No. SB 562
Filed under Healthcare.
Communication Rights of Individuals with Disabilities; Providing that individuals with a disability have the right to communicate in their preferred manner; prohibiting state agencies, schools, and health care providers from restricting or denying such individuals access to their preferred alternative communication method; specifying rights that individuals with disabilities have with respect to their communication needs; establishing the Communication Rights Advisory Board within the Agency for Persons with Disabilities for a specified purpose, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDPeople with disabilities gain a legal right to communicate however works for them, from sign language to speech-generating devices. State agencies, schools, and health care providers may not restrict or deny access to that preferred method.
That right isn't absolute: staff training only has to cover supporting the preferred method unless the individual or their legal guardian agrees to a different one. The law doesn't say how that agreement must be reached or documented.
Violating the law costs $500 per violation, on top of any other licensing or administrative penalty a facility already faces. The Agency for Persons with Disabilities must write rules, train staff, and set up a complaint process.
A new 15-member Communication Rights Advisory Board, mostly people with disabilities and their families, will advise the agency and report yearly to state leaders. The board itself expires in 2029 unless lawmakers renew it.
AIA state agency, a school, or a health care provider may not restrict or deny an individual with a disability access to whatever alternative communication method they prefer, whether that is sign language, a letterboard, typing, or a speech-generating device.
AIAnyone who violates the communication-rights protections in this section faces a civil penalty of $500 for each violation, on top of whatever other administrative action already applies to the agency, school, or provider involved.
AIIndividuals with disabilities gain a right to access needed speech-language therapy and communication support from licensed professionals without arbitrary restrictions, plus reasonable access to staff trained to support their specific communication needs.
AIThe duty to train staff to support someone's preferred communication method has a built-in exception: it does not apply if the individual, or his or her legal guardian, agrees to use a different method instead.
AIThe agency must adopt rules implementing this section, including a statement of rights and staff obligations, and must build training programs on communication accommodations for direct-support professionals, educators, and health care staff.
AIA new board is created inside the agency, with at least 7 of its 15 members required to be individuals with disabilities or their family members or guardians, appointed by the Governor and legislative leaders, to advise on and review compliance with this section.
AIUnlike the communication rights, agency duties, and penalty elsewhere in this section, the board's authorizing subsection is set to repeal itself automatically in 2029 unless the Legislature reviews and reenacts it first.