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General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 5241
February Session, 2024
AN ACT ESTABLISHING A BUREAU COORDINATING SERVICES FOR
DEAF, HARD OF HEARING OR DEAFBLIND PERSONS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective July 1, 2024) (a) There is established a 1
Bureau of Services for Persons Who Are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or 2
Deafblind which shall be within the Department of Aging and Disability 3
Services for administrative purposes only. 4
(b) The Commissioner of Aging and Disability Services, in 5
consultation with the Advisory Board for Persons who are Deaf, Hard 6
of Hearing or Deafblind, shall, not later than October 1, 2024, appoint an 7
executive director of the bureau, which shall be an independent office 8
within the Department of Aging and Disability Services. The executive 9
director shall (1) have professional experience in serving the needs of 10
deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind persons, and (2) be (A) able to 11
communicate in American Sign Language, and (B) familiar with 12
effective interpretation methods to assist deafblind persons. The 13
commissioner shall also hire an administrative assistant for the 14
executive director. 15
(c) The executive director shall: 16
(1) Oversee Department of Aging and Disability Services' employees 17
who provide counseling, interpreting and other assistance to persons 18 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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who are deaf, hard of hearing and deafblind, except for federally funded 19
vocational rehabilitation employees; 20
(2) Annually update and publish on the department's Internet web 21
site a resource guide for persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or 22
deafblind; 23
(3) Maintain and publish on the department's Internet web site a list 24
provided by the Connecticut Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf of 25
registered interpreters, categorized by the setting in which such 26
interpreters are qualified to provide interpreting services; 27
(4) Assist each state agency, as defined in section 1-79 of the general 28
statutes, in appointing an employee of each such agency to serve as a 29
point of contact for concerns related to persons who are deaf, hard of 30
hearing or deafblind, pursuant to section 4 of this act, and coordinate 31
efforts to resolve such concerns with such employees serving as a point 32
of contact; 33
(5) Coordinate efforts of the department to provide information and 34
referral services to deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind persons on 35
resources available to such persons, including, but not limited to, 36
working with the Commissioner of Aging and Disability Services to 37
establish an Internet web site for departmental and bureau services for 38
such persons that is accessible to all such persons; 39
(6) Assist the commissioner in administration of the department unit 40
that registers qualified interpreters and issues identification cards to 41
state registered interpreters in accordance with section 17a-838 of the 42
general statutes; 43
(7) Coordinate responses to consumer concerns, requests for 44
assistance and referrals to resources; 45
(8) Coordinate education and training initiatives, including, but not 46
limited to, working with (A) local and state public safety and public 47
health officials and first responders on best practices for serving and 48 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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communicating with deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind persons, and (B) 49
sign language interpreters, oral interpreters and interpreters who are 50
trained to interpret for deafblind persons to maintain or enhance the 51
skills of such interpreters in a variety of settings; 52
(9) Collaborate with interpreting services providers and training 53
organizations to increase opportunities for mentorships, internships, 54
apprenticeships and specialized training in interpreting services for 55
deafblind persons; 56
(10) Partner with civic and community organizations serving deaf, 57
hard of hearing or deafblind persons on workshops and information 58
sessions regarding new laws, regulations or developments concerning 59
services, programs or health care needs of such persons; 60
(11) Raise public awareness of programs and services available to 61
deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind persons; 62
(12) Assist the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority in implementing 63
telecommunication relay service programs for deaf, hard of hearing or 64
deafblind persons, utilizing assistive devices for telecommunications 65
that include, but are not limited to, telecommunication relay services, 66
telephone captioning services and other captioning services; 67
(13) Work with the Governor and Connecticut television stations on 68
ways to make television broadcasts more accessible to persons who are 69
deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind; and 70
(14) In consultation with the Advisory Board for Persons who are 71
Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Deafblind, identify the needs of deaf, hard of 72
hearing or deafblind persons and address policy changes that may be 73
necessary to better serve such persons. 74
(d) Not later than July 1, 2025, and annually thereafter, the executive 75
director shall file a report, in accordance with the provisions of section 76
11-4a of the general statutes, with the joint standing committees of the 77
General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to 78 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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appropriations, aging, human services and public health on the 79
activities of the Bureau of Services for Deaf, Hard of Hearing or 80
Deafblind Persons in the previous calendar year. The report shall 81
include, but need not be limited to, recommendations to improve 82
services for such persons. 83
Sec. 2. Section 17a-836 of the general statutes is repealed and the 84
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2024): 85
The Advisory Board for Persons Who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or 86
Deafblind is hereby created to advocate, strengthen and advise the 87
Governor and the General Assembly concerning state policies affecting 88
persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind and their 89
relationship to the public, industry, health care and educational 90
opportunity. The board shall: 91
(1) Monitor services for persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or 92
deafblind; 93
(2) [Periodically meet with the] Establish an annual leadership 94
roundtable meeting with the Board of Regents for Higher Education, the 95
Commissioners of Public Health, Social Services, Mental Health and 96
Addiction Services, Education, Developmental Services, [and] Children 97
and Families, Early Childhood and Economic and Community 98
Development, and the Labor Commissioner, or the commissioners' and 99
regents' designees, to discuss best practices and gaps in services for 100
persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind; 101
(3) Refer persons with complaints concerning the qualification and 102
registration of interpreters for persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or 103
deafblind to the entity designated pursuant to section 46a-10b; 104
(4) Make recommendations for (A) technical assistance and resources 105
for state agencies in order to serve persons who are deaf, hard of hearing 106
or deafblind; (B) public policy and legislative changes needed to address 107
gaps in services; and (C) the qualifications and registration of 108
interpreters pursuant to section 17a-838. The board shall submit such 109 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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recommendations, in accordance with section 11-4a, not later than 110
January 15, 2025, and annually thereafter, to the Governor and the joint 111
standing [committee] committees of the General Assembly having 112
cognizance of matters relating to appropriations, aging, human services 113
and public health. 114
Sec. 3. Section 17a-836a of the general statutes is repealed and the 115
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2024): 116
(a) The Advisory Board for Persons Who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing 117
or Deafblind shall consist of the following members: (1) The consultant 118
appointed by the State Board of Education in accordance with section 119
10-316a, or the consultant's designee; (2) the president of the 120
Connecticut Council of Organizations Serving the Deaf, or the 121
president's designee; (3) the president of the Connecticut Association of 122
the Deaf, or the president's designee; (4) the president of the Connecticut 123
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf, or the president's designee; (5) the 124
[Commissioner] human services advocate for the Department of Aging 125
and Disability Services; [, or the commissioner's designee;] (6) the 126
executive director of the American School for the Deaf, or the executive 127
director's designee; (7) the director of the Connecticut Chapter of We the 128
Deaf People; [and] (8) the executive director of the Bureau of Services 129
for Persons Who Are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Deafblind, appointed 130
pursuant to section 1 of this act; (9) a representative of an organization 131
representing interpreters for persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or 132
deafblind, appointed by the executive director of the Bureau of Services 133
for Persons Who Are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Deafblind; (10) a 134
representative of the nonprofit entity designated by the Governor 135
pursuant to section 46a-10b to serve as the Connecticut protection and 136
advocacy system for persons with disabilities, appointed by the 137
Governor; (11) a representative of an organization representing 138
Connecticut hospitals, appointed by the speaker of the House of 139
Representatives; (12) a representative of the Connecticut Tech Act 140
Project within the Department of Aging and Disability Services and 141
authorized pursuant to 29 USC 3001, as amended from time to time, 142 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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appointed by the Connecticut Tech Act Project Advisory Council; (13) 143
the executive director of the Office of Health Strategy, or the executive 144
director's designee; (14) the chairperson of the Public Utilities 145
Regulatory Authority, or the chairperson's designee; (15) a 146
representative of a telecommunication relay service program for deaf, 147
hard of hearing or deafblind persons, appointed by the entity contracted 148
with the state to provide telecommunication relay services; and (16) 149
eight members appointed by the Governor as follows: (A) A person who 150
is deaf; (B) a person who is hard of hearing; (C) a person who is 151
deafblind; (D) an interpreting professional who serves deaf, hard of 152
hearing or deafblind persons; (E) a healthcare professional who works 153
with persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind; (F) a parent of 154
a student in a predominantly oral education program; (G) an educator 155
who works with children who are deaf, hard of hearing or deafblind; 156
and (H) a parent of a student at the American School for the Deaf. [The 157
members of the advisory board shall elect two chairpersons of the 158
advisory board from among the members of the advisory board.] On 159
and after October 1, 2024, the chairpersons of the advisory board shall 160
be the executive director of the Bureau of Services for Persons Who Are 161
Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Deafblind and a member of the advisory board 162
elected by the members of the advisory board. 163
(b) The advisory board shall meet at least quarterly or more often at 164
the call of the chairpersons or a majority of the members. A majority of 165
members in office but not less than [nine] thirteen voting members shall 166
constitute a quorum. 167
(c) Any appointed member who fails to attend three consecutive 168
meetings or who fails to attend fifty per cent of all meetings held during 169
any calendar year shall be deemed to have resigned. Vacancies 170
occurring otherwise than by expiration of term in the membership of the 171
advisory board shall be filled by the Governor or the appointing 172
authority, as the case may be. 173
Sec. 4. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2024) (a) As used in this section, 174
"state agency" has the same meaning as provided in section 1-79 of the 175 Substitute Bill No. 5241
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general statutes. 176
(b) Each state agency shall appoint an employee to serve as a point of 177
contact for concerns related to persons who are deaf, hard of hearing or 178
deafblind and require such employee to collaborate with the executive 179
director of the Bureau of Services for Persons Who Are Deaf, Hard of 180
Hearing or Deafblind, appointed pursuant to section 1 of this act, to 181
resolve such concerns. Each state agency shall identify the name and 182
contact information of such person in a prominent place on such 183
agency's Internet web site. 184
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2024 New section
Sec. 2 October 1, 2024 17a-836
Sec. 3 October 1, 2024 17a-836a
Sec. 4 October 1, 2024 New section
Statement of Legislative Commissioners:
In Section 1(c)(1), "department" was changed to "Department of Aging
and Disability Services'" for clarity; in Section 1(c)(5), "Department of
Aging and Disability Services" was changed to "department" for
consistency; and in Section 1(c)(10), "regarding services" was changed to
"concerning services" for clarity.
HS Joint Favorable Subst.