AN ACT Relating to individuals receiving both employment and community access services; adding a new section to chapter 71A.12 RCW; and providing an expiration date.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1.  A new section is added to chapter 71A.12 RCW to read as follows:

(1)(a) Subject to federal waiver approval, the department shall select a total of two counties, one from each side of the Cascade mountain range, for a two-year person-centered pilot program. The pilot program may include a variety of supports and providers that will enable individuals to have access to either employment or their community, regardless of the degree of each client's disability. The pilot program must allow:

(i) Clients of the department identified as high acuity clients to access both community access and employment services; and

(ii) Clients beginning to receive services from the department for the first time who are not identified as high acuity to choose participation in either community access or employment without enrolling in nine months of employment services as required by RCW 71A.12.290.

(b) The county selected on the west side of the Cascade mountain range must have a population between eight hundred thousand and eight hundred fifty thousand persons. The county selected on the east side of the Cascade mountain range must have a population between fifty thousand and seventy thousand persons.

(2) For purposes of this section, "high acuity clients" means clients of the department who are receiving developmental disability services, require support in the community at all times to maintain health and safety, experience significant barriers to employment or community participation, and require frequent supervision, training, or full physical assistance with community activities most of the time.

(3) By December 1, 2018, the department must submit a report to the governor and the appropriate committees of the legislature that describes the client participation in the pilot program and submit recommendations regarding expansion of the pilot program statewide. The report must include, at a minimum, the following information:

(a) How many individuals select employment services, community access services, or both;

(b) The average number of client hours authorized for employment services and how many employment hours clients received; and

(c) The average cost per hour of community access and employment services.

(4) The department shall seek a waiver from any federal requirements that would prevent federal funding for the pilot program described in this section within sixty days of the effective date of this section.

(5) This section expires July 1, 2019.

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