The Montana Centers for Independent Living have launched a new action alert system at http://cqrcengage.com/summitilc/ to inform you about current local, state, and national issues and legislation that affect the lives of people with disabilities.

On this site you will find many opportunities to get involved, follow advocacy efforts, as well as look up and contact your elected officials. Make sure to sign up under the “Become an Advocate” section to be sure you receive the latest action alerts in your email inbox!

This portal also serves as a way for us to keep you informed and updated of what is going on during Montana’s Legislative Sessions and to let you know of opportunities to contact your Senator and/or Representative.

Now more than ever we all need to join forces and work together to improve and preserve the services that keep people healthy, active, productive and involved in their communities. Remember, democracy is a “participatory sport.” We all have tremendous power to bring about positive change, but only if we get involved, speak out and demand that our elected officials do the right thing.

People have already used this tool to write letters to policy-makers to overturn a rule that would have put the independence of people that rely on personal assistance in jeopardy.

Other issues on the site include advocating to fix the Medicaid Medically Needy Spend Down, and tracking a host of federal disability-related legislation.

You can also sign up for alerts in the side-bar at www.summitilc.org. Be sure to check ‘Email Opt-in.’