I welcome you all to commit to making this happen for all of Oregon Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard of Hearing people. Thank you.