Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities

02/26/2026

Registration is for the 2026 Disability Advocacy Day will close on March 2, 2026. Join us in-person in Madison on March 19, 2026 for Disability Advocacy Day!

Take a look at a past Disability Advocacy Day and why you should join us!
Link: https://youtu.be/x-ENSuirkeQ?si=fe5ZPV6sKPC1h2HI

Disability Advocacy Day is a day-long event focused on connecting Self-Advocates with their legislators to talk about issues and barriers faced by people living with disabilities. Join Ashley and hundreds of other self-advocates from around Wisconsin as they gather at the Wisconsin State Capitol to have face-to-face conversations with their state representatives. For registration information visit: https://bit.ly/DAD2026

To register for Disability Advocacy Day 2020, click on this link: http://www.survivalcoalitionwi.org/index.php/events/For tips on how to talk with your legis...

02/25/2026

A dozen national disability organizations issued a statement this week about the impact of the SAVE Act on people with disabilities.

The bill has already passed in the House and will be voted on soon in the Senate. If passed, this bill would
Limit vote-by-mail
Limit who can give help to voters with
Require hard-to-get and costly documents, such as passports
or birth certificates, to register to vote.

"Research from the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) has found that disabled voters are three times more likely to face difficulties casting a ballot than nondisabled voters." Voting should be made easier, not harder.

If you are concerned about the SAVE Act, contact your Senators this week. You can find their information at: https://www.senate.gov/states/WI/intro.htm

https://ncavote.org/resource/nosaveact/

Working together to help people with disabilities Access The Right To Vote!

02/25/2026

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1D6cmrZAEK/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Stephanie Thomas is an amputee & founder of Cure 8 able; a fashion styling service for disabled people. Her pageant director noticed she never buttoned the cuff of her sleeve. For a person with no thumb, it takes a really long time. Now she empowers disabled people to dress with dignity, style & self-reliance. Many people think some disabilities aren't a big deal. Many people don't think fashion is a big deal. But small things can make a big difference.

Image Description: A slender black woman kneels down for a picture and smiles for the camera. She wears a sleeveless black blouse and a white knee-length pencil skirt. She also wears strappy black stiletto heels, silver earrings, and deep red lipstick. Her hair is worn in braids wrapped up in a an elegant bun.
Image Credit: Sheer World Wide

02/25/2026

Youth Leadership Forum 2026 applications are open! The Youth Leadership Forum is a week-long, overnight leadership training and career awareness program for high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors with disabilities to learn leadership and self-advocacy skills.

When/Where:
June 28 – July 3, 2026 at Edgewood College in Madison, WI

The Youth Leadership Forum is for:
-Students who show leadership potential by being active in their school and community
- Students who have a disability (physical, learning, cognitive, emotional, sensory, etc.)
- Wisconsin residents
Students who are currently sophomores, juniors, or seniors in high school

Complete the application by March 13, 2026.

Find out more and apply here: https://wi-bpdd.org/index.php/wisconsin-youth-leadership-forum/

02/25/2026

The Wisconsin Disability Vote Coalition will be hosting a webinar on March 17th from 12p.m. To 1p.m. to share information about the April election. The webinar will talk about the role of the WI Supreme Court and how to find reliable candidate information. They will also cover:
• important deadlines
• ways people can vote
• voting rights
• the latest election information
Register at: bit.ly/DVCWebinarMarch2026
Facebook event link: https://www.facebook.com/share/16uNsGkg8q/

Send a message to learn more

02/24/2026

Disability Advocacy Day is back in-person this year! Registration closes March 2nd so register today. Join us in Madison on Thursday March 19th with other advocates from around the state and meet with your elected officials. This is a great opportunity to share your story and educate your legislators on disability rights!

Registration is free but required to attend. Register by March 2nd.

Register here: https://bit.ly/DAD2026
Spanish registration: https://bit.ly/DAD2026Span

02/22/2026

Join us for a 4-part webinar series on future planning for people with disabilities, family members, and professionals. The first two sessions will cover decision-making options including Supported Decision-Making (SDM), powers of attorney, and guardianships. The second two sessions will go over basic financial planning including special needs trusts, ABLE accounts, and other options that help protect benefits while saving and planning for the future.

All sessions will be held from 12-1 pm on the dates listed below. Registration is free and you will only need to register once as all sessions will use the same zoom link. You will receive an email with the zoom link and a reminder before each session.

Session Dates and Registration:
Session 1 (March 4): Supported Decision-Making and Alternatives to Guardianship.
Session 2 (March 11): Lived Experience with Decision-Making: Young Adult Panel
Session 3 (March 25): Financial Planning for People with disabilities and Family Members
Session 4 (April 1): Understanding Work and Benefits

You can register by using the link below or clicking the link below. You will receive an email with the zoom link which will be used for all four sessions.
https://bit.ly/FuturePlanningWeb26

02/20/2026

Update on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act.

The SAVE Act passed the house and will be voted on in the Senate next week. If voting rights are important to you, contact your U.S. Senator right away. https://www.senate.gov/states/WI/intro.htm

This act would add more barriers to voting, such as:
Requiring every American citizen to provide specific documents, such as a passport or an original birth certificate, in person when registering to vote and whenever they update their voter registration.
Eliminating mail-in and online registrations.
Requiring photo ID in every state (WI already requires photo ID to vote).

The SAVE Act would disproportionately impact people with disabilities, older adults, women who change their name when they get married, and other minorities.
Millions of Americans do not have access to their birth certificate and obtaining a copy can be costly.
Half of Americans, especially lower-income Americans, do not have a passport.
Eliminating mail-in voting options and online voting registration adds transportation barriers that are already problems for non-drivers.

Image Description: Graphic reads take action now.

02/20/2026

Remember this Self-Determination YouTube Channel Video With Stacy? "The caregiver crisis is real". February 20th is National Caregivers Day! Stacy’s vlog highlights the important role Caregivers have in people’s lives.

Link: https://youtu.be/cg5QNzjyRjE

Please share what you appreciate about your caregivers. Here are some resource you might be interested in.
Caregiver Tool Kit: https://wisconsincaregiver.org/2025-toolkit

More information and resources can be found at: https://wisconsincaregiver.org/
Thanks to all the Caregivers out there. We appreciate you!

02/19/2026

As a voter with disabilities, it is important that you know your rights when voting. Learn about these rights in our short video and check out our fact sheet.
https://youtu.be/UnNxZ7L8Qdc

https://disabilityvote.org/2021/voting-rights-fact-sheet/

Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.

02/18/2026

National health care advocates are worried about the federal government's public release of Medicaid data coupled with HHS comments that suggest services that are provided a lot indicate fraud. The top item that appears in the Medicaid data release is "personal care services" the third is "residential habilitation" the fifth is "attendant care services." These are all home and community-based services — the services that allow disabled, elderly, and developmentally disabled people to live in their own homes and communities instead of institutions.

BPDD agrees with the concerns outlined by the National Health Law Program's statement:

https://healthlaw.org/news/nhelp-condemns-weaponization-of-medicaid-data-to-justify-1-trillion-in-cuts/?fbclid=IwY2xjawQCxE1leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETIxT1ZtczA1bEdZRnByVEF5c3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHlr4f1YLvbu9DwofHsBpHahGvSS2owZJywL41aaAiP_CICalxKfKShijJ33g_aem_bQBE4YCZ8k1GUKJgDrYAhQ