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The New York State Senate has introduced two bills aimed at expanding entrepreneurship opportunities dramatically for people with disabilities. The measures were sponsored by Sen. Martin Golden (R-Brooklyn).
The bills (S.6095, S. 6096). reflect the success of the Start-Up NY program and "Inclusive Entrepreneurship," developed by the Burton Blatt Institute (BBI) at Syracuse University and its partners, including the Whitman School of Management at the university, the South Side Innovation Center (SSIC), Onondaga County, and the Onondaga Small Business Development Center (SBDC). Start-Up NY and Inclusive Entrepreneurship are being replicated in Manhattan in partnership with Hunter College and the Harlem-Columbia SBDC.
BBI is recognized in the language of the bill as a leader in creating partnerships and developing programs that expand entrepreneurship opportunities for people with diverse disabilities.
"These measures are particularly important, as unemployment among people with disabilities is estimated at 65 percent to 90 percent nationwide," said Gary Shaheen, BBI senior vice president. "They will help people with disabilities move from what is often dependence on government-subsidized programs to fiscal and economic independence as small business owners. That makes these bills good fiscal as well as human policy."
The proposed legislation calls for expanded support for entrepreneurship and small business development by people with disabilities as well as the use of social entrepreneurship strategies to reduce reliance on sheltered workshops for people with disabilities. Sheltered workshops refer to environments that employ people with disabilities separately from others.
The bills also create an Individual Development Account (IDA) Pilot Program in 10 sites across the state. An IDA is a structured savings plan in which each dollar a participant saves is matched up to a certain amount. IDAs help finance the development of business start-up and expansion by people with disabilities. The proposed IDA pilot project is modeled after the IDA program of Start-Up NY, which was supported by the Syracuse Campus-Community Entrepreneurship Initiative, Cooperative Federal and the Gifford Foundation.
"We deeply appreciate Sen. Golden's efforts to ensure this very important issue - the employment of people with disabilities - receives the attention it rightfully deserves," said Robert Herz, SSIC director. "Self-employment, using a variety of models appropriate to local need and economic conditions, can be a viable option for people with disabilities. When people with disabilities earn money as small business owners, they can reduce their reliance on public assistance, increase their standard of living and self-esteem, and contribute to the business and economic growth."
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