Public Law, Chapter 539, Part JJJJ, 123rd Legislature, Second Regular Session

Chapter 539 H.P. 1651 - L.D. 2289

PART JJJJ

Sec. JJJJ-1. 20-A MRSA §7801, first ¶, as amended by PL 1989, c. 899, §2, is further amended to read:

It is the purpose of this chapter to plan, coordinate and implement service planning and coordination for youth with handicaps, 14 years of age or older and under 26 years of age, who are in transition from school to the community. Local projects have been established to provide more effective and efficient statewide delivery of services to handicapped youths in transition from school to the community It is also the purpose of this chapter to provide for an efficient and streamlined system of services across state agencies to include local and private entities that effectively deliver a combination of services that meet the needs of youth with handicaps by:

Sec. JJJJ-2. 20-A MRSA §7801, sub-§1, as corrected by RR 2003, c. 2, §37, is amended to read:

1. Coordination. Coordinating existing programs and services presently provided for these youths by the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Education, the Department of Labor, the Department of Corrections and other public and private agencies;

Sec. JJJJ-3. 20-A MRSA §7802, sub-§3, ¶B, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 899, §3, is amended to read:

B. Referral to appropriate community services and information regarding their location;

Sec. JJJJ-4. 20-A MRSA §7802, sub-§8, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 899, §4, is repealed.

Sec. JJJJ-5. 20-A MRSA §7802, sub-§9, as enacted by PL 1989, c. 899, §4, is repealed.

Sec. JJJJ-6. 20-A MRSA §7803, as corrected by RR 2003, c. 2, §39, is amended to read:

§ 7803. Interdepartmental Committee on Transition

An Interdepartmental Committee on Transition is established pursuant to Title 5, chapter 379, representing the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Labor , and the Department of Corrections , and at least 2 of the local coordination sites and the public, must be appointed by the commissioners to establish guidelines, including continuation applications, to monitor grants and to evaluate the performance of area coordination programs developed through the grants clients of services and one member of a school district that is a significant user of transition services. The committee members representing state departments must consist of the commissioners of these departments or their designees. The Commissioner of Education shall serve as the initial chair of the committee and shall appoint members representing clients and the public. The committee may adopt procedures to provide for alternating chairs of the committee.

The members of this committee shall be compensated representing clients and the school district representative are entitled to compensation in accordance with Title 5, chapter 379.

The committee shall identify, plan, coordinate and provide for the delivery of services as defined in section 7802, subsection 3. The committee shall work closely with contact persons at each high school, including guidance counselors, to provide for the services and assistance needed for eligible students in each school.

In developing a coordinated and efficient delivery system of services to youth, the committee shall give significant consideration to interdepartmental consolidation of administration and services that avoids duplication of services and effort.

The committee shall meet as often as necessary to achieve the purpose of this chapter and to develop a streamlined and efficient delivery system. The committee shall report to the joint standing committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over education matters by January 15th of each year. By January 15, 2009, the committee shall present a report that describes the streamlined delivery system and how it will eliminate duplication of effort and costs.

The report must provide basic data regarding school and client requests for services, number and costs of services provided, savings incurred as a result of the streamlined system and the results of the services to include the number of clients who have successfully transitioned to employment or other educational institutions. The report may contain any other data and information determined significant by the committee.

Sec. JJJJ-7. 20-A MRSA §7803-A, as corrected by RR 2003, c. 2, §40, is amended to read:

§ 7803-A. Transition services

Each school administrative unit shall provide an annual statement of the transition services needed by a handicapped youth in transition enrolled in that unit. The statement of transition services must be provided to all handicapped youth in transition who are 16 years of age or older and enrolled in school and may be provided to younger students when the school administrative unit finds it necessary. When appropriate, a cooperative agreement among the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Corrections and the Department of Labor must be included as part of the annual statement describing the responsibilities of and coordination required by those agencies. If a cooperating agency fails to provide agreed-upon services, the school administrative unit is responsible for reconvening may notify the chair of the committee who may reconvene the cooperating agencies for the purposes of developing alternative strategies to meet the transition objectives. This section does not require any school administrative unit to provide noneducational services to students.

Sec. JJJJ-8. 20-A MRSA §7804, as corrected by RR 2003, c. 2, §41, is amended to read:

§ 7804. Authorization for expenditure of funds

1-A. Grants. The committee, as established in section 7803, shall may provide funds for the maintenance of existing sites and shall provide funds for new or expanded sites, as funds are available. These funds must to support the effective delivery of services to handicapped youth in transition by coordinating existing programs, when possible, and establishing a mechanism for ongoing coordination of programs for handicapped youths in transition at a local or regional level, including local educational agencies, community mental health centers, regional mental retardation services, regional rehabilitation programs and other public and private agencies as appropriate. Each project must establish a method to identify unserved and underserved handicapped youths in transition and develop services for these youths.

2. Rules. The committee shall promulgate by adopt rules policy and procedures that assure participation at the local level by agencies currently serving handicapped youths in transition from school to community. They shall , among other provisions, require that existing resources for providing services to handicapped youths in transition be exhausted prior to using grants funds to provide services.

3. Fiscal agent. The agency, institution or school administrative unit receiving a grant under this chapter may function only in the role of fiscal agent, as described in rules promulgated by the department for regulating the local administration of these programs.

4. Area coordinating committee. An The committee may provide for area coordinating committee, organized prior to application for receipt of a grant, is responsible for governance of each local site. Membership must include representatives of transitional services programs in the region to be served by the grant; representatives of the appropriate regional offices of the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Corrections and the Department of Labor; representatives of participating school administrative units; representatives of adult service agencies, including rehabilitation facilities; parents of children with handicapping conditions; employers; and other community members as appropriate. Terms of membership and methods of appointment or election must be determined by area coordinating committee bylaws, subject to approval of the committee. Responsibilities of area coordinating committees must be detailed in the rules promulgated by the committee committees to advise the committee with respect to the needs and effectiveness of the service delivery system and other issues authorized by the committee for consideration.

5. Evaluation. Continuous evaluation of the project sites shall be is required and shall be is an integral part of each project. The committee shall cause to be developed conduct an evaluation design designed to determine the success of the projects and shall ensure its implementation.

6. Report. The committee shall present to the Legislature an annual report on its activities. This report must provide an evaluation summary of the projects and recommendations, including legislation, necessary to support and maintain a statewide transitional services planning and delivery system.

Sec. JJJJ-9. 20-A MRSA §7805, as amended by PL 1991, c. 716, §1 and PL 2003, c. 545, §2, is repealed.

Public Laws

123rd Legislature

Second Regular Session

Chapter 539

H.P. 1651 - L.D. 2289