Requires the office for people with developmental disabilities to create a staffing plan for workforce emergencies when experiencing staffing shortages.
Summary
A00226 would amend the Mental Hygiene Law to require the Commissioner of the Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) to create an emergency staffing plan for state-operated facilities in each region. The plan would be triggered when a region’s staffing fill level falls below 90 percent and would be designed to address workforce emergencies and shortages.
The required staffing plan must include measures to retain and incentivize current employees, including enhanced overtime pay, steps to improve staffing without unnecessarily transferring individuals from their residences, and reducing staff movement between residences. It must also include enhanced recruitment initiatives. The plan would have to be publicly available and posted on the OPWDD website, and the bill would take effect 120 days after becoming law.
Impact
The bill would add a new statutory duty to OPWDD under the Mental Hygiene Law, requiring the agency to prepare and publish regional emergency staffing plans for state-operated developmental disability facilities. It would not directly change eligibility or services for individuals, but it would affect agency workforce management, overtime practices, recruitment efforts, and operational responses to staffing shortages in OPWDD-run residences and facilities.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests strong support for the bill: the Assembly People With Disabilities Committee reported it favorably and advanced it to Ways and Means by a 9-0 vote. No committee transcript is available, but the unanimous committee vote indicates broad agreement with the need to address staffing shortages in developmental disability services and to formalize emergency workforce planning.
Contention
No explicit opposition is reflected in the provided materials, but the bill’s likely points of concern are the cost and feasibility of implementing enhanced overtime pay, recruitment initiatives, and other staffing measures. Another possible issue is whether the 90 percent fill-level trigger and regional planning requirements are sufficient to address chronic staffing shortages without disrupting residents or overburdening existing staff. Support appears to come from lawmakers focused on disability services and workforce stability, while any reservations would likely center on fiscal impact and operational implementation.
Same As
Requires the office for people with developmental disabilities to create a staffing plan for workforce emergencies when experiencing staffing shortages.
Requires the office for people with developmental disabilities to create a staffing plan for workforce emergencies when experiencing staffing shortages.
Requires the office for people with developmental disabilities to create a staffing plan for workforce emergencies when experiencing staffing shortages.
Requires the office for people with developmental disabilities to create a staffing plan for workforce emergencies when experiencing staffing shortages.
Requires the developmental disabilities advisory council to submit an annual comprehensive summary of information about its activities to the office for people with developmental disabilities' website, in an accessible format.
Requires the developmental disabilities advisory council to submit an annual comprehensive summary of information about its activities to the office for people with developmental disabilities' website, in an accessible format.
Requires the Commissioner of the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities to provide care for certain persons with developmental disabilities who have been admitted to hospitals or psychiatric facilities on an emergency basis.
Directs the office for people with developmental disabilities to conduct a study on the feasibility of establishing, implementing and expanding additional housing models that support independent living for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities; requires the office to submit a report on such study to the governor, the temporary president of the senate and the speaker of the assembly.