THE ABLE ACT: ACT NOW & START A SMALL BUSINESS!

It seems most parents and caregivers are fearful that their adult child with a disability, who relies on public benefits, may lose those benefits if their child earns too much income or has more than $2,000 in assets. The thought of their child owning a business is therefore, rarely considered. We are not alleging that the fear is not justified. We are simply advocating for proper planning to help overcome that fear and encouraging parents to seek real, sustainable independence for their adult child.  Did you know that according to the 2014 Allsup Disability Study, they found that unemployment rates for the last quarter of 2014 for people with disabilities was 53% higher than for people with no disability? How can anyone have an optimistic outlook for their child’s future with those kinds of statistics? There is however, a possible solution for those families willing to think outside the box.

We always recommend a good, benefits analysis to put parents at ease. Why? A benefits analysis allows you to conduct accurate and helpful benefits planning, as part of the sustainability piece of self-employment. A thorough peer into your current and potential government benefits can offer valuable assistance and advantages to new entrepreneurs and actually increase the feasibility of businesses for people with disabilities. Certain programs are specifically designed to provide income support to new entrepreneurs while their businesses are starting. Too many families have come to believe that people can’t own a business and receive benefits. With good planning, there are several ways you can use benefits while working on your new business. Let’s learn a little more about our favorite; PESS.

There are programs such as the Social Security PESS (Property Essential to Self Support) program (not to be confused with PASS), which most families have never even heard of and Social Security representatives will not willingly share with you, but are essential for entrepreneurs receiving public benefits. According to PESS policy, if the business is a partnership or a sole proprietorship and is in current use, any property, equity, resources owned by the business and/or held in the business account(s) are excluded from counting against the personal resource limit (See SSA - POMS: SI 01130.501 for more information: https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0501130501).

In addition to the PESS policy, the ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) Act became a federal law on December 19, 2014. This Act may also put parents at ease about their child surpassing the SSI resource limit. The ABLE Act will allow tax –advantaged savings accounts to be established for individuals with disabilities. Funds in the account could be used to pay for essential expenses for individuals with disabilities such as education, housing, transportation, community based supports, medical and dental care, employment training, assistive technology, legal fees, personal support services, financial management and administrative services, expenses for oversight and monitoring, and others approved by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). While the yearly contributions to this account are limited to a gift tax exclusion amount ($14,000 in 2015) the total contributions to the account will have a limit for SSI recipients in the amount of $100,000 but, not for Medicaid.  The ABLE Act therefore, may eliminate barriers to work (including self-employment) and savings by preventing money saved through ABLE accounts from counting against a person’s eligibility for any federal benefits program.

While this Act was passed for the benefit of persons with disabilities, unfortunately, not everyone will have the opportunity to benefit from this new law. There are eligibility requirements that a beneficiary must meet to qualify for an ABLE account. The beneficiary must be entitled to benefits based on blindness or disability under Title II or XVI of the Social Security Act and the disability must have occurred before the date on which the individual attained age 26. (Internal Revenue Code §529A)

Since this Act was only recently passed, there are still a few items pending before it can be up and running in the sunshine state. Each state is required to adopt or create an account before residents of the state can contribute. Luckily that’s not an issue for Florida, since The Florida Senate Committee on Banking and Insurance, chaired by Senator Benacquisto  passed Senate Bill 642 to get this process started (for more information: http://www.flsenate.gov/Media/PressRelease/Show/2179 ). We also need to wait for the IRS and Social Security Administration (SSA) to finalize their regulations. Hopefully the establishment of the account in Florida and the finalized regulations will answer some questions which are still pending, i.e. Will Florida ABLE accounts have a Medicaid payback provision? Will reimbursements to the beneficiary of the account for qualified expenses create income problems for SSI purposes? May there be a loss of eligibility if distributions are used for something other than a qualified expense?  There’s still a lot we need to know but, nonetheless this new law provides a very positive and promising opportunity for those with disabilities.
We encourage you to do your research, think outside the box, and don’t underestimate your child’s potential: self-employment can be a viable option for sustainable independence.

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Entrepreneurship: More about We than Me.

by Picasso Einstein, LLC

I can’t tell you how many times I have heard; “My son/daughter can’t run a business on his/her own.” This is often the response when a parent is first approached with the idea of Entrepreneurship, or self-employment. Here is another thing I hear a lot, “Entrepreneurship is over his/her head.”

Why is that sort of thinking so common, even among parents? Firstly, because most think entrepreneurship is about a solitary, singular venture. Honestly, how can I blame them for thinking that? Most entrepreneurs we hail and celebrate often relate the all too familiar story of being locked up in a garage or hotel room for months on end, with only pizza and water as their main source of sustenance, oh yeah, and rock music. But is that the WHOLE story to their successes? Hardly!

Our society has celebrated heroism and genius in singular terms for decades. Yet how often we hear the stories long after they are gone, that a multitude of relationships, conversations, collaborations and interactions played an equal part in their success, and ultimately their ‘brilliant idea.’

Entrepreneurship for persons with disabilities is that very same experience. We focus on the notion that ideation (development of ideas) is a conglomerate experience. We believe that ideas are fused together and refined as a result of conversations, group activities, relationships and lots of making mistakes.

Entrepreneurship is about WE! Just because someone is interested in starting a business does not mean that they are seeking a life of solitude. Nor does it mean that a person with a disability, interested in entrepreneurship, must do it all alone. No, on the contrary. Time and again, it has been proven that true sustainable success and happiness requires a team effort and team support. Whether you the parent, start the business, or the person with a disability, it is not the beginning nor end of relationships, it is the potential for a new one altogether.

This is how we turn the thought of ME, to WE.
· Parents, caregivers, are you struggling, trying to identify sustainable and long-term employment for your son or daughter with disabilities? Why not entertain a small, family-run business, started by YOU, the parent, but including clear and precise ways to provide meaningful employment to your son/daughter by way of that business?

· Young men and women with disabilities: Are you struggling with your current employment? Do you not like what you do? Is your intelligence above and beyond the tasks and duties you are currently asked to do at work? Firstly, examine what you like. What you are good at? Gather a “Development Team” of friends, family members, professionals and community mentors, to talk about your desire to be self-employed. Get the conversation going. Have honest conversation. Then start working on a plan to get your small business going with the help and support of this development team.

Being an entrepreneur does NOT mean, you are in this alone. Remember, that being self-employed is more about the venture WE are exploring, and less about ME. 

Sibling Calvary

By Wilfredo Gonzalez

“What’s the difference from a man with disabilities and a man without?” I asked my mom one Sunday morning. My mother said to me “There is no difference". After that, that's how I see people with disabilities. There is no difference between them and the average man. The only difference is that their brains work differently. That's how I've been able to love and appreciate my brother and not see him as a sibling with autism, but as my brother.  At times it's hard because I have to make sure he's well behaved. But all in all he's just like any other sibling.

What I always wonder, if I were to leave or if I had to go, what would my brother do? He doesn't take authority well. He prefers to do things in his own way. So I began to learn entrepreneurship soon I became aware of the benefits of owning your own business, for me and for my brother. I now see the value in the freedom of owning your own business, and deciding the success and financial gain of an entire company through your own ideas and pathways. Ideas are what have made this country one of the most economically prominent countries in the world, because innovators and free thinkers decided to change the status quo with these ideas.  Why can't the same be for those with disabilities? 

My current business model is an app in which a person can order a standby photographer for any event and however long. I can use my brother and other people with disabilities to interact with the customers. I will need a great deal of employees and I will certainly include them in all innovation side by side with all employees. I am sure my brother and I can create a business model that will improve the relationship between businesses and our beloved community with disabilities. Why can’t you?

Willy (left) & Isaiah (right)

 About the Author:
"Willy" is a H.S. Senior in Broward County currently in the process of starting a business for himself that will include his brother, Isaiah, who has Autism. Willy is a current student of the E4i Entrepreneurship Fall Sessions. He is a prime example of how people with disabilities who have family members who want to be entrepreneurs, can benefit from the venture. Isaiah will also receive education in Self-Employment.  

Disability Training: Making the Complex, Compelling

By Rebecca Witonsky

Disability training for employers is necessary because employers are often not aware of the complex issues involved in hiring people with disabilities. Hiring people with disabilities often requires making accommodations for people with disabilities. Disability training can help make employers understand what accommodations are necessary for a person with disabilities. For example, if a person has autism, they may need to rely upon written instructions rather than oral instructions because they cannot read social cues. If a person has a physical disability, then the employer may need to re-think the workplace flow, or access to make it easier for the person to navigate the office. Accommodations can include modified equipment, flexible work hours, and as simple as the opportunity to work at home.


Employers may assume that accommodations are expensive and difficult to overcome. But in fact one study Disability awareness training for employers can help employers understand that the cost of accommodations is much less than they believe. Between 1992 and 1998 found that 80% of accommodations cost less than $1,000.

In addition, disability awareness training can help all overcome the stereotypes and biases concerning people with disabilities. Some stereotypes are based on incorrect assumptions about the capabilities of people with disabilities, leading to a worry that people with disabilities will be less productive and less likely to complete the tasks on time, or even that people with disabilities will require more expensive healthcare benefits. Social competence is an especially important component of the workplace and represents a particular barrier for people with autism. Clearly, disability training for employers is necessary in challenging such stereotypes about people with disabilities.
 
Disability training is more than just information. Training includes role-playing, which helps employers to understand the perspectives of people with disabilities. Hands on experiences and role-playing can cover visual impairment, hearing impairment, cognitive disabilities, and hidden disabilities. Spending time in a wheelchair for a person with a physical disability or a visual impairment exercise that simulates blindness. If employers better appreciate the perspectives of people with disabilities, then they can be more likely to hire, promote, and sustain employment for people with disabilities.


Co-workers may be concerned about the increased workload associated with having a co-worker with a disability and how to relate to the co-workers with a disability. Disability training can also improve the relationships that co-workers may have with their colleagues with disabilities.


Customers with disabilities are also better understood and better served after training. One study found that the 50 million people with disabilities have aggregate incomes of $360.5 billion as of 2000. Employers such as Publix which have a record of hiring and promoting people with disabilities also are known for their ability to accommodate customers with disabilities. Customers with disabilities may have creative reactions and solutions to customer service issues, and disability training for employers can help employers to find these opportunities.


People with disabilities face a very high unemployment rate. According to U.S. Department of Labor statistics, only 18.2% of people with disabilities were employed in May 2012, compared with 64.3% of people with no disability. Clearly unemployment for people with disabilities remains rampant in spite of the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Disability training can help employers harness the tremendous untapped potential of people with disabilities.

 
About the Author:

[Rebecca Witonsky discovered that she was autistic in early 2011 when she was 35 years old. Rebecca serves as a member of the Florida Rehabilitation Council. Ms. Rebecca Witonsky earned a B.A. in international relations at Brown University in 1997. She also received a masters degree in taxation from Florida Atlantic University (FAU) in 2007.]

  
 

Corporate Inclusion Training 

Accommodated Employment Consulting

INCLUSION - a word we take seriously. It is more than just accepting or introducing persons with disabilities into your workforce make-up.

Picasso Einstein assists companies to better understand disabilities, trains on how to strategize, raise awareness and embrace diversified employment. We assist corporations in providing support systems through HR Policy and Standard Operating Procedures, and set up models that celebrate the value-proposition of hiring persons with disabilities and build upon intrinsic sustainability.