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Rehab services stresses federal match, school programs and remote-work impacts in budget hearing
Summary
The Department of Rehabilitation Services outlined federal matching requirements for vocational rehabilitation and services for the blind, described expanded priority groups, and discussed workforce, facility and remote-work implications as it presented its FY26 requests to the Appropriations committee.
Melinda Front, executive director of the Oklahoma Department of Rehabilitation Services, told the Appropriations and Budget committee the agency expanded client-serving capacity after state matching funds allowed it to open an additional priority group under the federal vocational rehabilitation (VR) program.
Front said DRS served about 85,947 Oklahomans with disabilities and their families in fiscal 2024 and that the agency continues to operate the Oklahoma School for the Blind (Muskogee) and Oklahoma School for the Deaf (Sulphur), residential institutions that also serve day students.
Why it matters: The federal VR program uses a 4-to-1 federal-to-state matching formula; without sufficient state match DRS cannot draw all available federal funds. The agency said restoring and maintaining the match increases services, reduces waiting lists and supports employment outcomes for Oklahomans with disabilities.
Key points in the hearing: Front explained DRS uses an order-of-selection process when demand exceeds capacity; the agency opened priority group 2 in June last year after receiving matching funds. She said DRS’s Disability Determination Services routinely exceeds national accuracy standards for Social Security Administration determinations and that VR and services-for-the-blind work is employment-driven and sometimes yields SSA reimbursements to the state when individuals leave disability rolls.
On operations and staffing, Front said DRS experienced high vacancy rates for certified rehabilitation counselors after the pandemic because of salary competition with private employers; matching money helped reduce vacancy rates. She reported ongoing recruitment and retention efforts, capital improvements at the Oklahoma School for the Deaf and requests for recurring maintenance and equipment funding (including $1,400,000 recurring to maintain the state match for VR and $150,000 for accessible instructional materials).
Committee questions covered a variety of matters: representatives asked about the agency’s remote-work footprint and implementation of the governor’s executive order to return to on-site work; Front and CFO Kevin Statham described a telework policy, estimated about 30 fully remote employees, and said returning staff to office space will take time and coordination with OMES (at least 120 days for space acquisition and build-out). Representatives also asked about a widely used American Sign Language class offered by the Oklahoma School for the Deaf that expanded statewide and internationally during the pandemic; Front said the program currently does not receive federal grants but the agency will investigate funding options.
What was not decided: The committee heard DRS’s budget requests and supplemental summary but did not take formal votes. DRS said it will continue to provide follow-up information to committee members on workload metrics and remote-work space implications.
Details not specified in the hearing: Front gave rounded figures and timelines for openings and case durations (average case length roughly 24–36 months) but did not offer line-item budget bills in the hearing record; the precise amounts for some requests were summarized in supplemental materials rather than read in full on the floor.
