Amended in Assembly June 25, 2014

Amended in Senate May 27, 2014

Amended in Senate April 24, 2014

Amended in Senate April 3, 2014

Senate Bill No. 1160

Introduced by Senator Beall

February 20, 2014

An act to amend Section 4851 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to developmental services.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 1160, as amended, Beall. Developmental services: employment.

The Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act authorizes the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with regional centers to provide support and services to individuals with developmental disabilities. The services and supports to be provided to a regional center consumer are contained in an individual program plan, developed in accordance with prescribed requirements. Under existing law, as part of the individual program plan, the regional center may refer an adult consumer to habilitation services, including group services and individualized services in the context of employment. Existing law defines “group services” for these purposes to mean job coaching in a group supported employment placement at a job coach-to-consumer ratio of not less than 1 to 3 nor more than 1 to 8 where services to a minimum of 3 consumers are funded by the regional center or the Department of Rehabilitation. Existing law defines “individualized services” to mean job coaching and other supported employment services for regional center-funded consumers in a supported employment placement at a job coach-to-consumer ratio of 1 to 1, and that decrease over time until stabilization is achieved.

This bill would require, for group services, a job coach-to-consumer ratio of not less than 1 to 2 nor more than 1 to 8 where services to a minimum of 2 consumers are funded by the regional center or the Department of Rehabilitation. The bill would recast the definition of “individualized services” to provide, in part, job coaching and other supported employment services that decrease over time, consistent with the consumer’s begin delete individualized end delete begin insert individual end insert program plan and abilities with the goal of achieving stabilization, when possible.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares the following:

begin delete

(a) With broad support, in 2013, the “Employment First Policy”
legislation was signed into law in California, declaring that it is
the policy of the state that employment for persons with
developmental disabilities be given the highest priority. However,
due to cuts in the state budget, employment rates for
community-based supported employment programs remain 10
percent below 2006 levels, and over 70 percent of the population
with developmental disabilities that is age-appropriate for
employment remains unemployed or underemployed.

end delete begin delete

(b)

end delete

begin insert (a) end insert  Persons with developmental disabilities should have
employment opportunities with job training, reasonable
accommodation, and individual supports that enable them to move
towards being economically self-sufficient.

begin delete

(c)

end delete

begin insert (b) end insert  Regional center service coordinators, community-based
program providers, disability advocates, and family members
involved in employment-related services for persons with
developmental disabilities have the responsibility to provide
information to them regarding the full spectrum of employment
options.

SEC. 2.  

Section 4851 of the Welfare and Institutions Code is
amended to read:

4851.  

The definitions contained in this chapter shall govern
the construction of this chapter, with respect to habilitation services
provided through the regional center, and unless the context
requires otherwise, the following terms shall have the following
meanings:

(a) “Habilitation services” means community-based services
purchased or provided for adults with developmental disabilities,
including services provided under the Work Activity Program and
the Supported Employment Program, to prepare and maintain them
at their highest level of vocational functioning, or to prepare them
for referral to vocational rehabilitation services.

(b) “Individual program plan” means the overall plan developed
by a regional center pursuant to Section 4646.

(c) “Individual habilitation service plan” means the service plan
developed by the habilitation service vendor to meet employment
goals in the individual program plan.

(d) “Department” means the State Department of Developmental
Services.

(e) “Work activity program” includes, but is not limited to,
sheltered workshops or work activity centers, or community-based
work activity programs certified pursuant to subdivision (f) or
accredited by CARF, the Commission on Accreditation of
Rehabilitation Facilities.

(f) “Certification” means certification procedures developed by
the Department of Rehabilitation.

(g) “Work activity program day” means the period of time
during which a Work Activity Program provides services to
consumers.

(h) “Full day of service” means, for purposes of billing, a day
in which the consumer attends a minimum of the declared and
approved work activity program day, less 30 minutes, excluding
the lunch period.

(i) “Half day of service” means, for purposes of billing, any day
in which the consumer’s attendance does not meet the criteria for
billing for a full day of service as defined in subdivision (g), and
the consumer attends the work activity program not less than two
hours, excluding the lunch period.

(j) “Supported employment program” means a program that
meets the requirements of subdivisions (n) to (s), inclusive.

(k) “Consumer” means any adult who receives services
purchased under this chapter.

(l) “Accreditation” means a determination of compliance with
the set of standards appropriate to the delivery of services by a
work activity program or supported employment program,
developed by CARF, and applied by the commission or the
department.

(m) “CARF” means the Commission on Accreditation of
Rehabilitation Facilities.

(n) “Supported employment” means paid work that is integrated
in the community for individuals with developmental disabilities.

(o) “Integrated work” means the engagement of an employee
with a disability in work in a setting typically found in the
community in which individuals interact with individuals without
disabilities other than those who are providing services to those
individuals, to the same extent that individuals without disabilities
in comparable positions interact with other persons.

(p) “Supported employment placement” means the employment
of an individual with a developmental disability by an employer
in the community, directly or through contract with a supported
employment program. This includes provision of ongoing support
services necessary for the individual to retain employment.

(q) “Allowable supported employment services” means the
services approved in the individual program plan and specified in
the individual habilitation service plan for the purpose of achieving
supported employment as an outcome, and may include any of the
following:

(1) Job development, to the extent authorized by the regional
center.

(2) Program staff time for conducting job analysis of supported
employment opportunities for a specific consumer.

(3) Program staff time for the direct supervision or training of
a consumer or consumers while they engage in integrated work
unless other arrangements for consumer supervision, including,
but not limited to, employer supervision reimbursed by the
supported employment program, are approved by the regional
center.

(4) Community-based training in adaptive functional and social
skills necessary to ensure job adjustment and retention.

(5) Counseling with a consumer’s significant other to ensure
support of a consumer in job adjustment.

(6) Advocacy or intervention on behalf of a consumer to resolve
problems affecting the consumer’s work adjustment or retention.

(7) Ongoing support services needed to ensure the consumer’s
retention of the job.

(r) “Group services” means job coaching in a group supported
employment placement at a job coach-to-consumer ratio of not
less than 1 to 2 nor more than 1 to 8 where services to a minimum
of two consumers are funded by the regional center or the
Department of Rehabilitation. For consumers receiving group
services, ongoing support services shall be limited to job coaching
and shall be provided at the worksite.

(s) “Individualized services” means job coaching and other
supported employment services for regional center-funded
consumers in a supported employment placement at a job
coach-to-consumer ratio of 1 to 1 and that decrease over time,
consistent with the consumer’s begin delete individualized end delete begin insert individual end insert program
plan and abilities with the goal of achieving stabilization, when
possible. Individualized services may be provided on or off the
jobsite.