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Mass Transit Memorandum <br /> No. 011309-2 <br /> January 13, 2009 <br /> TO: Honorable Mayor Carrigan and City Council Members <br /> FROM: Ryan McCrady, City Manager t" <br /> Paul McChancy, Mass Transit Ad inistratorJ,��; <br /> SUBJECT: Proposal to Extend Free Bus Rides for Disabled/Circuit Breaker Riders to <br /> June 30�'Each Year. <br /> SUMMARY Staff recommends that Council adopt a Resolution extending the <br /> RECOMMENDATION: period for free bus rides for Disabled/ Circuit Breaker participants <br /> by six months, through June 30th each year. <br /> BACKGROUND: Recent state legislation required all transit systems to provide free <br /> bus rides to disabled passengers who are certified for the State <br /> Department on Aging's Circuit Breaker Program. Participants are <br /> certified by the State each calendar year on criteria such as annual , <br /> income. As required by the legislation, the Decatur City Council I <br /> approved the free rides for the calendar year of the participant's �I <br /> certification, ending December 31S`each year. Several complaints I <br /> have been made since January 1 St by disabled riders who could no ' <br /> longer ride for free. Their problem is that there is a long gap I <br /> between December 31St and the date that the State begins to issue <br />� Circuit Breaker certifications for the next year. It may take up to 6 <br /> months or more before everyone receives his/her State certification <br /> for 2009 and is once again eligible for free bus rides. <br /> A representative from the Governor's office has called to ask that <br /> the City review how it handles the free rides, to eliminate this gap <br /> in free rides. The Governor's office is recommending that transit <br /> � systems extend the period for free rides beyond the calendar year, <br /> even though this is not required by the legislation. She pointed out <br /> that at least one transit system has extended the term of the free <br /> rides through June 30th of the following year. For example, anyone <br /> certified by the State in 2009 would be eligible for free bus rides <br /> through June 30, 2010. (I have requested a list of the time periods <br /> that other transit systems have adopted, but I have not yet received <br /> a response.) The Governor's office believes that most,but not all, <br /> of the Circuit Breaker certifications will be issued by June 30tn <br />