Policy

Most All Autism Politics is Local

by Tim on December 4, 2008

I saw this over at Little Bug Words and wanted to spread the word on this great resource.

The National Conference of State Legislatures has a database of autism-related legislation recently passed or currently being considered, listed by state, category, and current status. This is a fabulous way of keeping up with what’s going on in your state. If you see something you want to call your state representative or senator about, you have the relevant information you need right here.

Things appear to have been kinda dull in North Carolina on the autism front over the past year, but there’s at least one good reason for this. On even-numbered years – like this one – the General Assembly only meets in ‘short session’, which is just 6 weeks long. That’s it for the whole year unless the governor calls a special session. So a lot gets crammed in and a lot gets tabled until the following year.

But for all you NC people, there’s good news. On odd-numbered years, the General Assembly meets in ‘long session’ starting in January (in 2009, it’s January 28 to be exact), which typically lasts for 6 months. Why they do this, who knows? But long sessions are much more fertile ground to get legislation passed. So get off your butts starting next month and push for something good.

I say that most all autism politics is local because it’s the local services – whether provided by your city, county, or local branches of state offices – that we interact with regularly and who provide the services and assistance we and our kids need.

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Obama and McCain on Autism Spectrum Disorders, Education, and Health Care

by Tim on October 30, 2008

I had intended to write some sort of analysis of the Presidential candidates and their policies relating to autism spectrum disorders, education, and health care. After I wrote some of it, I realized that’s an epic topic somewhere on the order of “How carbon has influenced the evolution of the Earth.”

So, I’m going to point you to the relevant parts of each candidate’s web site and let you make up your own dang minds. :-) I focused the links only on their web sites because 1) so many public political statements spin more than our kids do, and 2) I’m going to assume that their web site statements are considered the official positions of their respective candidates.

If you haven’t voted yet because you don’t live in an early-voting state, or do and just haven’t cast your ballot, MAKE SURE YOU VOTE! NO EXCUSES! I am not a one-issue voter and encourage you not to be either, but I know the issues below are very important to many of our readers.

Regardless of how the whole thing turns out, these policy statements are important to remember for whomever wins the election. We need to keep these issues in front of federal, state, and local governments and make our voices heard when we feel our children are being under-served and shortchanged, particularly when a candidate forgets after they’re elected that they made these promises.

Note: Do not use the comment area to gush about your favorite candidate or flame his opponent. There are a million other places to do that and I don’t feel like dealing with people arguing this week. If you have links to other fact-based information relating to the candidates’ views in these areas or to relevant statements made by the candidates, feel free to post them in the comments, preferably with minimal commentary.

And now, the candidates!

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