It's responsible for about 30 percent of the economic growth we've enjoyed over the last eight years, and we have to bring more people into the circle of opportunity to work in information fields. Clinton's proposals would encourage high-tech companies and universities to invest millions of dollars in programs aimed at the disabled. The president spoke after a visit to the nonprofit Disability Network in Flint, the Michigan town devastated by the auto industry's retrenchment in the 1970s and 80s. The Department of Justice's Web Page Accessibility Checklist Determine whether your Web site falls within federal guidelines. National Council on Disability Take advantage of this federal advocacy group's reports and explanations of federal laws.
Today Catch up on disability-related issues and lobbying activities.
At the Disability Network's facilities, Clinton got to see devices that aid the disabled in using computers, including equipment to help the blind, the deaf and people with muscular and nerve disorders such as amyotropic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. The White House estimates that about a quarter of the 54 million Americans with disabilities Americans have access to a computer at home, compared to about 52 percent without disabilities. Only 31 percent of working-age Americans with severe disabilities have jobs, compared to roughly 80 percent of citizens those without disabilities. Clinton also planned to use his trip to raise some for the Democratic Party in Michigan, a November battleground. With its 18 electoral votes, Michigan is leaning toward Vice President Al Gore in recent presidential preference polls.