BILL NUMBER: SB 367 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN SENATE MAY 28, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 11, 2013
AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 1, 2013
INTRODUCED BY Senator Block
FEBRUARY 20, 2013
An act to add Section 4629.6 to amend
Section 4622 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to
developmental services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 367, as amended, Block. Developmental services: regional
centers: cultural and linguistic competency.
Under existing law, the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities
Services Act, the State Department of Developmental Services is
authorized required to contract with
regional centers to provide support and services to individuals with
developmental disabilities. Existing law requires the governing board
of the regional center to satisfy specified requirements, including
annually reviewing the performance of the director of the regional
center , and providing necessary training and support to board
members .
This bill would require each regional center's governing board, as
a condition of its contract, to require the regional center's
executive director, or his or her designee, to provide an annual
report on the regional center's efforts to address issues of inequity
in access to services that includes specified information, including
a description of the utilization of various regional center
services, broken down annually by ethnic and other demographic data.
The bill would require that the governing board require the regional
center to post information related to the annual report on its
Internet Web site, when possible.
This bill would require that this training and support include
issues relating to linguistic and cultural competency, and would
require each regional center to post on its Internet Web site
information regarding the training and support provided. The bill
would require the performance review of the director to include an
evaluation of the director's performance in providing regional center
services that are linguistically and culturally appropriate.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: no.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Section 4622 of the Welfare
and Institutions Code is amended to read:
4622. The state shall contract only with agencies, the governing
boards of which conform to all of the following criteria:
(a) The governing board shall be composed of individuals with
demonstrated interest in, or knowledge of, developmental
disabilities.
(b) The membership of the governing board shall include persons
with legal, management, public relations, and developmental
disability program skills.
(c) The membership of the governing board shall include
representatives of the various categories of disability to be served
by the regional center.
(d) The governing board shall reflect the geographic and ethnic
characteristics of the area to be served by the regional center.
(e) A minimum of 50 percent of the members of the governing board
shall be persons with developmental disabilities or their parents or
legal guardians. No less than 25 percent of the members of the
governing board shall be persons with developmental disabilities.
(f) Members of the governing board shall not be permitted to serve
more than seven years within each eight-year period.
(g) (1) The regional center shall provide
necessary training and support to these board members to facilitate
their understanding and participation , including issues
relating to linguistic and cultural competency . As
(2) As part of its monitoring
responsibility, the department shall review and approve the method by
which training and support are provided to board members to ensure
maximum understanding and participation by board members.
(3) Each regional center shall post on its Internet Web site
information regarding the training and support provided to board
members.
(h) The governing board may appoint a consumers' advisory
committee composed of persons with developmental disabilities
representing the various categories of disability served by the
regional center.
(i) The governing board shall appoint an advisory committee
composed of a wide variety of persons representing the various
categories of providers from which the regional center purchases
client services. The advisory committee shall provide advice,
guidance, recommendations, and technical assistance to the regional
center board in order to assist the regional center in carrying out
its mandated functions. The advisory committee shall designate one of
its members to serve as a member of the regional center board.
(j) The governing board shall annually review the performance of
the director of the regional center. This performance review
shall include an evaluation of the director's performance in
providing regional center services that are linguistically and
culturally appropriate.
(k) No member of the board who is an employee or member of the
governing board of a provider from which the regional center
purchases client services shall do any of the following:
(1) Serve as an officer of the board.
(2) Vote on any fiscal matter affecting the purchase of services
from any regional center provider.
(3) Vote on any issue other than as described in paragraph (2), in
which the member has a financial interest, as defined in Section
87103 of the Government Code, and determined by the regional center
board. The member shall provide a list of his or her financial
interests, as defined in Section 87103, to the regional center board.
Nothing in this section shall prevent the appointment to a
regional center governing board of a person who meets the criteria
for more than one of the categories listed above.
This section shall become operative on July 1, 1999.
SECTION 1. It is the intent of the Legislature
to enact legislation that would provide that the State Department of
Developmental Services require regional centers to address issues of
cultural and linguistic competency.
SEC. 2. Section 4629.6 is added to the Welfare
and Institutions Code, to read:
4629.6. As a condition of its contract, each regional center's
governing board shall do the following:
(a) Require the regional center's executive director, or his or
her designee, to provide an annual report on the regional center's
efforts to address issues of inequity in access to services,
including, but not limited to, the following:
(1) A description of the utilization of various regional center
services, broken down annually by ethnic and other demographic data.
(2) Identification of barriers to services.
(3) A description of specific steps toward progress made in
identifying and providing services to underserved populations within
the prior year, including identifying innovative practices by the
regional center or its contracted community-based organizations.
(4) A description of efforts made to build partnerships between
community-based providers of other services for regional center
consumers who are in underserved communities.
(b) Require the regional center to post information related to the
annual report on its Internet Web site, when possible.