PENNSYLVANIA, March 3 - for individuals with disabilities; and

WHEREAS, According to the United States Census Bureau, nearly

1 in 5 individuals, or approximately 56.7 million individuals,

in the United States have a disability; and

WHEREAS, In this Commonwealth, approximately 14.2%, or an

estimated 1.8 million residents, have a disability; and

WHEREAS, According to data obtained from the 2017 American

Community Survey, the prevalence of disability in this

Commonwealth by race was 11.3% among whites, 13.1% among those

of Hispanic or Latino origin, 16.2% among African Americans,

16.3% among individuals of other races and 16.3% among Native

Americans; and

WHEREAS, According to United States Census data, the economic

consequences of having a disability in America are compelling;

and

WHEREAS, Approximately 19.1% of working-age Americans with a

disability are employed as compared to 65.9% of working-age

nondisabled Americans; and

WHEREAS, This presents a quality-of-life issue, as in 2016,

the poverty rate of working-age individuals with disabilities in

this Commonwealth was estimated to be 28% as compared to 9.4%

for working-age individuals without a disability; and

WHEREAS, Although the act of fostering awareness about the

issue of our Commonwealth's disabled population is important,

the real objective lies in ensuring that Pennsylvanians with

disabilities are provided the dignity, respect and

accommodations that they deserve; and

WHEREAS, The purpose of this resolution is to recognize the

prevalence of the systemic inequities that exist within our

society pertaining to the treatment of our residents with

20220SR0235PN1465 - 2 -

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30