Developmental services.

(1) Existing law vests the State Department of Developmental Services with jurisdiction over state hospitals, referred to as developmental centers, for the provision of care to persons with developmental disabilities. Existing law, the Lanterman Developmental Disabilities Services Act, requires that treatment, services, and supports be provided in natural community settings to the maximum extent possible, and authorizes the department to contract with regional centers to provide services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities. This bill would require the California Health and Human Services Agency to submit to the Legislature a master plan for the future of developmental centers by November 15, 2013. The bill would also require the agency to submit, by January 10, 2014, a report to the Legislature regarding, among other things, the ability of community resources to meet the specialized needs of residents now living in developmental centers. (2) Under existing law, every developmentally disabled person who is admitted or committed to a state hospital, developmental center, community care facility, health facility, or other placement has a right to a hearing by writ of habeas corpus for his or her release after a request for release is made to any employee of the center or facility. Existing law requires that at the time the petition for the writ of habeas corpus is filed with the court, the clerk of the court transmit a copy of the petition, together with notification as to the time and place of an evidentiary hearing in the matter, to the parent or conservator of the person seeking release or for whom release is sought and to the director of the appropriate regional center. This bill would require the clerk of the court to provide the above-described notice and petition to the clients' rights advocate of the appropriate regional center, and would authorize that advocate to attend these hearings to assist in protecting the individual's rights. By imposing this additional duty on court clerks, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. (3) Under existing law, the services and supports to be provided to a regional center consumer are contained in an individual program plan, developed in accordance with prescribed requirements. This bill would authorize a regional center to pay any applicable copayment or coinsurance for a service and support required by a consumer's individual program plan if the service is paid for by the health care service plan or health insurance policy of the consumer or his or her parent, guardian, or caregiver and specified conditions are met. The bill would prohibit a regional center from paying health care service plan or health insurance policy deductibles. (4) Existing law requires the State Department of Developmental Services and the regional centers to annually collaborate to compile data relating to purchase of service authorization, utilization, and expenditure by each regional center, as specified. Under existing law, the department and each regional center is required to post this data on their respective Internet Web sites by December 31 of each year, and requires each regional center to hold a public meeting with stakeholders regarding the data within 3 months of its compilation. This bill would require each regional center to inform the department regarding the scheduling of those public meetings, and to post a notice of a meeting on its Internet Web site 30 days prior to the meeting. The bill would also require the department to post a notice of the meeting on its Internet Web site. The bill would further require the department and the regional centers to annually collaborate to determine the most appropriate methods to collect and compile data related to the payment of copayments and coinsurance by each regional center. (5) Existing law requires the State Department of Developmental Services to establish policies and procedures for the development of an annual community placement plan by regional centers. Existing law also requires the department to establish a statewide specialized resource service to reduce reliance on out-of-state placements and developmental centers and mental health facilities for which federal funding is not available. Existing law requires regional centers to complete a comprehensive assessment of specified consumers residing in developmental centers, and requires that this assessment be provided to the individual program planning team in order to assist the planning team in determining the least restrictive environment for the consumer. This bill would require the regional center to also provide, to the extent appropriate, relevant information from the statewide specialized resource service to the individual program planning team. The bill would also require that the clients' rights advocate for the regional center be notified of each individual program plan meeting that includes discussion of the results of the assessment, and would authorize the advocate to participate in the meeting unless the consumer objects on his or her own behalf. (6) Existing law prohibits a regional center from purchasing new residential services from institutions for mental disease for which federal Medicaid funding is not available, except in emergencies, as specified. Existing law limits these emergency placements to 180 days. This bill would additionally prohibit the placement of a consumer in an institution for mental disease regardless of the availability of federal funding, subject to specified exceptions. The bill would require that the clients' rights advocate for the regional center be notified of each admission to an institution for mental disease, as specified. The bill would authorize, until July 1, 2014, the placement of consumers who are under 21 years of age for a period that exceeds 180 days if specified conditions are satisfied. (7) Existing law, until June 30, 2013, establishes a family program fee, as specified, for families with an adjusted gross family income, as defined, at or above 400% of the federal poverty level and who have a child meeting prescribed requirements, including receiving specified services from a regional center. This bill would extend the operation of these provisions indefinitely. (8) Existing law prohibits the commitment of a person with a developmental disability to the department unless the person is a danger to self or others and is being committed due to an acute crisis or because he or she is mentally incompetent to stand trial, or the person currently is a resident of a state developmental center or state-operated community facility pursuant to an order of commitment made prior to July 1, 2012, as specified. This bill would instead permit a person with a developmental disability to be committed to the department for residential placement other than in a state developmental center or state-operated community facility, as prescribed, if the person is found to be a danger to self or others, as specified. (9) Existing law provides for the closure of the Lanterman Developmental Center, including authorization for the State Department of Developmental Services to contract with any entity for the use of the department's employees to provide services in furtherance of the orderly closure of Lanterman Developmental Center, and specifies that the services of these employees may be used for up to 2 years following the transfer of the last resident of the Lanterman Developmental Center, as specified. This bill would require the department to complete closure of the Lanterman Developmental Center no later than December 31, 2014. The bill would also delete that 2-year limitation on the use of employees of the State Department of Developmental Services. (10) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions. (11) The Budget Act of 2010 appropriates $300,370,000 for the support of the State Department of Developmental Services. This bill would extend the period to liquidate encumbrances of that appropriation to June 30, 2014, thereby making an appropriation. (12) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as a bill providing for appropriations related to the Budget Bill.