October 22, 2003 Work Group Meeting Minutes
Augusta Civic Center, Augusta, Maine

Present:  Jon McNulty (RTP), Barbara Donovan (Department of Transportation), David Cole (Commissioner, Department of Transportation), Laura Fortman (Commissioner, Department of Labor), Susan Gendron (Commissioner, Department of Education), Peter Walsh (Acting Commissioner, Department of Human Services), Sabra Burdick (Acting Commissioner, Department of Behavioral and Developmental Services), Mike Finnegan (Maine State Housing Authority), Newell Augur (Department of Human Services), Toni Wall (Bureau of Health), Virginia Mariner (Bureau of Child and Family Services), David Stauffer (Community Service Center), Melinda Davis (Advocacy Initiative Network of Maine, Inc.), Christine Gianopoulos, Kate Brogan, Christine Bartlett, Linda Jariz, Peter Driscoll, Deb Parker Wolfenden, Cary Gifford, Shirley Bastien, Linda Huff, Christine Zukas-Lessard, John Baillargeon, Tonya Labbe, Dixie Leavitt, Chandra Murphy, Steve Hoad, Stephanie Crystal Wolfstone-Francis, Nat Hussey, Helen Bailey, Marcia Cooper, William Burney, Eileen Griffin (Muskie), Danny Westcott (Muskie), Lisa Marie Lindenschmidt (Muskie), Sherry Gildard (Muskie), Stirling Kendall (Muskie) 

At this special meeting held at the Augusta Civic Center, the Work Group for Community-Based Living submitted its final report, titled the Roadmap for Change, Maine’s response to the Olmstead Decision, to Maine’s Commissioners of the Department of Human Services, Behavioral and Developmental Services, Labor, Education, and Transportation and other invited guests.  The meeting began at 1:00 p.m. Helen Bailey chaired the meeting.

1. Call to Order and Introductions
Helen Bailey called the meeting to order and invited participants to introduce themselves.

2. Providing the Framework
To provide a framework for the discussion to follow, Helen Bailey presented an overview of the Olmstead decision, described how and why the Work Group for Community-Based Living was convened, listed the barriers to community integration identified by the Work Group, and summarized the recommendations.

3. Work Group Panel
A panel of Work Group members Steve Hoad, Chandra Murphy, Stephanie Crystal Wolfstone-Francis and Tonya Labbe described situations facing persons with disabilities.  These personal perspectives identified the major issues that guided the structure and content of the Work Group’s efforts and the organization of its recommendations. 

4.  Commissioners' Questions to Work Group
In their questions for the panel and the Work Group in general, Commissioners expressed their ideas and concerns about implementation of the Work Group’s recommendations, specifically asking about timing, prioritization, procedures and funding.

5.  Commissioner Panel
After thanking the Work Group for its efforts, Commissioners presented departmental perspectives on Work Group recommendations, focusing primarily on issues of resource allocation, interdepartmental cooperation, prioritization and timing, and continued collaboration with consumers in the process of making significant changes.

6. Work Group Questions to Commissioners
Questions from Work Group members focused on specific areas of need as they related to each state agency, including issues of flexible funding, state agency-consumer collaboration, need for assistance for persons not eligible for Medicaid, redesigning existing programs to be more inclusive of the needs of persons with disabilities, improving access to affordable housing and transportation, and re-allocation of existing resources.

7. Going Forward
Commissioners endorsed the following principles and actions as presented by Chris Zukas-Lessard and John Baillargeon:

• Recognize community integration as a priority for the State in compliance with ADA and Olmstead, and commit to continued progress in achieving integration through interdepartmental collaboration.
• Continue collaboration with the Work Group as a cross-disability consumer advisory board advising departments on relative priorities and measures for achieving community integration, and continue to appoint/assign staff to participate in a dialogue with the Work Group.

Commissioners charged the Work Group with developing community integration guidelines for departmental planning and assessment.

8.  Next Meeting
The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 28, 2004 from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Cohen Center.  Christine Bartlett will be chair.