Under the Randolph-Sheppard Act, blind and visually impaired Americans have job opportunities available to them in vending machine rooms, cafeteria operations, snack shops and retail facilities in federal, state and other government buildings and facilities. Created in 1936, the Randolph Sheppard Act fosters and encourages entrepreneurship and business opportunities for Americans who are blind and visually impaired.
Since that time, the Randolph-Sheppard Act has provided a means for tens of thousands of blind and visually impaired people to earn a living, compete and achieve not just as employees, but also entrepreneurs in a field that would otherwise be virtually inaccessible to them. Entrepreneurship and business ownership have always been a part of the American dream for all citizens.
At the very heart of the Randolph-Sheppard act is language that stipulates that blind and visually impaired businessmen/business women have priority in contractual bids at federal government buildings and military facilities; a priority that has been in place since 1974. It is this priority that has consistently come under attack by other interest groups such as the National Industries for the Severely Handicapped. A recent example has been an amendment proposed in the Senate defense authorization bill last year (108th Congress) that would have eliminated the Randolph-Sheppard priority in military cafeterias and mess halls.
If the Randolph-Sheppard priority is not preserved and protected by Congress, the United States of America stands to lose one of the most successful employment programs ever created, and blind and visually impaired business owners and operators stand to lose employment opportunities, their livelihoods and their economic independence.
The American Council of the Blind (ACB) urges Congress to protect the priority granted by the Randolph-Sheppard Act for blind vendors on federal property, including military dining facilities.