1 of 1
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 778 FILED ON: 1/13/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 200
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_________________
PRESENTED BY:
Brian M. Ashe
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act establishing the deaf children's bill of rights.
_______________
PETITION OF:
NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Brian M. Ashe2nd Hampden1/13/2025 1 of 6
HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 778 FILED ON: 1/13/2025
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 200
By Representative Ashe of Longmeadow, a petition (accompanied by bill, House, No. 200) of
Brian M. Ashe relative to the rights of deaf children. Children, Families and Persons with
Disabilities.
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 126 OF 2023-2024.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
_______________
An Act establishing the deaf children's bill of rights.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 Chapter 71 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after section 1D the
2following section:-
3 Section 1D. (a) As used in this section, the following words shall, unless the context
4clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:
5 “Deaf”, any individual that is Deaf, Hard of Hearing, DeafBlind or DeafDisabled.
6 “DeafDisabled”, any individual who is Deaf with special needs.
7 “Qualified Professionals”, any professional working with a Deaf child who has
8demonstrated knowledge of language acquisition in Deaf children, fluency in American Sign
9Language as measured by the American Sign Language Proficiency Interview and has 2 of 6
10credentials in their specialized profession. American Sign Language interpreters must have a K-
1112 Certification through the Educational Interpreters Performance Assessment or an equivalent
12certification as determined between the commission for the deaf and hard of hearing and the
13department of elementary and secondary education.
14 “Language Access”, a process of providing tools to a Deaf child to acquire a language
15and allows a Deaf child to access a free and appropriate education and participate in everyday
16activities.
17 “Language Acquisition”, a process by which a Deaf child acquires the capacity to
18perceive and comprehend language, as well as to produce and use words and sentences to
19communicate.
20 “Language modality”, using language in one or other modes, including, signed, spoken or
21written language. Language modality helps to facilitate language development, communication,
22and learning.
23 (b) The commonwealth recognizes that deaf children, Hard of Hearing, DeafBlind or
24DeafDisabled have the same potential and rights as all children to receive a free and appropriate
25public education and to become independent and self-actualized citizens. The commonwealth
26acknowledges the need for early screening and access to language services and instruction.
27 (c) There shall be a policy known as the Deaf Children’s Bill of Rights that shall contain,
28at a minimum, the following:
29 (1) Deaf children have the right to appropriate screening and assessments of hearing and
30vision capabilities by qualified professionals proficient in American Sign Language, English and 3 of 6
31educational needs of deaf children and to acquire American Sign Language and English at the
32earliest possible age or at time of identification and assessment throughout the educational
33process at regular intervals;
34 (2) Deaf children shall receive individualized and appropriate early language access
35services by qualified providers that shall include support for the acquisition of language as early
36as possible and assessments at regular intervals every 3 months prior to kindergarten and every 3
37years until the child reaches age 22. Assessments shall utilize age-appropriate benchmarks and
38identify current language levels and educational planning to support progress. Failure to show
39progress shall be subject to state agency intervention to ensure measures are taken to remediate
40the issue;
41 (3) all educational entities from pre-kindergarten through grade 12 shall ensure that
42parents or guardians of deaf children are entitled to full and informed participation in the
43development of their child’s educational plans and the determination of educational placement
44based on their child’s educational and language needs and the capacity of the program to meet
45those needs. Furthermore, the child’s parents or guardian may request enrollment in a school for
46deaf students;
47 (4) Deaf children shall be entitled to placement in a school that is best suited to each
48child's individual needs including, but not limited to, language levels, social, emotional and
49cultural needs, with consideration for the child's age, degree of hearing loss, academic level,
50language needs, style of learning, motivational level and amount of family support. A language
51access plan shall be required as a part of the student’s Individualized family service plan,
52Individualized education program, or individual accommodation plan; 4 of 6
53 (5) all educational entities from pre-kindergarten through grade 12 shall provide
54placement options for deaf children across a full spectrum of educational programs and shall
55inform parents about all school choices including the local school for the deaf;
56 (6) all educational entities from pre-kindergarten through grade 12 shall provide enrolled
57deaf children access to full support services by qualified professionals in their educational
58settings. The department of elementary and secondary education shall work with educational
59entities to ensure technical assistance is available to support local education agencies and other
60programs in meeting the needs of Deaf students;
61 (7) Deaf children have the right to direct instruction. If that is not possible, all educational
62entities from pre-kindergarten through grade 12 shall provide enrolled deaf children access to
63qualified teachers, interpreters and resource personnel who are fluent in both American Sign
64Language and English along with the child’s home language if different. Qualified providers
65should include but not be limited to teachers of Deaf students, paraprofessionals, language
66translators and Sign Language Interpreters, school psychologists, speech and language
67pathologists, American Sign Language Specialists and counselors;
68 (8) Deaf children who are under the age of 7 and who do not receive direct instruction
69shall have a certified or state approved deaf interpreter in the classroom to enhance language
70acquisition;
71 (9) Deaf children shall have full access to all programs and information in their
72educational placements, including but not limited to extracurricular activities, recess, lunch,
73media showings and public announcements; 5 of 6
74 (10) Deaf children shall have opportunities to meet and associate with adult role models
75who are Deaf and learn about identity, self-advocacy and leadership skills;
76 (11) Deaf children shall have opportunities to meet and associate with Deaf peers that are
77around the same age or have similar academic abilities during school hours and school-
78sponsored activities, including those occurring outside regular school hours;
79 (12) professionals in related fields, including, but not limited to medicine and education,
80working with Deaf children shall be responsible for providing full information to the children’s
81families on medical, ethical, cultural and linguistic issues including the benefits, risks and
82limitations of technology, cochlear implant or bone anchored hearing aid implant surgery,
83hearing aids and language acquisition and deprivation;
84 (13) Deaf children are entitled to the involvement and participation of Deaf adults, if
85requested, in any meeting with parents and the school district in determining the extent, content
86and purpose of all programs that affect their education;
87 (14) Deaf children are entitled to have direct access to mental health services and
88supporting services from qualified providers who are culturally and linguistically competent and
89who are fluent in American Sign Language;
90 (15) the commission for the deaf and hard of hearing shall track each Deaf child from
91birth or identification until age 22. Each Deaf child shall have an individualized family service
92plan, individualized education program or 504 plan based on that child’s unique language and
93learning needs; 6 of 6
94 (16) If a local education agency, school entity or educational institution or early
95Intervention program is found to be in violation of this section, where the child is shown to be
96language deprived or lacking in development, such education provider may be subject to an
97intervention by the department of elementary and secondary education. Each state agency shall
98aggregate and publish results of any data from qualified providers related to the enforcement of
99this section on an annual basis.