A center for independent living contacted the young man who was, convinced I was going to be there forever. The center for independent living provided peer support and information about resources he could utilize to maximize his re-integration into the community. Today he is living in his own apartment, attending the University of MD, and majoring in computer science and graphic arts. Today, the CIL network reaches less than one percent of all people with significant disabilities in the United States. While not every person with disability needs a center s help, there remain vast areas of the U.S. where no center exists at all.
Hundreds more receive only superficial coverage.
Some states have estimated that there should be at least one fully-funded center for every 500,000 persons, or an additional 185 centers nationwide. Today, CILs are woefully underfunded. When we first raised this issue to you last year, several of you expressed concern that the current funding formula, based solely on population, would send most of the money to larger communities at the expense of rural areas. Our understanding is that this will require a technical amendment. The Illinois SILC will recommend that the funds be used to address underserved inner-city people , as well as the unserved areas in the four southern counties bordering Indiana.