AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-01  

     WHEREAS, Guide Dog users, Inc., is a special-interest
affiliate of the American Council of the Blind; and  

     WHEREAS, ACB is, through membership and involvement, strongly
affiliated with the National Accreditation Council for Agencies
Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped; and  

     WHEREAS, NAC has instituted standards for the accreditation of
dog guide schools; and 

     WHEREAS, to date only one dog guide school has sought and
attained accreditation; and  

     WHEREAS, NAC is considering withdrawal of its dog guide school
accreditation due to lack of interest of the dog guide schools; and 


     WHEREAS, Guide Dog Users, Inc., is a special supporter of NAC
and believes strongly that the NAC standards should be revised and
not withdrawn,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that The American Council of the
Blind, assembled in convention July 9, 1981, in St. Louis,
Missouri, send a letter to all dog guide schools urging them to
seek accreditation and to get involved with the revision of NAC's
dog guide standards, together with a copy of this resolution.  

Submitted By Guide Dog Users, Inc,  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-03  

     WHEREAS, there are many agencies for the blind throughout the
nation that are entrusted with public and private funds to provide
service to blind persons, and one or more of such services touches
the lives of almost every blind person in the nation, and, indeed,
many are greatly dependent on such services to provide educational,
vocational, social, and recreational opportunities; and  

     WHEREAS, services available to blind persons vary greatly in
quality, quantity, and adequacy throughout the nation; and  

     WHEREAS, it is our conviction that many agencies, if given an
opportunity, will welcome an enlightened, conscientious, objective
effort to assist them in the improvement of their service programs;
and  

     WHEREAS, the American Council of the Blind, out of its concern
for the adequacy of services to all blind persons, could provide a
valuable service to the field of work for the blind by offering a
planned program of advice and consultation to those agencies
requesting it on a wide range of program issues and service
delivery systems,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this 10th day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the ACB Board of Directors and staff
develop a program that will provide to agencies advice and
consultation concerning program matters and service delivery.  Such
a program shall be consumer oriented and involve consumers in the
agencies' service area.  Once the consultative service program is
ready to be implemented, it could be actively promoted throughout
the nation.  

Submitted By Resolutions Committee  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-04  

     WHEREAS, freedom from censorship is one of the cornerstones
which this nation's founding fathers espoused; and  

     WHEREAS, the National Library Service for the Blind and
Physically Handicapped should retain absolute discretion to publish
those magazines that are in greatest demand in any format; and  

     WHEREAS, most periodical material for the print handicapped
available in the United States is paid for by funds provided by
NLS; and  

     WHEREAS, the sentiment has been expressed in Congress that a
particular braille magazine be discontinued because the subsidizing
taxpayers would object to its content,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on the 10th day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the ACB National Representative take all
necessary steps to oppose any banning of a periodical in any format
that does not fall within the accepted criteria mentioned above;
and  

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the ACB National Office be
directed to take whatever steps it can to advise all readers
whenever any such unacceptable legislation is pending.     

Submitted By James Eccles  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-05  

     WHEREAS, the braille system provides, in our opinion, the
soundest tool for educating blind readers; and  

     WHEREAS, the details of any text, whether literary, musical,
mathematical, or otherwise, can be grasped and retrieved more
thoroughly in braille than in any other medium available to blind
persons; and  

     WHEREAS, recorded materials fail, as braille does not, to
provide the reader with an exact duplication of the printed text,
including such information as spelling, punctuation, and format;
and  

     WHEREAS, sufficient evidence exists that emphasis on braille
is being neglected and its importance as an educational tool is
being minimized in both the public and private education of blind
individuals; and  

     WHEREAS, this trend has led to, and will continue to bring
about, a lowering of the educational standards in this same segment
of the population,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this 10th day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, petition the Braille Authority of North
America to develop and embark upon a strategy, in conjunction with
its various technical committees and the National Library Service,
to encourage and promote the revitalization of braille instruction
whenever blind and visually impaired persons are being educated and
rehabilitated.    

Submitted By Braille Revival League 

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-06  

     WHEREAS, the National Eye Institute remains the funding source
for more than 75 per cent of all eye research in the United States;
and  

     WHEREAS, the NEI is the primary source of funds for research
on the human eye,  

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the American Council of
the Blind, in convention assembled on this 10th day of July, 1981,
in St. Louis Missouri, urges the Institute to devote at least ten
percent (10%) of its extramural grant support to practical applied
research that will improve the quality of life and function of our
nation's 1.8 million low-vision citizens.   

Submitted By Council of Citizens with Low Vision  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-08  

     WHEREAS, becoming oriented in a strange town is a
time-consuming task for blind people; and  

     WHEREAS, the accessibility of public signage is a legitimate
concern under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St, Louis, Missouri, that the ACB Board of Directors be instructed
to establish a project committee to look into the feasibility of
installing accessible signs; and  

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the project committee's final
report be considered as part of the ACB 1982 national convention
agenda.  

Submitted By James Eccles  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-09  

     WHEREAS, the American Council of the Blind supports the
concept of standards and accreditation; and  

     WHEREAS, ACB recognizes the need for all agencies and schools
serving the blind and visually impaired to be held accountable for
the services they provide,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled this 10th day of July, 1981, that we
reaffirm our support for standards and accreditation, and that we
would support the concept of public and private funds being
allocated based on criteria that agencies and schools serving the
blind and visually impaired receiving such funds be accredited.  

Submitted By Durward K. McDaniel National Representative  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-10  

     WHEREAS, we in the American Council of the Blind have
traditionally and consistently supported the rights of blind
citizens to democracy and freedom of choice; and  

     WHEREAS, we in the American Council of the Blind have also
consistently supported the aspirations of blind workers to advance
and improve their economic conditions; and  

     WHEREAS, this resolution is not intended to apply to those
individuals who are engaged in work activity center work or who are
not employed in the regular production program of a sheltered
workshop for the blind,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that we in the American Council of the Blind
espouse the view that blind workshop workers employed in the
regular production programs of sheltered workshops for the blind
are in fact employees and not mere clients, as asserted by the
management of many workshops; and that, as employees, such blind
workers have the right under the provisions of the National Labor
Relations Act to organize and select their own collective
bargaining representative and to take concerted action to promote
their best economic objectives.  

Submitted By Charles Hodge  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-12  

     WHEREAS, Mr. Henry Degenkolb, Assistant Chairman of the
California Commission of Seismic Safety, recently testified in
Federal Court in connection with a suit brought by more than twenty
parents of children attending the California School for the Blind,
American Council of the Blind of California, and the National
Federation of the Blind of California, to prevent the removal of
the school from Berkeley to Fremont, to the effect that the new
site is far less safe and that the new buildings, constructed by
the State at the cost of many millions of dollars, would cause many
more deaths of blind children in the event of a major earthquake;
and  

     WHEREAS, the American Council of the Blind of California and
the American Council of the Blind have previously cited the same
reasons, as well as serious environmental reasons, for not moving
the Berkeley school to Fremont,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, assembled in convention on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that ACB deplores the irresponsible action of
the State Department of Education of California and the
Administration of the State Government in not fully investigating
the seismic hazards of the proposed new location and in not fully
understanding the environmental needs of the education of the
blind, and prays the Court to take all action necessary in behalf
of the blind children attending the school to provide for their
safety and adequate education; and  

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Board of Directors of the
American Council of the Blind take the appropriate steps necessary
to immediately convey our concerns to the Federal Court in
Sacramento, California.  

Submitted By George Fogarty  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-14  

     WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America is the
national organization of blind vendors employed in the
Randolph-Sheppard vending facility program; and  

     WHEREAS, it is timely that a thoroughgoing review and analysis
of this very important employment program be conducted by the new
Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the officers and directors of the
American Council of the Blind work with the Randolph-Sheppard
Vendors of America in its efforts to initiate and plan for a
national conference to review all aspects of the Randolph-Sheppard
vending facility program, in cooperation with the Commissioner of
the Rehabilitation Services Administration, its staff, and other
appropriate participants.   

Submitted By Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-15  

     WHEREAS, statutory authorization for appropriations which
would provide funding for the Randolph-Sheppard vending facility
program has long existed without implementation by Congress; and  
     WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard vending facility program has
been partially but inadequately funded by the discretionary use of
vocational rehabilitation appropriations; and  

     WHEREAS, this effective employment program has fallen far
short of its employment potential because of the lack of sufficient
Federal funding; and  

     WHEREAS, the Bureau for the Blind and Visually Handicapped,
Rehabilitation Services Administration, has never been able to
carry out its responsibility to make national surveys for vending
facility locations and other job opportunities because of the lack
of specific funding,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this Ilth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the officers and directors of the
American Council of the Blind join with the Randolph-Sheppard
Vendors of America in petitioning Congress to include the
Randolph-Sheppard vending facility program in the budgeting and
appropriating actions of Congress, and that the Secretary of the
Department of Education and the Commissioner of the Rehabilitation
Services Administration be requested to support the budgeting and
appropriating of special Federal funding for these purposes.   

Submitted By  Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-16  

     WHEREAS, the 1974 Amendments to the Randolph-Sheppard Act
authorized the arbitration of disputes arising in the course of the
administration of the Randolph-Sheppard vending facility program;
and   

     WHEREAS, the membership of this organization believes that
such arbitration procedures are necessary and desirable to resolve
such disputes between licensed blind vendors and state licensing
agencies or between state licensing agencies and Federal
departments or agencies; and 

     WHEREAS, the number of such complaints for arbitration has not
been excessive; and 

     WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act provides no alternative
remedy for resolving such disputes; and 

     WHEREAS, such arbitration decisions will provide Federal and
state administrators and blind vendors with effective
interpretations of the law without excessive cost, 

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the ACB join with the Randolph-Sheppard
Vendors of America in requesting the United States Department of
Education, Rehabilitation Services Administration, to authorize the
use of adequate funds to pay for the costs of such arbitration as
they arise.  

Submitted By  Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America 

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-17  

     WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act Amendments of 1974 provide
for the payment of certain revenues derived from vending machines
operating on Federal property to state licensing agencies and to
licensed blind vendors; and  

     WHEREAS, Federal departments and agencies are responsible for
the collection, reporting, and payment of such revenues; and  
     WHEREAS, many responsible officials of Federal departments and
agencies have not reported or remitted such revenues to the
appropriate state licensing agencies; and  

     WHEREAS, the Randolph-Sheppard Act, as amended, authorizes the
Comptroller General of the United States to conduct investigations
and audits of such Federal departments and agencies, including
their responsibility for the collection, reporting and payment of
such vending machine revenue,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this Ilth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the officers and directors of this
organization join with the Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America in
petitioning members of Congress to have the Comptroller General of
the United States and the General Accounting Office conduct
thoroughgoing investigations and audits of Federal departments and
agencies, and to take such other action as may be necessary to
ensure compliance with their statutory duties and responsibilities. 
 

Submitted By Randolph-Sheppard Vendors of America  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-20  

     WHEREAS, fund-raising activities involving the purpose or
promise of services and benefits for blind and visually impaired
persons are widely practiced throughout the country by countless
organizations and individuals; and  

     WHEREAS, the Federal Government has set no legal standards or
requirements to guide or regulate such fund-raising activities, and
among the several states regulatory statutes vary greatly, with
some states having no applicable statutes dealing with such
fund-raising activities; and  

     WHEREAS, uniform standards and objective criteria for the
determination of the ethics and propriety for such fund-raising do
not exist at this time, nor do uniform standards and requirements
for registering, reporting, and accounting for the use of donated
funds exist; and  

     WHEREAS, such uniform state statutes in these fund-raising
areas could provide legal protection for the best interests of
blind and visually impaired persons and for bona fide organizations
wishing to raise funds to effectuate their legitimate purposes and
programs; and  

     WHEREAS, the Affiliated Leadership League of and for the Blind
of America has recognized this problem and resolved to formulate
and advocate uniform state statutes in all of the states,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the Board of Directors and National
Office staff of ACB work with the Affiliated Leadership League and
other interested organizations in the attainment of this goal,
including particularly the National Governors Association, the
National Conference of State Legislatures, and the National
Association of Attorneys General.  

Submitted By Durward McDaniel  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-21  

     WHEREAS, the American Council of the Blind has for many years
recognized the value of and supported the establishment of radio
reading services for blind and visually impaired persons; and  

     WHEREAS, the ACB has participated in the Association of Radio
Reading Services to promote the expansion of such services through
its National Representative, who serves on the national board of
ARRS; and  

     WHEREAS, the expansion of such services has been slow,
reaching a comparatively small number of the potential
beneficiaries; and  

     WHEREAS, it is timely that consideration be given to the
expansion of such services through the use of communications
satellites and cable transmissions to facilitate the providing of
radio reading services to audiences throughout the country,  
     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this Ilth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that its officers and directors participate
actively with the Association of Radio Reading Services and its
members, as well as other interested organizations, in the
development of advanced plans for the utilization of a nationwide
system involving radio, communications satellites, and cable
transmissions.  

Submitted By Durward McDaniel  

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-22  

     WHEREAS, the Revenue Act of 1978 (P.L. 95-600), which grants
tax credits to employers for hiring minority group members, of
which the handicapped are one, has been generally interpreted to
refer to only those handicapped persons certified as handicapped by
state departments of rehabilitation; and  

     WHEREAS, the obvious intent of the law is to encourage the
hiring of all qualified handicapped job candidates; and  

     WHEREAS, there exist many qualified handicapped job candidates
who are not clients of state departments of rehabilitation; and  

     WHEREAS, at present, many employable handicapped persons do
not benefit from the law,  

     THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this 11th day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that the law be amended to apply to all
handicapped job candidates, regardless of whether or not they are
clients of state departments of rehabilitation; and  

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that copies of this resolution be sent
to the appropriate Congressional committee.  

Submitted By 
San Francisco Chapter American Council of the Blind of California 

Resolution Adopted                    AMERICAN COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
                       RESOLUTION 81-23  

     WHEREAS, the American Council of the Blind has consistently
advocated the widest possible access to literature of all types and
persuasions for blind and visually impaired citizens; and  

     WHEREAS, ACB takes the position that it is the constitutional
right of all citizens to read any and all literature of their
selection, and that such right shall remain inviolate,  

     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the American Council of the
Blind, in convention assembled on this llth day of July, 1981, in
St. Louis, Missouri, that this organization decries efforts to
censor or restrict the types of literature made available through
programs and services for blind and visually impaired citizens, and
that ACB opposes any initiative to bar distribution of any
materials made available to the public at large; and  

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that copies of this resolution be
distributed to all members of Congress and to the American Library
Association, Office for Intellectual Freedom. 

Submitted By 
American Council of the Blind Federal Employees  

Resolution Adopted