1.Short title; table of
contents
(a)This Act may be cited
as the Transition toward Excellence, Achievement, and
Mobility through Empowerment Act of 2011
or the
TEAM–Empowerment Act of 2011
.
(b)The table of contents of this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings and purposes.
Sec. 3. Individualized transition plans; transition planning
and services administrative units.
2.
(a)Congress finds the following:
(1)Evidence-based
research has conclusively documented that youth with significant disabilities
who were educated in inclusive settings, were exposed to work experience and
career exploration, and participated in a paid work experience while in school
had better postsecondary outcomes and higher rates of sustainable
employment.
(2)Higher rates of
self-determination, in which individuals with significant disabilities and
their families have direct control over the decisionmaking process in order to
ensure an appropriate individualized transition strategy, lead to better
outcomes.
(3)Regulations and
processes allowing for flexibility in the blending and braiding of government
funds to ensure seamless, collaborative strategies during the transition
process lead to better outcomes for individuals with significant
disabilities.
(4)Agency officials
involved directly in the provision of supports and services during a youth’s
transition into adulthood and beyond must be provided additional training to
become properly prepared to adequately address the individual transition needs
of students with significant disabilities.
(b)The purposes of this Act are the
following:
(1)Create a holistic
system across multiple partners focused on successful transition of youth with
significant disabilities into adulthood.
(2)Create a systemic
focus on achieving high expectations for all youth, through equality of
opportunity, full participation through self-determination and informed choice,
outcomes related to post-secondary options that lead to competitive integrated
employment and economic self-sufficiency.
(3)Promote innovative
strategies to foster academic, professional, and social inclusion, and the
solidification of long-term supports and services required to ensure full
integration into the community setting.
(4)Better define and
coordinate specific services related to the effective transition of youth with
significant disabilities.
(5)Eliminate barriers
and promote incentives for multiple stakeholders to collaborate and improve
transition opportunities for youth with significant disabilities.
3.Individualized
transition plans; transition planning and services administrative
unitsTitle I of the
Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000 (42 U.S.C.
15001 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
F
171.In this subtitle:
(1)The term asset development
means a strategy to assist low-income workers and job seekers, including
individuals with disabilities, move toward economic security and greater
financial self-sufficiency through income preservation, effective money and
credit management, the pursuit of post-secondary education, the purchase of a
home, business startup and growth, and the setting aside of resources for
longer-term needs and retirement.
(2)The term
individualized education program has the meaning given such term
in section 602 of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
(3)The term
integrated employment means work compensated at the greater of
minimum wage or competitive wages with related employment benefits, occurring
in a typical work setting where the employee with the disability—
(A)interacts or has
the opportunity to interact continuously with nondisabled co-workers;
(B)has an opportunity
for advancement and mobility; and
(C)is preferably
engaged in full-time employment.
(4)The term
ITP means an individual transition plan developed under section
173.
(5)The term
local educational agency has the meaning given to such term in
section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
(6)The term
secondary school has the meaning given to such term in section
9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965.
(7)The term State intellectual and
developmental disabilities agency means the primary State agency or
subdivision with administrative, programmatic, and operational responsibility
for the full range of services and supports furnished to individuals with
intellectual and developmental disabilities.
(8)The term TPS administrative
unit refers to the transition planning and services administrative unit
of a State established in accordance with section 174.
(9)(A)The term transition services
means a coordinated set of activities for a student, designed within an
outcome-oriented process, that promotes movement from school to post school
activities, including postsecondary education, vocational training, integrated
employment (including supported employment and customized employment),
continuing and adult education, adult services, asset development services,
independent living, or community participation.
(B)The coordinated set of activities
shall be based upon the individual student’s needs, taking into account the
student’s preferences and interests, and shall include instruction, community
experiences, the development of employment and other post school adult living
objectives; school-based preparatory experiences, career preparation, and
integrated work-based learning experiences (inclusive of in-school, after
school and work experiences outside the traditional school setting where other
youth without disabilities are engaged in similar activities); youth
development and leadership; connecting activities; training in self-advocacy,
self-determination skills, and peer mentoring; family involvement and supports;
and, when appropriate, acquisition of daily living skills and functional
vocational evaluation.
(C)Such term does not include the use of
facility-based employment and activity settings, such as sheltered workshops,
day habilitation centers, and enclave work settings. Additionally, the
coordinated set of activities should lead to the attainment of at least one of
the following outcomes: post-secondary education, long-term integrated
employment (including supported employment or customized employment), asset
development, independent living, and community participation.
172.For each fiscal
year, the Secretary, acting through the Commissioner of the Administration on
Developmental Disabilities, shall—
(1)make grants on a
competitive basis to States that agree to carry out the activities required of
States under this subtitle; and
(2)among the States receiving grants under
paragraph (1), allocate payments pursuant to a formula that—
(A)is established by
the Secretary, acting through the Commissioner; and
(B)takes into
consideration an estimate of the number of individuals to be served under this
subtitle in each State.
173.Individualized
transition plans
(a)Each State that
receives assistance under this subtitle shall, with respect to each individual
with a developmental disability in the State who is making the transition from
the secondary school system into adulthood, develop, and assist in the
implementation of, an individual transition plan to coordinate transition
services intended to assist the individual in achieving the outcomes of
integrated employment, postsecondary education, independent living, and
community engagement.
(b)An
ITP shall be—
(1)coordinated with any pre-existing
transition services being provided to the individual as a result of an
individualized education program developed for the individual prior to exiting
secondary school pursuant to the Individuals with Disabilities Education
Act;
(2)developed not
later than 30 days after the date on which the individual graduates from or
otherwise exits the State’s secondary school system; and
(3)applicable through
the date on which the individual attains 26 years of age;
(4)reviewed annually
and updated as needed; and
(5)developed during
in-person meetings that—
(A)are led by the TPS
administrative unit of the State intellectual and developmental disabilities
agency established under section 174; and
(B)at a minimum, include the following
stakeholders: the individual, the individual’s family, a transition broker (as
described in section 174), a representative of the State vocational
rehabilitation agency, relevant service providers that are contracted by the
State or chosen by the individual and the individual’s family or guardian to
provide transition services, the transition coordinator of the local
educational agency (where available, during the first year the individual exits
the secondary school system), assistive technology experts (as appropriate),
and representatives of the workforce development sector.
(c)An ITP shall include strategies for the
implementation of service models and practices with documented effectiveness
that—
(1)address and
emphasize the 5 areas of postsecondary educational experiences, career
preparation and work-based learning experiences, development and leadership,
connecting activities, and family involvement and supports;
(2)identify the needs
of the individual in each of these 5 areas and articulate how the State and its
agencies will meet those needs; and
(3)will advance
economic self-sufficiency with specific asset development goals and identify
specific tools for advancing economic self-sufficiency, such as favorable tax
benefits, work incentives, matched savings plans, education financing, and
effective strategies to manage a budget, money, and credit.
174.Transition
planning and services administrative unit
(a)Each State that receives assistance under
this subtitle shall establish and maintain a transition planning and services
(TPS) administrative unit within the State intellectual and developmental
disabilities agency.
(b)The primary focus of a TPS administrative
unit shall be to assist individuals with a developmental disability in the
State to make the transition from the secondary school system into adulthood.
The responsibilities of the TPS administrative unit shall include the
following:
(1)Individual
transition planThe TPS
administrative unit shall have responsibility for developing and assisting in
the implementation of ITPs.
(2)
(A)The TPS administrative unit shall employ or otherwise
secure the services of transition brokers.
(B)A
transition broker of the TPS administrative unit shall—
(i)facilitate
coordination among State agencies in the development of ITPs; and
(ii)provide
assistance to individuals with developmental disabilities, consistent with the
individual’s ITP, in navigating the complex system of supports and services
available through Federal and State programs.
(C)To
be eligible to serve as a transition broker of the TPS administrative unit, an
individual shall possess two or more of the following qualifications:
(i)Expertise relating
to individuals with developmental disabilities, benefits planning, the
provision of transition services, employment and job development, and
negotiating among various State stakeholders.
(ii)Experience with
and knowledge of the generic workforce development sector, vocational
rehabilitation, and job development.
(iii)Knowledge and expertise in the use of tools
to advance asset development and economic self-sufficiency, including favorable
tax benefits, work incentives, matched savings plans, education financing, and
effective strategies to manage a budget, money, and credit.
(iv)Knowledge about self-direction and
person-centered planning processes.
(D)A transition broker of the TPS
administrative unit shall be assigned to an individual upon—
(i)the individual or
the individual’s family or guardian selecting the broker; and
(ii)the State
intellectual and developmental disabilities agency approving the
selection.
(3)Self-advocacy,
self-determination skills, and peer mentoringThe TPS
administrative unit shall offer strategies and training to individuals with
developmental disabilities and their families regarding self-advocacy,
self-determination skills, and peer mentoring to improve the ability of such
individuals to advocate and negotiate on their own behalf.
(4)Effective
information and resourcesThe
TPS administrative unit shall provide information to individuals with
developmental disabilities and their families on Federal and State services,
supports, and regulations, including with respect to asset development,
insurance and benefit programs, financial savings tools, and asset or income
limits that affect eligibility for Federal and State means-tested services,
supports, or programs. Such information shall be easily understood and updated
on a quarterly basis each year.
(c)Fostering
multiagency collaborationThe
State intellectual and developmental disabilities agency of each State that
receives assistance under this subtitle shall facilitate memoranda of
understanding among key State agencies for the purpose of coordinating and
improving the services and supports provided by such agencies to individuals
with developmental disabilities during the transition into adulthood.
175.Not later than the end
of fiscal year 2012, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit a
report to the Congress containing an evaluation of the implementation and
effectiveness of this subtitle, including an evaluation of—
(1)the number of
individuals in each State who had an ITP developed on their behalf over the
past fiscal year;
(2)progress made at
the individual level in implementing the objectives of ITPs developed since the
date of enactment; and
(3)with respect to
individuals for whom an ITP is developed, their employment status, education
status, income level, race, gender, and current residence.
176.Authorization
of appropriationsTo carry out
this subtitle, there is authorized to be appropriated $50,000,000 for each of
fiscal years 2012 through
2016.
.