{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2014-12-16-pt1-PgS6911-2", "2014-12-16", 113, 2, null, null, "ACHIEVING BETTER LIFE EXPERIENCE ACT", "SENATE", "SENATE", "ALLOTHER", "S6911", "S6911", "[{\"name\": \"Richard J. Durbin\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", null, "160 Cong. Rec. S6911", "Congressional Record, Volume 160 Issue 155 (Tuesday, December 16, 2014)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 155 (Tuesday, December 16, 2014)]\n[Senate]\n[Page S6911]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n                  ACHIEVING BETTER LIFE EXPERIENCE ACT\n\n  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, I want to thank my Senate colleagues for\njoining me in supporting and passing the Achieving Better Life\nExperience Act. I especially want to acknowledge Senator Robert Casey,\nwho has been a champion for all people with disabilities and the ABLE\nAct for years.\n  Earlier this year, Senator Casey introduced us to Sara Wolff--a 31-\nyear-old law clerk at O'Malley and Langdon in Scranton, PA. Since 2007,\nSara has been an advocate for the National Down Syndrome Society. She\nalso happens to have Down syndrome. Currently, Sara cannot have more\nthan $2,000 in assets before her government aid is cut off. Every\nmonth, she works with her employer so that she doesn't earn more than\n$700. This enables Sara to maintain her much needed government\nbenefits.\n  Over a year ago, Sara lost her mother to a sudden illness. It was a\ntremendous loss--her mother was her No. 1 advocate. Before her mother\npassed, Sara promised her that she would fight to get the ABLE Act\npassed. Sara has her whole life ahead of her and she needs a savings\naccount to plan for her future, and she is not alone. Thousands of\npeople with disabilities are outliving their parents. Parents need the\npeace of mind that their children will be taken care of.\n  Everywhere I go in Illinois, I meet people whose lives have been\naffected by disabilities. Take Gene and Lynn Bensinger--from the north\nside of Chicago. Gene and Lynn are the parents of two adult sons. Their\noldest son, Nate, is 21 years old and has autism spectrum disorder.\nNate is about to ``age out'' of services offered through Chicago Public\nSchools and will no longer be eligible for special education services\nthat he relies on. Nate's parents, along with thousands of Illinois\nfamilies, experience many sleepless nights worrying about their\nresponsibility to financially support their adult children today, in\nthe future, and long after they are gone. Without this important\nlegislation, it is almost impossible for those with disabilities--like\nNate and Sara--to save enough so that they can be financially\nindependent.\n  The ABLE Act will encourage and assist individuals and families to\ninvest in private savings accounts, which can then be used to support\nactivities that allow those with disabilities to maintain a healthy,\nindependent life. Here's how it will work. The ABLE Act establishes\ntax-exempt accounts to assist parents of children with a disability to\nhelp provide for their long-term care. The accounts can be used to pay\nfor medical care, dental care, education, housing, transportation and\nother community-based supports for individuals with disabilities. The\nmoney earned in an ABLE account would supplement but not replace\nMedicaid, Social Security, or other benefits. This would enable people,\nlike Sara, to earn a livable wage and save for the future without\nworrying about losing coverage for critical health services.\n  I thank Senators Robert Casey, Richard Burr, and 77 of my colleagues\nfor cosponsoring this legislation. This is a true bipartisan effort. By\npassing this bipartisan bill today, Sara gets to keep her promise to\nher mother--and thousands of people with disabilities--like Nate--will\nfinally be able to save for the bright futures they deserve.\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2014-12-16-pt1-PgS6911-2"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 13.35791707970202, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}