- 82nd Session (2023)
Senate Bill No. 315–Senators Scheible, Spearman;
and D. Harris
CHAPTER..........
AN ACT relating to persons with disabilities; prescribing certain
rights for persons with disabilities who are receiving certain
home and community-based services and persons who are
aged receiving such services; prescribing certain rights for
pupils with disabilities who are receiving certain services
through an individualized education program; and providing
other matters properly relating thereto.
Legislative Counsel’s Digest:
Existing federal law authorizes states to implement certain home and
community-based services for persons who are elderly or disabled. (42 U.S.C. §
1396n) Section 1 of this bill prescribes certain rights for persons with an
intellectual disability, developmental disability or physical disability who are
receiving such services or who are aged and receiving such services. Section 2 of
this bill makes a conforming change to indicate the proper placement of section 1
in the Nevada Revised Statutes.
Existing law requires public schools to provide special programs and services
for pupils with disabilities. (NRS 388.419, 388.429) Section 3 of this bill prescribes
certain rights for pupils with disabilities who are enrolled in a public school or
receiving services from a provider of special education and receiving transition
services through an individualized education program. Section 4 of this bill makes
a conforming change to indicate the proper placement of section 3 in the Nevada
Revised Statutes.
EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Chapter 422 of NRS is hereby amended by adding
thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. This section may be cited as the Bill of Rights for Persons
with Intellectual, Developmental or Physical Disabilities or who
are Aged.
2. Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, each
person with an intellectual disability, developmental disability or
physical disability who is receiving services pursuant to a home
and community-based services waiver granted pursuant to 42
U.S.C. § 1396n, and each person who is aged and is receiving
such services, has, to the extent applicable to the services received
by the person and appropriate for the person pursuant to the home
and community-based services waiver, the right to:
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(a) Participate in decisions that affect the life of the person,
including, without limitation, decisions relating to:
(1) The finances and personal property of the person;
(2) The location where the person resides; and
(3) The development and implementation of any plan for
delivering services and the frequency with which services are
delivered pursuant to the home and community-based services
waiver.
(b) Be treated with respect and dignity.
(c) An appropriate, safe and sanitary living environment that
complies with all local, state and federal standards and recognizes
the needs of the person for privacy and independence.
(d) Food that is adequate to meet the nutritional needs of the
person.
(e) Practice the religion of his or her choice or abstain from
the practice of any religion.
(f) Receive timely, effective and appropriate health care.
(g) Receive ancillary services, to the extent necessary for the
person.
(h) Maintain privacy and confidentiality in personal matters.
(i) Communicate freely with persons of his or her choice and
in any reasonable manner he or she chooses.
(j) Own and use personal property.
(k) Have social interactions with persons of any sex or gender
identity or expression.
(l) Pursue vocational opportunities to promote and enhance
the economic independence of the person.
(m) Be treated as an equal citizen under the law.
(n) Be free from emotional, psychological, physical and
financial abuse.
(o) Participate in appropriate programs of education, training,
social development, habilitation and reasonable recreation,
including, without limitation, a class at or other program
administered by a university, college, community college or trade
school.
(p) Select a parent, family member, advocate, employee of this
State or other person to act on his or her behalf, including,
without limitation, by entering into a supported decision-making
agreement pursuant to NRS 162C.200.
(q) Manage his or her own personal finances.
(r) Have his or her personal and medical records kept
confidential to the extent provided by state and federal law.
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(s) Voice grievances and suggest changes in policies, services
and providers of services without restraint, interference, coercion,
discrimination or reprisal.
(t) Be free from unnecessary chemical, physical or mechanical
restraints.
(u) Participate in the political process.
(v) Refuse to participate in any medical, psychological or other
research or experiment.
3. The rights set forth in subsection 2 do not abrogate any
remedies provided by law.
4. As used in this section:
(a) “Developmental disability” has the meaning ascribed to it
in NRS 435.007.
(b) “Intellectual disability” has the meaning ascribed to it in
NRS 435.007.
Sec. 2. NRS 232.320 is hereby amended to read as follows:
232.320 1. The Director:
(a) Shall appoint, with the consent of the Governor,
administrators of the divisions of the Department, who are
respectively designated as follows:
(1) The Administrator of the Aging and Disability Services
Division;
(2) The Administrator of the Division of Welfare and
Supportive Services;
(3) The Administrator of the Division of Child and Family
Services;
(4) The Administrator of the Division of Health Care
Financing and Policy; and
(5) The Administrator of the Division of Public and
Behavioral Health.
(b) Shall administer, through the divisions of the Department,
the provisions of chapters 63, 424, 425, 427A, 432A to 442,
inclusive, 446 to 450, inclusive, 458A and 656A of NRS, NRS
127.220 to 127.310, inclusive, 422.001 to 422.410, inclusive, and
section 1 of this act, 422.580, 432.010 to 432.133, inclusive,
432B.6201 to 432B.626, inclusive, 444.002 to 444.430, inclusive,
and 445A.010 to 445A.055, inclusive, and all other provisions of
law relating to the functions of the divisions of the Department, but
is not responsible for the clinical activities of the Division of Public
and Behavioral Health or the professional line activities of the other
divisions.
(c) Shall administer any state program for persons with
developmental disabilities established pursuant to the
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Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of
2000, 42 U.S.C. §§ 15001 et seq.
(d) Shall, after considering advice from agencies of local
governments and nonprofit organizations which provide social
services, adopt a master plan for the provision of human services in
this State. The Director shall revise the plan biennially and deliver a
copy of the plan to the Governor and the Legislature at the
beginning of each regular session. The plan must:
(1) Identify and assess the plans and programs of the
Department for the provision of human services, and any
duplication of those services by federal, state and local agencies;
(2) Set forth priorities for the provision of those services;
(3) Provide for communication and the coordination of those
services among nonprofit organizations, agencies of local
government, the State and the Federal Government;
(4) Identify the sources of funding for services provided by
the Department and the allocation of that funding;
(5) Set forth sufficient information to assist the Department
in providing those services and in the planning and budgeting for the
future provision of those services; and
(6) Contain any other information necessary for the
Department to communicate effectively with the Federal
Government concerning demographic trends, formulas for the
distribution of federal money and any need for the modification of
programs administered by the Department.
(e) May, by regulation, require nonprofit organizations and state
and local governmental agencies to provide information regarding
the programs of those organizations and agencies, excluding
detailed information relating to their budgets and payrolls, which the
Director deems necessary for the performance of the duties imposed
upon him or her pursuant to this section.
(f) Has such other powers and duties as are provided by law.
2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director, or
the Director’s designee, is responsible for appointing and removing
subordinate officers and employees of the Department.
Sec. 3. Chapter 388 of NRS is hereby amended by adding
thereto a new section to read as follows:
1. This section may be cited as the Transition Bill of Rights
for Pupils with Disabilities.
2. Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, each
pupil with a disability who is enrolled in a public school or
receiving services from a provider of special education and is
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receiving transition services through an individualized education
program pursuant to 34 C.F.R. § 300.43 has the right to:
(a) Be provided notice of and invited to any meeting
concerning his or her individualized education program at which
transition services will be discussed.
(b) Attend all meetings concerning his or her individualized
education program and be able to represent his or her desire
concerning his or her:
(1) Training or education;
(2) Employment; and
(3) If appropriate, independent living.
(c) Be treated with respect and dignity by all teachers,
paraprofessionals and other educational staff.
(d) Assist in the development of realistic, specific and
measurable post-secondary goals in training, education,
employment and, if appropriate, independent living for the pupil.
(e) Receive coordinated secondary transition services and
related support services to help prepare the pupil to meet the
measurable postsecondary goals established pursuant to
paragraph (d). Such services must include, without limitation:
(1) An age-appropriate transition assessment;
(2) Instruction and related services;
(3) Community experiences;
(4) Assistance in developing objectives for employment and
other life after the pupil ceases to attend school; and
(5) If appropriate, services to aid in developing skills for
daily living and an evaluation of functional vocational skills.
(f) Communicate freely using methods of communication that
are accessible to the pupil, including, without limitation, the
preferred language of the pupil, concerning his or her strengths,
interests, preferences and vision of his or her future for
consideration when developing the transition plan.
(g) Have access to social interactions in school-based settings
that are common to pupils of a similar age with persons with
whom he or she chooses to interact. Such access must be provided
to the same extent as pupils not receiving transition services
through an individualized education program.
(h) Assist in developing annual goals and objectives
reasonably calculated to promote progress toward achieving the
measurable postsecondary goals developed pursuant to
paragraph (d).
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(i) Invite, or have assistance in inviting, appropriate outside
agencies to any meeting concerning his or her individualized
education program at which transition services will be discussed.
(j) Receive information necessary to identify, explore and
connect with outside agencies, as appropriate, including, without
limitation:
(1) The Bureau of Vocational Rehabilitation in the
Rehabilitation Division of the Department of Employment,
Training and Rehabilitation;
(2) The Aging and Disability Services Division of the
Department of Health and Human Services;
(3) The Council on Developmental Disabilities established
in this State pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 15025; and
(4) The Statewide Independent Living Council established
in this State pursuant to 29 U.S.C. § 796d.
(k) Receive information on appropriate programs of support,
including, without limitation, the Supplemental Security Income
Program, as defined in NRS 422A.075.
(l) Select a parent, family member, advocate, employee of this
State or other person to act on his or her behalf, including,
without limitation, as prescribed in NRS 388.459.
(m) As appropriate to his or her individualized education
program, receive education in financial literacy, including,
without limitation, information about the Nevada ABLE Savings
Program established pursuant to NRS 427A.889, to assist the pupil
in managing his or her financial affairs.
(n) Receive, as appropriate, the pre-employment transition
services required by 34 C.F.R. § 361.48.
(o) Voice concerns and disagreements with his or her
educational or transition services and suggest changes in policies,
services and providers of services without restraint, interference,
coercion, discrimination or reprisal.
(p) Assist in the development of a course of study that is
designed to provide the pupil with the ability to achieve his or her
measurable post-secondary goals established pursuant to
paragraph (d) and obtain a diploma.
(q) Receive information regarding potential consequences of
attaining a diploma accessible to pupils with disabilities.
(r) As appropriate to his or her individualized education
program, receive instruction in civil participation, including,
without limitation, participation in the political process.
(s) Be notified, not less than 1 year before the pupil reaches 18
years of age, that any right accorded to the parent of a pupil with a
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disability pursuant to Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act, 20 U.S.C. § 1411 et seq., and the regulations
adopted pursuant thereto, transfer to the pupil when he or she
reaches 18 years of age.
3. The rights of a pupil with a disability set forth in
subsection 2 do not abrogate any remedies provided by law.
Sec. 4. NRS 388.417 is hereby amended to read as follows:
388.417 As used in NRS 388.417 to 388.515, inclusive [:] ,
and section 3 of this act:
1. “Communication mode” means any system or method of
communication used by a person with a disability, including,
without limitation, a person who is deaf or whose hearing is
impaired, to facilitate communication which may include, without
limitation:
(a) American Sign Language;
(b) English-based manual or sign systems;
(c) Oral and aural communication;
(d) Spoken and written English, including speech reading or lip
reading; and
(e) Communication with assistive technology devices.
2. “Dyslexia” means a neurological learning disability
characterized by difficulties with accurate and fluent word
recognition and poor spelling and decoding abilities that typically
result from a deficit in the phonological component of language.
3. “Dyslexia intervention” means systematic, multisensory
intervention offered in an appropriate setting that is derived from
evidence-based research.
4. “Individualized education program” has the meaning
ascribed to it in 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(A).
5. “Individualized education program team” has the meaning
ascribed to it in 20 U.S.C. § 1414(d)(1)(B).
6. “Provider of special education” means a school within a
school district or charter school that provides education or services
to pupils with disabilities or any other entity that is responsible for
providing education or services to a pupil with a disability for a
school district or charter school.
7. “Pupil who receives early intervening services” means a
person enrolled in kindergarten or grades 1 to 12, inclusive, who is
not a pupil with a disability but who needs additional academic and
behavioral support to succeed in a regular school program.
8. “Pupil with a disability” means a “child with a disability,” as
that term is defined in 20 U.S.C. § 1401(3)(A), who is under 22
years of age.
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9. “Response to scientific, research-based intervention” means
a collaborative process which assesses a pupil’s response to
scientific, research-based intervention that is matched to the needs
of a pupil and that systematically monitors the level of performance
and rate of learning of the pupil over time for the purpose of making
data-based decisions concerning the need of the pupil for
increasingly intensified services.
10. “Specific learning disability” means a disorder in one or
more of the basic psychological processes involved in understanding
or using spoken or written language which is not primarily the result
of a visual, hearing or motor impairment, intellectual disability,
serious emotional disturbance, or an environmental, cultural or
economic disadvantage. Such a disorder may manifest itself in an
imperfect ability to listen, think, speak, read, write, spell or perform
mathematical calculations. The term includes, without limitation,
perceptual disabilities, brain injury, minimal brain dysfunction,
dyslexia and developmental aphasia.
Sec. 5. This act becomes effective on July 1, 2023.
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