Transformation to Competitive Employment Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 260 To assist employers providing employment under special certificates issued under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to trans- form their business and program models, to support individuals with disabilities to transition to competitive integrated employment, to phase out the use of such special certificates, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JANUARY 29, 2019 Mr. CASEY (for himself and Mr. VAN HOLLEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To assist employers providing employment under special cer- tificates issued under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to transform their business and program models, to support individuals with disabilities to transition to competitive integrated employment, to phase out the use of such special certificates, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 260 IS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Transformation to 2 Competitive Employment Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 4 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. Sec. 3. Purposes. TITLE I—COMPETITIVE INTEGRATED EMPLOYMENT TRANSFORMATION GRANT PROGRAMS Sec. 101. Program authorized. Sec. 102. State grant program. Sec. 103. Certificate holder grant program. TITLE II—PHASE OUT OF SPECIAL CERTIFICATES UNDER SECTION 14(c) OF THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT OF 1938 Sec. 201. Transition to fair wages for individuals with disabilities. Sec. 202. Prohibition on new special certificates; sunset. TITLE III—TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND DISSEMINATION Sec. 301. Grant authorized. Sec. 302. Application. TITLE IV—REPORTING AND EVALUATION Sec. 401. Impact evaluation and reporting. Sec. 402. Wage and hour report. TITLE V—GENERAL PROVISIONS Sec. 501. Definitions. Sec. 502. Authorization of appropriations. SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 5 The purposes of this Act are to— 6 (1) assist employers with special certificates 7 issued under section 14(c) of the Fair Labor Stand- 8 ards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)) to transform 9 their business and program models to models that 10 support individuals with intellectual, developmental, 11 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 260 IS mental health, and other disabilities to find and re- 1 tain work in competitive integrated employment; 2 (2) ensure individuals with disabilities, families, 3 local and State governments, and other stakeholders 4 are involved in the transformations described in 5 paragraph (1); 6 (3) ensure individuals employed in programs 7 using such special certificates transition to competi- 8 tive integrated employment positions and, as needed, 9 to services that support them as needed in inte- 10 grated home and community-based settings; 11 (4) identify models and processes for shifting 12 business and program models from such special cer- 13 tificates to competitive integrated employment mod- 14 els and integrated community participation and 15 wraparound models, and to share that information 16 with other such special certificate holders, State and 17 local entities, and other service providers for those 18 with intellectual, developmental, mental health, and 19 other disabilities; and 20 (5) support State and local governments as they 21 revise and implement their Olmstead plans to im- 22 prove integrated employment options and home and 23 community-based services options for all people with 24 disabilities. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 260 IS TITLE I—COMPETITIVE INTE- 1 GRATED EMPLOYMENT 2 TRANSFORMATION GRANT 3 PROGRAMS 4 SEC. 101. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED. 5 From the amounts appropriated to carry out this 6 title, the Secretary of Labor shall award grants under sec- 7 tions 102 and 103, on a competitive basis, to States and 8 eligible entities to assist such States and entities to trans- 9 form their business and program models from providing 10 employment using special certificates issued under section 11 14(c) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 12 214(c)) to models that support individuals with intellec- 13 tual, developmental, and other disabilities by— 14 (1) operating competitive integrated employ- 15 ment businesses; 16 (2) assisting such individuals in finding and re- 17 taining work in competitive integrated employment; 18 and 19 (3) providing integrated employment and inte- 20 grated community participation and wraparound 21 services (in this Act referred to as ‘‘integrated serv- 22 ices’’) for such individuals. 23 SEC. 102. STATE GRANT PROGRAM. 24 (a) APPLICATION.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 260 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive a 1 grant under this section, a State shall submit an ap- 2 plication to the Secretary at such time, in such man- 3 ner, and including such information as the Secretary 4 may reasonably require. 5 (2) CONTENTS.—Each application submitted 6 under paragraph (1) shall include— 7 (A) a description of the status of the em- 8 ployers in the State providing employment 9 using special certificates, including— 10 (i) the number of employers providing 11 employment using special certificates; 12 (ii) the number of such employers 13 that provide competitive integrated employ- 14 ment, which shall include employers pro- 15 viding such employment in combination 16 with integrated services; 17 (iii) the number of employees em- 18 ployed under a special certificate, 19 disaggregated by employer; 20 (iv) the average number of hours such 21 an employee works per week (including the 22 range and median of hours), disaggregated 23 by employer, and reported for the State as 24 a whole; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 260 IS (v) the average hourly wage for such 1 an employee (including the range and me- 2 dian wage), disaggregated by employer, 3 and reported for the State as a whole; 4 (B) a description of activities to be funded 5 under the grant, and the goals of such activi- 6 ties, including— 7 (i) the process to be used to identify 8 each employer in the State that will trans- 9 form its business and program models 10 from providing employment using special 11 certificates to providing competitive inte- 12 grated employment or a combination of 13 competitive integrated employment and in- 14 tegrated services, which, by the end of the 15 6-year grant period for the State, results 16 in the discontinuation of employment using 17 special certificates in the State, with the 18 exception that any individual employed 19 under a special certificate as of June 4, 20 1997, may continue to be employed in the 21 employment setting in which such indi- 22 vidual was employed as of the day before 23 the date of enactment of this Act, without 24 regard to whether such setting provides in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 260 IS tegrated employment or a combination of 1 integrated employment and integrated 2 services; 3 (ii) the number of such employers in 4 the State that will carry out a trans- 5 formation described in clause (i); 6 (iii) the service delivery infrastructure 7 that will be implemented in the State to 8 support individuals who have been em- 9 ployed under special certificates through 10 such a transformation; 11 (iv) the integrated employment and 12 integrated services that will be imple- 13 mented in the State to support such indi- 14 viduals; 15 (v) the timeline for phasing out em- 16 ployment using special certificates in the 17 State; 18 (vi) a timeline for the expansion of 19 employers that will provide competitive in- 20 tegrated employment or a combination of 21 competitive integrated employment and in- 22 tegrated services for individuals who have 23 been employed under special certificates; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 260 IS (vii) a description of the expanded in- 1 tegrated employment and integrated serv- 2 ices to be provided to such individuals as 3 a result of a transformations described in 4 clause (i); and 5 (viii) a description of the process to be 6 used to engage stakeholders in such trans- 7 formations; 8 (C) a description of how the activities 9 under the grant will coordinate and align Fed- 10 eral, State, and local programs, agencies, and 11 funding in the transformations described in 12 subparagraph (B)(i); 13 (D) a description of the State’s evaluation 14 plan to determine the impact of the grant; 15 (E) assurances that— 16 (i) the activities carried out under the 17 grant will result in each employer in the 18 State that provides employment using spe- 19 cial certificates to transform as described 20 in subparagraph (B)(i); 21 (ii) individuals with the most signifi- 22 cant intellectual and developmental disabil- 23 ities who will be impacted by such a trans- 24 formation will be given priority in receiving 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 260 IS the necessary supports and services to suc- 1 ceed during and after such a trans- 2 formation; 3 (iii) each individual in the State who 4 is employed under a special certificate will, 5 as a result of such a transformation, be 6 employed in competitive integrated employ- 7 ment or be so employed and receive the in- 8 tegrated services desired by the individual; 9 (iv) the State agencies responsible for 10 developmental disability services, Medicaid, 11 education, vocational rehabilitation, mental 12 health services, and other supports agree 13 to be partners in the goals of the grant; 14 (v) the State will comply with require- 15 ments of the Secretary with respect to the 16 collection of data and will require employ- 17 ers providing employment under special 18 certificates in the State to comply with 19 such requirements; 20 (vi) the State will cooperate with the 21 evaluation under title IV by providing all 22 data required and allow the evaluation of 23 activities under the grant; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 260 IS (vii) the State will create an advisory 1 council described in paragraph (3) to mon- 2 itor and guide the process of transforming 3 business and program models of employers 4 in the State; and 5 (viii) the State will cooperate with the 6 nonprofit entity carrying out technical as- 7 sistance and dissemination activities under 8 title III; and 9 (F) such other information and assurances 10 as the Secretary may reasonably require. 11 (3) MEMBERS OF THE ADVISORY COUNCIL.—A 12 State receiving a grant under this section shall cre- 13 ate an advisory council composed of the following: 14 (A) At least 25 percent of the members are 15 individuals with disabilities. 16 (B) Two family members of individuals 17 with intellectual or developmental disabilities 18 who are employed under a special certificate. 19 (C) Two employers providing competitive 20 integrated employment. 21 (D) Two employers providing employment 22 under special certificates. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 260 IS (E) A representative of a nonprofit agency 1 specializing in competitive integrated employ- 2 ment. 3 (F) A representative of the State develop- 4 mental disability agency. 5 (G) A representative of the State voca- 6 tional rehabilitation agency, as such term is 7 used under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 8 U.S.C. 701 et seq.). 9 (H) A representative of an agency in the 10 State described in paragraph (6) or (7) of sec- 11 tion 8501 of title 41, United States Code. 12 (I) A representative of the State inde- 13 pendent living centers, as such term is used 14 under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 15 U.S.C. 701 et seq.). 16 (J) A representative of the State Council 17 on Developmental Disabilities, as defined in sec- 18 tion 102 of the Developmental Disabilities As- 19 sistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 20 U.S.C. 15002). 21 (K) A representative of one of the State 22 University Centers for Excellence in Develop- 23 mental Disabilities Education, Research, and 24 Service, established under subtitle D of title I 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 260 IS of the Developmental Disabilities Assistance 1 and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 2 15061 et seq.). 3 (L) Representatives of other State agency 4 and disability organizations (such as the State 5 Medicaid agencies, State Protection and Advo- 6 cacy systems as defined in section 102 of the 7 Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill 8 of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C. 15002), and 9 other disability related offices and groups with 10 expertise in competitive integrated employ- 11 ment). 12 (b) GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY.—To the extent prac- 13 ticable, the Secretary shall distribute grant funds under 14 this section equitably among geographic areas of the 15 United States, and take into account rural and urban di- 16 versity. 17 (c) DURATION OF AWARDS.—A grant under this sec- 18 tion shall be awarded for a period of 6 years. 19 (d) LIMIT ON AWARD NUMBER.—A State may only 20 be awarded 1 grant under this section. 21 (e) AMOUNT OF AWARDS.—A grant awarded under 22 this section may not be made in an amount that is less 23 than $2,000,000, or more than $10,000,000, for the 6- 24 year grant period. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:38 Feb 04, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S260.IS S260 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 13 •S 260 IS SEC. 103. CERTIFICATE HOLDER GRANT PROGRAM. [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]