This week HB 1061 passed by unanimous vote out of the Senate and is on its way to the Governor's desk for signing. Sponsored by Delegate Alonzo Washington (District 22, Prince George's County), HB 1061 was amended from the original bill that would create a task force to a legislative mandate directing the State Department of Education, in consultation with disability advocacy groups, to update MSDE's statewide regulations so that local school systems design evacuation and emergency plans that provide accommodations and safeguards for students, staff, and visitors with disabilities. Effective July 1, 2017, the bill also requires that if a student with a disability is determined to need accommodations during an evacuation, the accommodations must be included in the student's IEP. Likewise, if a student with a 504 plan requires accommodation for evacuation in an emergency, the student's 504 team must address the student's needs. 

This week SB 943, sponsored by Senator William C. Smith, Jr. (District 20, Montgomery County), passed successfully out of the House and is on its way to the Governor's desk for signature into law. This bill requires MSDE to convene a workgroup, which includes disability advocates and childcare providers, to develop regulations for a dispute resolution procedure for resolving claims of discrimination based on a child's disability. SB 943 will help ensure that children who are turned away from childcare homes and centers are not denied a place just because of their disabilities. Draft procedures must be submitted to the General Assembly by October 1, 2017.

 

This week SB 710 passed successfully out of the House and is on its way to the Governor's desk for signature. Sponsored by Senator Joan Carter Conway (District 43, Baltimore City), the bill requires that a school give parents of a student with an IEP written notice and an opportunity to consent or not to consent when the IEP team proposes to enroll the child in an alternative education program that does not lead towards a high school diploma, identifies the child for the State's alternative assessment and curriculum or includes restraint and seclusion in the child's IEP to address the child's behavior. The bill also allows the IEP team to use an existing dispute resolution process to try and resolve the issue if the parent does not consent to the proposed action.

 

Decisions to expel and suspend our youngest students are disruptive to the developmental and educational growth of children, and are inconsistently and unfairly applied across the state. These counterproductive decisions disproportionally impact students with disabilities. SB 651 passed successfully out of the House and is on its way to the Governor's desk for signature. Sponsored by Senator William C. Smith Jr. (District 14, Montgomery County), this bill restricts out-of-school suspensions or expulsions for pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, first and second graders except for a gun offense or as a very last resort if there has been a threat of imminent bodily harm. The legislation requires that in-school supports be put in place for a student whose behavior warrants correction in order to improve the behavior and prevent a disruption to the student's education.

 

National data demonstrate that restraint and seclusion are used disproportionately with students with disabilities. This week SB 786 passed successfully out of the House and is on its way to the Governor's desk for signature. Sponsored by Senator Craig J. Zucker (District 14, Montgomery County), SB 786 was significantly amended to create a task force to review the existing MSDE regulations on use of restraint and seclusion and to determine under which circumstances and conditions seclusion may be used, if at all. The amended bill also requires MSDE to adopt regulations mandating that every public and private school must submit an annual report to MSDE disclosing the number of times that restraint or seclusion are used in a school, the kind of professional training that is offered to staff and data which will identify the disability, race, gender, age, and type of placement for any student subjected to restraint or seclusion.

 

Students with disabilities receive a disproportionately high rate of suspensions and expulsions in Maryland public schools.  HB 1287, sponsored by Delegate Alonzo Washington (District 22, Prince George's County), is in the Senate on second reader with a simple amendment to add a representative of the Maryland PTA to the Commission. The bill establishes the Commission on the School-to-Prison Pipeline and Restorative Practices to study current disciplinary practices in Maryland public schools and to examine national best practices in positive supports, alternative discipline methods, restorative practices and eliminating the school-to-prison pipeline. The Commission will be made up of educators and advocates, including a representative from The Arc Maryland, and staffed by the Center for Dispute Resolution at the University of Maryland School of Law.  The report with findings and recommendations is due to the Governor and the General Assembly by January 1, 2019.

 

 

 

Peyton's Bill has passed! The bill, named for Peyton who has been undergoing cancer treatments, adds new technological advances to allow students with certain medical conditions to participate in classrooms remotely if in-person attendance is not possible. Administrated through MSDE, grants will be provided to public schools to purchase remote technology such as a robot proxy. The robot could serve as a substitute at school for a student who is not physically able to attend. The robot would be operated by the student from home or a hospital, allowing for virtual school attendance and participation. Peyton's mother will present this exciting technology along with Robot PAVS at The Arc Maryland Convention on June 2.

While all students are susce ptible to long-term  absences from school because of sports injuries, surgery, or illness, students with specific developmental disabilities such as Down syndrome may need frequent surgical procedures or have condit ions that necessitate long term absences.  Sponsors are Senator Andrew A. Serafini (District 2, Washington County) and Delegate Eric G. Luedtke (District 14, Montgomery County).

 

Sponsored by Senator Thomas M. Middleton (District 28, Charles County) and Delegate Luke Clippinger (District 46, Baltimore City), the Maryland Healthy Working Families Act passed the legislature this week. The bill was amended to provide five sick days for employers with 15 or more employees, eligibility for employees who work at least 12 hours/week, and requires 106 minimum days on the payroll, a concession to employers who hire workers for seasonable jobs. The Governor has vowed to veto the bill. Both chambers passed the bill with veto-proof margins. The veto override vote would be one of the first items of business when the legislature convenes next January.

The Independent Living Tax will allow an individual to receive a state income tax credit equal to 50% of the renovation costs for renovations related to accessibility and universal visitability features to an existing home that improves access for individuals with disabilities. The bill has passed and is waiting for the Governor's signature to become law.

People born with disabilities, those that acquire disabilities, veterans/wounded warriors and seniors who age-in-place will benefit from the Independent Living Tax Credit so they have the freedom to choose where they live and/or remain in a family home. Sponsored by Senator Douglas J. J. Peters (District 21, Prince George's County) and Delegate Eric G. Luedtke (District 14, Montgomery County), structural modifications could include:

 

Increasing access to prekindergarten for Maryland's children is critical for their development and education. This is particularly true for young children with disabilities who need more access and opportunity to learn and play alongside their peers without disabilities. As Maryland studies the possibility of universal prekindergarten, children with disabilities must be explicitly considered. HB 516 as amended would add to the workgroup one representative from a statewide advocacy organization representing children with disabilities. The findings of the workgroup will be reported by September 1, 2017, to the Commission on Innovation and Excellence in Education. The bill is sponsored by Delegate Vanessa E. Atterbeary (District 13, Howard County).

 

This week SB 1 - which was significantly amended by the House Ways & Means Committee - passed out of the House and was returned to the Senate. The Senate did not concur with the amendments so a conference committee has been appointed to try resolve the dispute over the House amendments. The bill sponsored by Senator Joan Carter Conway (District 43, Baltimore City) as currently amended defines "specialized intervention services" and requires each local board of Education to annually report to MSDE on the number of students in grades K through 3 who are receiving these services. Additionally, the bill requires annual disclosure of what is budgeted for specialized intervention and that the information submitted to MSDE be posted for the public on the board's website.

 

The Arc Maryland testified in support of this legislation which would prohibit a manufacturer or wholesale distributor from engaging in price gouging in the sale of essential off-patent or generic drugs. If enacted, Maryland would be the first state in the nation to give its Attorney General the power to take pharmaceutical companies to court for price gouging. The Maryland House of Delegates approved the third reading of the bill with a 137 - 4 vote. The bill is on the Senate side with a Special Order requested by Senator Feldman. The legislation is sponsored by Senate President Mike Miller and Speaker of the House Mike Busch.

 

 

The Maryland Legislative Session ends Monday, April 10 at midnight. It's a race to the finish to complete bill passage of The Arc's priority bills.

 

Congress goes on recess April 10-21. Now is the time to contact your members of Congress to protect Medicaid and the Affordable Health Care Act for people with disabilities and their families! See the critical alert and update below.

Senate