New Jersey-2024-A601-Introduced

An Act establishing the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled and supplementing Title 52 of the Revised Statutes and Title 2A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; established.

a. There is hereby established in the Office of the Public Defender the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled to be under the supervision of the Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled.

b. The division is hereby designated as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmentally disabilities. The division shall have all of the powers necessary to carry out its responsibilities as required to qualify for federal funding as the State protection and advocacy agency. Until such designation is effectuated, the division may take such action as it deems appropriate for the purpose of coordinating with the private entity designated as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities on the date of enactment of this act.

2. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; objective; duties.

a. The Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled shall promote, advocate, and ensure the adequacy of the care received, and the quality of life experienced, by persons with developmental disabilities, including patients, residents, and clients within the developmental disabilities facilities and programs operated, funded, or licensed by the State. In determining what elements are essential to ensure adequate care and quality of life, the division shall consider the unique medical, social, and economic needs and problems of persons with developmental disabilities as patients, residents, and clients of facilities and as citizens and community members.

b. The director shall establish and implement procedures to elicit, receive, process, respond, and resolve complaints from patients, their families, other interested citizens, public officials, and government agencies concerning conditions in the State's developmental disabilities facilities.

3. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; services.

The Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled may receive and investigate complaints and provide such legal representation and other advocacy services on an individual or class basis as the Public Defender deems appropriate to protect and advocate the rights of developmentally disabled persons. The division may also, within the limits of available funding, provide services to other handicapped persons or classes of persons found by the Public Defender to have needs similar to developmentally disabled people.

4. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; eligibility for services.

Eligibility for services for the developmentally disabled shall be determined on the basis of the need of the client and in a manner consistent with the conditions of any grant obtained by the Public Defender to assist in implementing P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

5. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; staff.

The Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled may employ, with the approval of the Public Defender, such assistants on a full time basis as are necessary to protect the rights of developmentally disabled persons. These assistants shall have knowledge of the needs of developmentally disabled persons. When exceptional circumstances arise, the director may retain, with the approval of the Public Defender, on a temporary basis such other expert assistants as are necessary pursuant to a reasonable fee schedule established in advance by the Public Defender.

Cases shall be assigned to staff attorneys, or attorneys hired by case, on a basis calculated to provide competent representation in light of the nature of the case, the services to be performed, the experience of the particular attorney and other relevant factors.

6. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; status of staff.

Independent contractors or other individuals, agencies, or entities not established in or employed by the Office of the Public Defender retained or designated to provide protection and advocacy services to persons with a developmental disability as the term is defined in section 3 of the "Developmentally Disabled Rights Act," P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3), are not public entities or public employees for purposes of the "New Jersey Tort Claims Act," N.J.S.59:1-1 et seq.

7. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; definition.

For purposes of this act, a developmentally disabled person is a person with a developmental disability as that term is defined in section 3 of the "Developmentally Disabled Rights Act," P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3).

8. Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled; transfer of functions.

All functions, powers, and duties which had been vested in a private entity pursuant to designation by the Governor as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities are hereby transferred to and assumed by the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled in the Office of the Public Defender, except that the private entity shall continue to exercise the functions, powers and duties as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities until the designation of the division as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities is effectuated.

Whenever, in any law, rule, regulation, order, reorganization plan, contract, document, judicial or administrative proceeding, or otherwise, reference is made to the private entity designated by the Governor as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities concerning functions, powers, and duties which are now vested in the private entity, the same shall mean and refer to the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled in the Office of the Public Defender, except that with regard to the private entity the reference shall be ineffective when the designation of the division as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities is effectuated.

9. The Public Defender shall designate at least one deputy public defender or assistant public defender in every office with a knowledge of the needs of developmental disabled persons to represent those clients with developmental disabilities.

A developmentally disabled person is a person with a developmental disability as that term is defined in section 3 of the "Developmentally Disabled Rights Act," P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3).

10. This act shall take effect on the 180^th day following enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill would provide legal representation and other advocacy services to protect and advocate for the rights of developmentally disabled persons by establishing the Division of Advocacy for Developmentally Disabled within the Office of the Public Defender. This bill also provides that the Public Defender would designate at least one public defender in every office with knowledge of the needs of developmentally disabled persons to represent those clients with developmental disabilities in criminal cases.

This bill would establish the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled in the Office of the Public Defender to be under the supervision of the Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled.

The division would be designated as the State's protection and advocacy agency for persons with developmental disabilities. The division would have all of the powers necessary to carry out its responsibilities as required to qualify for federal funding as the State protection and advocacy agency.

The Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled would promote, advocate, and ensure the adequacy of the care received by persons with developmental disabilities, including persons within facilities and programs operated, funded, or licensed by the State. The division would be authorized to receive and investigate complaints and provide legal representation and other advocacy services on an individual or class basis.

Eligibility for services for the developmentally disabled would be determined on the basis of the need of the client and in a manner consistent with the conditions of any grant obtained by the Public Defender to assist in implementing this bill.

The Director of the Division of Advocacy for the Developmentally Disabled may employ, with the approval of the Public Defender, such assistants on a full time basis as are necessary to protect the rights of developmentally disabled persons. These assistants would have knowledge of the needs of developmental disabled persons. When exceptional circumstances arise, the director may retain, with the approval of the Public Defender, on a temporary basis such other expert assistants as are necessary pursuant to a reasonable fee schedule established in advance by the Public Defender.

Cases would be assigned to staff attorneys, or attorneys hired by case, on a basis calculated to provide competent representation in light of the nature of the case, the services to be performed, the experience of the particular attorney and other relevant factors.

The bill also supplements Title 2A and provides that the Public Defender would designate at least one deputy public defender or assistant public defender in every office with knowledge of the needs of developmentally disabled persons to represent those clients with developmental disabilities in criminal cases.

This bill defines a developmentally disabled person by cross-referencing to the definition in section 3 of the "Developmentally Disabled Rights Act," P.L.1977, c.82 (C.30:6D-3). Pursuant to that section, a developmental disability means a severe, chronic disability of a person which: is attributable to either a mental or physical impairment, or a combination of mental or physical

impairments; manifests before age 22; is likely to continue indefinitely; results in substantial functional limitations in at least three areas of major life activity, such as self-care and receptive and expressive language; and reflects the need for a combination and sequence of special inter-disciplinary or generic care, treatment or other services which are lifelong or extended duration and are individually planned and coordinated.