H-1326

AN ACT Relating to access to higher education for students with disabilities; adding new sections to chapter 28B.80 RCW; creating new sections; and making appropriations.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The higher education coordinating board shall establish an advisory committee on access to higher education for students with disabilities. The advisory committee shall include, but is not limited to, representation from the following: The division of vocational rehabilitation, the department of services for the blind, the office of the superintendent of public instruction, the state board for community college education, the council of presidents, the state board for vocational education or its successor, the division of developmental disabilities, disabled student coordinators of community colleges and four-year institutions of higher education, and students with disabilities.

As needed and appropriate for specific time-limited activities, the board may expand the membership of the advisory committee to include participation and representation of other organizations or interested individuals. Such organizations may include, but are not limited to: The Washington state association of the deaf, the veterans administration, the Washington library for the blind and physically handicapped, the department of labor and industries, the department of corrections, the human rights commission, the Easter Seal Society, the governor's committee on disability issues and employment, the Washington financial aid officers' association, institutions of higher education, the developmental disabilities planning council, and the Washington state library.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. By December 15, 1994, with the assistance of the advisory committee, the higher education coordinating board shall:

(1) Inventory resources available to address the accommodation needs of students with disabilities, and identify the purposes and limitations of those resources and areas where resources are needed but lacking;

(2) Assist in the development of interagency agreements to ensure consistent, effective, and equitable utilization of those resources;

(3) Foster clearer and more consistent understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the various entities sharing responsibility for promoting equality of opportunity for persons with disabilities in higher education, and promote effective coordination of efforts to address the accommodation needs of students with disabilities;

(4) Coordinate the development of an information system that supports the efforts of students, institutions, and agencies to locate and make effective use of available resources. The system may include a data base, a tracking system, technical assistance, loan agreements, and other mechanisms.

(5) Review application and admission procedures used within institutions of higher education, to assure that these procedures are open and accessible to people of disability and that they treat people of disability fairly and equitably;

(6) Review policies, processes, and practices related to alternative admissions, to assure that people of disability receive consideration and support in the efforts of institutions to promote diversity within their student bodies;

(7) Coordinate the development of standardized definitions and a state-wide information gathering and reporting mechanism that will provide policymakers with information on the numbers, characteristics, accommodation needs, anticipated costs of accommodations, and status of students with disabilities seeking admission or accommodation within institutions of higher education, and the staffing levels, inventory of equipment, budgets, policies, and outcomes of those institutions;

(8) Coordinate the development of consistent guidelines and standards for the implementation of core services for students with disabilities to ensure uniformity in the range and level of accommodation provided;

(9) Contingent upon funding, administer and coordinate the targeted projects established in section 5 of this act designed to complement and enhance the efforts of institutions and other existing resources to accommodate students with disabilities in the state's higher education system;

(10) Coordinate, with the state board for community college education, professional development training as specified in section 4 of this act; and

(11) Coordinate the development of standards and practices regarding the documentation of disabilities, with particular emphasis on hidden disabilities.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. With the assistance of the advisory committee, the board shall undertake the following responsibilities:

(1) Oversee the refinement of interagency agreements in order to accomplish the following: Ensure consistent, effective, and equitable utilization of those resources, foster clearer and more consistent understanding of the roles and responsibilities of the various entities, and promote effective coordination of efforts to address the accommodation needs of students with disabilities;

(2) Monitor, analyze, and report on the product of the state‑wide information gathering and reporting mechanism on the numbers, characteristics, accommodation needs, anticipated costs of accommodations, and status of students with disabilities seeking admission or accommodation within institutions of higher education, and the staffing levels, inventory of equipment, budgets, policies, and outcomes of those institutions;

(3) Maintain and manage a data base and other mechanisms that will support the efforts of students, institutions, and agencies to locate and make effective use of available resources. The mechanisms may include, but are not limited to, tracking systems, technical assistance, and loan agreements;

(4) Identify emerging issues related to opportunities for people with disabilities to benefit from postsecondary education within this state, and develop policies, plans, and recommendations for addressing those issues;

(5) Provide periodic reports of its activities, recommendations, and findings to the governor and the legislature. The report shall include a review of institutional efforts to implement core services; and

(6) Review existing institutional and agency procedures for resolving disputed reasonable accommodation requests, collect data on the number of students with disputes, and recommend refinements to expedite dispute resolution procedures.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The higher education coordinating board and the state board for community college education shall coordinate professional development training for disabled student service coordinators. The training shall include, but is not limited to: Applicable state and federal laws, the broad range of disabling conditions and their potential significance related to accommodation in a higher education setting, methods of providing accommodation, and interfacing with service agencies and available resources. The higher education coordinating board and the state board for community college education shall also coordinate training for faculty, staff, and administrators of institutions of higher education. The training shall include, but is not limited to: The rights of students with disabilities, people of disability as a valuable part of human diversity, and the role of the disabled student service coordinator. These programs may be coordinated through the affirmative action office at each institution.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 5. In consultation with the advisory committee created in section 1 of this act, and with the assistance of institutions of higher education, the higher education coordinating board shall administer a program that funds targeted projects designed to assist students with disabilities to access and succeed in higher education. The targeted projects may include, but are not limited to:

(1) A small-scale pilot program to create and strengthen on-campus taping services, and to convert texts to Braille, audio tape, and electronic formats. This pilot program shall be designed to augment and support existing institution-based efforts by providing them with a cost-effective alternative for conversion of large documents, when circumstances allow sufficient lead time;

(2) A fund for extraordinary, unanticipated accommodation expenses, such as sign language interpreters or adaptive aides and equipment; and

(3) Seed grants to encourage new programs or particular programs that would foster cooperation, increase the effectiveness of existing resources, and address unmet needs on a regional or state-wide basis.

The advisory committee created in section 1 of this act shall assist the board with the design, implementation, and monitoring of the targeted projects. In addition, the advisory committee shall assist in the development and administration of program guidelines. The program shall not be used to supplant other funds that would have or could have been used to cover the costs of the needed accommodations.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 6. The sum of five hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the higher education coordinating board for the biennium ending June 30, 1993, to carry out the purposes of sections 2 and 3 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 7. If specific funding for the purposes of sections 2 and 3 of this act is not provided in this act or in the omnibus appropriations act by June 30, 1991, sections 2 and 3 of this act shall be null and void.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 8. The sum of one hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the higher education coordinating board for the biennium ending June 30, 1993, to carry out the purposes of section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 9. If specific funding for the purposes of section 4 of this act is not provided in this act or in the omnibus appropriations act by June 30, 1991, section 4 of this act shall be null and void.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 10. The sum of one million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the higher education coordinating board for the biennium ending June 30, 1993, to carry out the purposes of section 5 of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 11. If specific funding for the purposes of section 5 of this act is not provided in this act or in the omnibus appropriations act by June 30, 1991, section 5 of this act shall be null and void.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 12. Sections 1 through 5 of this act are each added to chapter 28B.80 RCW.