SB 577,
as amended, Pavley. Autismbegin delete services:end deletebegin insert and other developmental disabilities:end insert pilot program: employment.
The Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act authorizes the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with regional centers to provide services and support to individuals with developmental disabilities, including autism. Existing law governs the habilitation services provided for adult consumers of regionalbegin delete servicesend deletebegin insert centersend insert, including work activity programs, as described, and establishes an hourly rate for supported employment services provided to consumers receiving individualized services.
This bill would requirebegin delete the State Department of Developmental Services to establish a pilot program for young adults with autism to help them find pathways to financial independence through work.
The bill would require the pilot program to develop and implement a new model for providing employment services to autistic individuals and to create financial incentives for employment service providers, as specified, among other requirements. The bill would requireend delete a job exploration and discovery plan, as specified, to be developed if job exploration and discovery services are determined to be a necessary step to achieve a supported employment outcome. The bill would establish an hourly rate for job exploration and discovery services of $40 per hour for a maximum of 75 hours per calendar quarter for all services identified and provided in the plan.
This bill would require the State Department of Developmental Services to establish a pilot program for young adults with autism and other developmental disabilities to help them find pathways to financial independence through work. The bill would require the pilot program to develop and implement a new model for providing employment services to these individuals and to create financial incentives for employment service providers, as specified, among other requirements.
end insertThe bill would also establish,begin delete onlyend delete untilbegin delete January 1, 2019end deletebegin insert July 1, 2018end insert, a pilot program operative in specified regionalbegin delete catchment areasend deletebegin insert
centersend insert, pursuant to which the State Department of Developmental Services would be authorized to allocate moneys for the support of programs provided by the participating regionalbegin delete catchment areasend deletebegin insert centersend insert to promote the employment ofbegin delete developmentally disabledend delete personsbegin insert with autend insertbegin insertism and developmental disabilitiesend insert. The bill would require the State Department of Developmental Services and the Department of Finance to establish, on or before July 1, 2014, the Employment Growth Fund for these
purposes, as specified. The fund would consist of moneys appropriated by the Legislature from cost savings resulting from the reduced amount of support payments made tobegin delete developmentally disabledend delete personsbegin insert with autism and developmental disabilitiesend insert who earn wages from gainful employment attained as a result of their participation in the pilotbegin delete projectend deletebegin insert programend insert, as specified. The bill would impose specified duties on the State Department of Developmental Services relating to the pilot program, including preparing an annual report and designing and implementing an evaluation of the pilot program, as specified.
The bill would also set forth related legislative findings and declarations.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:
P3 1(a) Individuals with developmental disabilities have to struggle
2to find gainful employment. Unemployment amongst the
3developmentally disabled population is approximately 80 percent.
4(b) Within the developmentally disabled community, autism is
5the fastest growing population, making up approximately
50
6percent of the annual new caseload of regional centers in some
7parts of the state.
8(a)
end delete
9begin insert(c)end insert One in three adults with autism do not have paid work
10experience or a college or technical education seven years after
11leaving the K-12 school system.
12(b)
end delete
13begin insert(d)end insert In order to increase the
self-sufficiency of young adults with
14autismbegin insert
and other developmental disabilitiesend insert, including increased
15earning capacity and reduced government benefit support, it is
16important that the state implement a program to provide
17individualized skills assessment, social cue training, and specific
18support to ensure their academic and employment success.
19(c)
end delete
20begin insert(e)end insert The Governor and the Legislature must address the growing
21
need for new models of assessment, career training, and expanding
22employment opportunities and support options for young adults
23with autismbegin insert and other developmental disabilitiesend insert between 18 and
2430 years of age. If this population is left without purposefully
25designed pathways into employment, these young adults will
26remain at high risk of public dependency throughout the course
27of their lives.
Section 4850 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
29amended to read:
(a) The Legislature reaffirms its intent that habilitation
31services for adults with developmental disabilities should be
32planned and provided as a part of a continuum and that habilitation
33services should be available to enable persons with developmental
34disabilities to approximate the pattern of everyday living available
35to nondisabled people of the same age.
36(b) The Legislature further intends that habilitation services
37shall be provided to adults with developmental disabilities as
38specified in this chapter in order to guarantee the rights stated in
39Section 4502.
P4 1(c) The Legislature
further intends that in order to increase
2effectiveness and opportunity to gain meaningful employment
3opportunities, habilitation services shall also provide job
4exploration and discovery services to enhance and promote jobs
5skills, develop social skills necessary for successful employment,
6and provide targeted outreach to employers for individuals with
7developmental disabilities.
Section 4851 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
9amended to read:
The definitions contained in this chapter shall govern
11the construction of this chapter, with respect to habilitation services
12provided through the regional center, and unless the context
13requires otherwise, the following terms shall have the following
14meanings:
15(a) “Habilitation services” means community-based services
16purchased or provided for adults with developmental disabilities,
17including services provided under the Work Activity Program and
18the Supported Employment Program, to prepare and maintain them
19at their highest level of vocational functioning, or to prepare them
20for referral to vocational rehabilitation services.
21(b) “Individual program plan” means the overall plan developed
22by a regional center pursuant to Section 4646.
23(c) “Individual habilitation service plan” means the service plan
24developed by the habilitation service vendor to meet employment
25goals in the individual program plan.
26(d) “Department” means the State Department of Developmental
27Services.
28(e) “Work activity program” includes, but is not limited to,
29sheltered workshops or work activity centers, or community-based
30work activity programs certified pursuant to subdivision (f) or
31accredited by CARF, the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission.
32(f) “Certification” means certification procedures developed
by
33the Department of Rehabilitation.
34(g) “Work activity program day” means the period of time
35during which a Work Activity Program provides services to
36consumers.
37(h) “Full day of service” means, for purposes of billing, a day
38in which the consumer attends a minimum of the declared and
39approved work activity program day, less 30 minutes, excluding
40the lunch period.
P5 1(i) “Half day of service” means, for purposes of billing, any day
2in which the consumer’s attendance does not meet the criteria for
3billing for a full day of service as defined in subdivision (g), and
4the consumer attends the work activity program not less than two
5hours, excluding the lunch period.
6(j) “Supported employment program” means a program that
7meets the requirements of subdivisions (n) to (s), inclusive.
8(k) “Consumer” means any adult who receives services
9purchased under this chapter.
10(l) “Accreditation” means a determination of compliance with
11the set of standards appropriate to the delivery of services by a
12work activity program or supported employment program,
13developed by CARF, the Rehabilitation Accreditation Commission,
14and applied by the commission or the department.
15(m) “CARF” means CARF the Rehabilitation Accreditation
16Commission.
17(n) “Supported employment” means paid work that is integrated
18in the community for
individuals with developmental disabilities.
19(o) “Integrated work” means the engagement of an employee
20with a disability in work in a setting typically found in the
21community in which individuals interact with individuals without
22disabilities other than those who are providing services to those
23
individuals, to the same extent that individuals without disabilities
24in comparable positions interact with other persons.
25(p) “Supported employment placement” means the employment
26of an individual with a developmental disability by an employer
27in the community, directly or through contract with a supported
28employment program. This includes provision of ongoing support
29services necessary for the individual to retain employment.
30(q) “Allowable supported employment services” means the
31services approved in the individual program plan and specified in
32the individual habilitation service plan for the purpose of achieving
33supported employment as an outcome, and may include any of the
34following:
35(1) Job development, to
the extent authorized by the regional
36center.
37(2) Program staff time for conducting job analysis of supported
38
employment opportunities for a specific consumer.
39(3) Program staff time for the direct supervision or training of
40a consumer or consumers while they engage in integrated work
P6 1unless other arrangements for consumer supervision, including,
2but not limited to, employer supervision reimbursed by the
3supported employment program, are approved by the regional
4center.
5(4) Community-based training in adaptive functional and social
6skills necessary to ensure job adjustment and retention.
7(5) Counseling with a consumer’s significant other to ensure
8support of a consumer in job adjustment.
9(6) Advocacy or intervention on behalf of a consumer to resolve
10problems
affecting the consumer’s work adjustment or retention.
11(7) Ongoing support services needed to ensure the consumer’s
12retention of the job.
13(r) “Group services” means job coaching in a group supported
14employment placement at a job coach-to-consumer ratio of not
15less than one-to-three nor more than one-to-eight where services
16to a minimum of three consumers are funded by the regional center
17or the Department of Rehabilitation. For consumers receiving
18group services, ongoing support services shall be limited to job
19coaching and shall be provided at the worksite.
20(s) “Individualized services” means job coaching and other
21supported employment services for regional center-funded
22consumers in a supported employment placement at a
job
23coach-to-consumer ratio of one-to-one, and that decrease over time
24until stabilization is achieved. Individualized services may be
25provided on or off the jobsite.
26(t) “Job exploration and discovery” means (1) services provided
27to enhance employment readiness, (2) social skill development
28services necessary to obtain and maintain employment and to
29secure and support participation in internship and volunteer
30opportunities, (3) services to access and participate in
31postsecondary education or career technical education, (4) services
32to develop resume and interview skills, and (5) services to conduct
33targeted employer outreach to secure employment.
Section 4854 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
35amended to read:
(a) In developing the individual habilitation service plan
37pursuant to Section 4853, the habilitation service provider shall
38develop specific and measurable objectives to determine whether
39the consumer demonstrates ability to reach or maintain individual
40employment goals in all of the following areas:
P7 1(1) Participation in paid work for a specified period of time.
2(2) Obtaining or sustaining a specified productivity rate.
3(3) Obtaining or sustaining a specified attendance level.
4(4) Demonstration of appropriate behavior for a work setting.
5(b) If job exploration and discovery services are determined to
6be a necessary step to achieve a supported employment outcome,
7a job exploration and discovery plan shall be developed.
Section 4860 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
9amended to read:
(a) (1) The hourly rate for supported employment
11services provided to consumers receiving individualized services
12shall be thirty dollars and eighty-two cents ($30.82).
13(2) Job coach hours spent in travel to consumer worksites may
14be reimbursable for individualized services only when the job
15coach travels from the vendor’s headquarters to the consumer’s
16worksite or from one consumer’s worksite to another, and only
17when the travel is one way.
18(b) The hourly rate for group services shall be thirty dollars and
19eighty-two cents ($30.82), regardless of the number of consumers
20served in the group. Consumers
in a group shall be scheduled to
21start and end work at the same time, unless an exception that takes
22into consideration the consumer’s compensated work schedule is
23approved in advance by the regional center. The department, in
24consultation with stakeholders, shall adopt regulations to define
25the appropriate grounds for granting these exceptions. When the
26number of consumers in a supported employment placement group
27drops to fewer than the minimum required in subdivision (r) of
28Section 4851, the regional center may terminate funding for the
29group services in that group, unless, within 90 days, the program
30provider adds one or more regional centers, or Department of
31Rehabilitation-funded supported employment consumers to the
32group.
33(c) Job coaching hours for group services shall be allocated on
34a prorated basis between a regional center and
the Department of
35Rehabilitation when regional center and Department of
36Rehabilitation consumers are served in the same group.
37(d) When Section 4855 applies, fees shall be authorized for the
38following:
39(1) A three-hundred-sixty-dollar ($360) fee shall be paid to the
40program provider upon intake of a consumer into a supported
P8 1employment program. No fee shall be paid if that consumer
2completed a supported employment intake process with that same
3supported employment program within the previous 12 months.
4(2) A seven-hundred-twenty-dollar ($720) fee shall be paid
5upon placement of a consumer in an integrated job, except that no
6fee shall be paid if that consumer is placed with another consumer
7or consumers assigned to
the same job coach during the same hours
8of employment.
9(3) A seven-hundred-twenty-dollar ($720) fee shall be paid after
10a 90-day retention of a consumer in a job, except that no fee shall
11be paid if that consumer has been placed with another consumer
12or consumers, assigned to the same job coach during the same
13hours of employment.
14(e) The hourly rate for job exploration and discovery services
15shall be forty dollars ($40) per hour for a maximum of 75 hours
16per calendar quarter for all services identified and provided in the
17job exploration and discovery plan as developed pursuant to
18subdivision (b) of Section 4854.
19(f) Notwithstanding paragraph (4) of subdivision (a) of Section
204648, the regional center shall
pay the supported employment
21program rates established by this section.
Section 4868.5 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
23Code, to read:
(a) The State Department of Developmental Services
25shall establish a pilot program for young adults with autismbegin insert and
26other developmental disabilitiesend insert to help them find pathways to
27financial independence through work. The program shall be
28developed and implemented to assistbegin insert thoseend insert individualsbegin delete with autismend delete
29 to obtain integrated employment outcomes that result in sufficient
30wages and benefits in order to decrease, over time, their
31dependency on public financial
support.
32(b) The pilot program described in subdivision (a) shall do all
33of the following:
34(1) Develop and implement a new model for providing
35employment services to autistic individualsbegin insert and individuals with
36other developmental disabilitiesend insert or modify an existing model for
37providing those services.
38(2) Identify existing support services that may be modified or
39combined with supplemental services to provide skills assessment,
40training, and transition services.
P9 1(3) Utilize available federal and state incentive programs.
2(4) Create financial incentives for employment service providers
3who assist the individuals served by the pilot program to become
4successfully employed in jobs that pay wages that equal or exceed
5the Social Security Administration’s substantial gainful activity
6level or result in the individual obtaining employer-based health
7benefits.
8(5) Develop and implement a protocol for collecting and
9evaluating data regarding the outcomes of autistic individualsbegin insert and
10individuals with other developmental disabilitiesend insert who participate
11in the pilot program.
Section 4870 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
13Code, to read:
(a) There is hereby established a pilot program in the
15following regionalbegin delete catchment areas:end deletebegin insert centers:end insert Golden Gate Regional
16Center, East Bay Regional Center, Alta California Regional Center,
17Tri-Counties Regional Center,begin insert Orange County Regional Center,end insert
18 and San Diego Regional Center.begin delete Theend deletebegin insert If additional regional
centers
19express interest in participating in the pilot program pursuant to
20this section, the department may approve up to two additional
21regional centers.end insert
22begin insert(b)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertTheend insert pilot program shall include all of the following:
23(1) The State Department of Developmental Services and the
24Department of Finance shall establish, on or before July 1, 2014,
25the Employment Growth Fund for purposes of the pilot project.
26The fund shall consist of moneys appropriated by the Legislature
27for purposes of this section from cost savings resulting from the
28reduced
amount of support payments made tobegin delete developmentally
personsbegin insert with autism and other developmental disabilitiesend insert
29disabledend delete
30 who earn wages from gainful employment attained as a result of
31their participation in the pilotbegin delete projectend deletebegin insert
programend insert, as follows:
32(A) The sum of two hundred dollars ($200) shall be allocated
33to the fundbegin insert from funds payable to the State Department of Health
34Care Services pursuant to the Medi-Cal program to the extent
35authorized by federal lawend insert for eachbegin insert Medi-Cal eligibleend insert consumer of
36regional center services for each month that he or she is enrolled
37in an employer-paid health benefit plan.
38(B) The sum of one thousand dollars ($1,000) shall be allocated
39to the fundbegin insert
from the Department of Rehabilitation,end insert for each
40consumer of regional center services who earns a monthly wage
P10 1that exceeds the substantial gainful activity level, as established
2by the federal Social Security Administration, for at least nine
3consecutive monthsbegin insert if the Department of Rehabilitation has
4received cost reimbursement in that amount from the federal
5government pursuant to the federal Ticket to Work programend insert. This
6sum shall be allocated on a one-time basis for each consumer who
7meets that criteria.
8(C) The total amount allocated pursuant to paragraphs (A) and
9(B) shall be deposited into the fund on a quarterly basis.
10(2) Each participating regionalbegin delete catchment areaend deletebegin insert
centerend insert shall
11submit the following information to the State Department of
12Developmental Services:
13(A) Information regarding each consumer who receives
14Medi-Cal benefits and is subsequently enrolled in an employer-paid
15health benefit plan.
16(B) Information regarding each consumer who earns a monthly
17wage that exceeds the substantial gainful activity level, as
18established by the federal Social Security Administration, for at
19least nine consecutive months.
20(3) On and after July 1, 2015 the State Department of
21Developmental Servicesbegin delete mayend deletebegin insert
shallend insert
allocate funds from the
22Employment Growth Fundbegin delete for the support of programs provided begin insert to supported
23by the participating regional catchment areas to promote the
24habilitation of developmentally disabled personsend delete
25employment providers who assist consumers to attain either of the
26thresholds described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1)end insert.
27(4) The State Department of Developmental Services shall do
28all of the following:
29 (A) begin deleteBiannually end deletebegin insertAnnually end insertdetermine
thebegin insert averageend insert cost of providing
30begin delete habilitativeend deletebegin insert adult developmental center end insert services to
31begin delete developmentally disabledend delete personsbegin delete who receive services fromend deletebegin insert with
32developmental disabilities inend insert thebegin delete participatingend delete regionalbegin delete catchment begin insert
centers participating in the pilot programend insert and compare that
33areasend delete
34begin insert average end insert cost to thebegin delete statewide averageend deletebegin insert actual costend insert of providing
35begin delete thoseend deletebegin insert supported employmentend insert
servicesbegin insert to consumers in the pilot
36program. The department, once it has determined the difference
37between those costs, shall allocate to the Employment Growth
38Fund 50 percent of the savings if the average cost of adult
39developmental center services is higher than the actual costs of
40the supported employment services provided to any consumer who
P11 1meets either threshold described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of
2paragraph (1)end insert.
3(B) Prepare an annual report regarding the number of
4begin delete developmentally disabledend delete personsbegin insert with developmental disabilitiesend insert
5 who receivebegin delete habilitativeend delete
services from the participating regional
6begin delete catchment areas, and estimating the cost savings to the state begin insert centers as a result of the pilot program and estimated
7resulting as a result of the program, and submit the report to the
8Legislatureend delete
9total cost savings to the state across departments as a result of the
10programend insert.
11(C) Design and implement an evaluation of the pilot program.
12If the pilotbegin delete projectend deletebegin insert programend insert results in abegin delete 10%end deletebegin insert
10 percentend insert or greater
13average annual increase in the number of individuals who receive
14habilitative services through the pilotbegin delete projectend deletebegin insert programend insert being placed
15in supported employment, the department shall submit a
16recommendation to the Legislature that the program be expanded
17statewide.
18(b)
end delete
19begin insert(c)end insert This section shall become inoperative on July 1, 2018, and,
20as of January 1, 2019, is
repealed, unless a later enacted statute,
21that becomes operative on or before January 1, 2019, deletes or
22extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed.
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97